Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My albino boa has not eaten for the past 2 weeks (not a long time for a snake to not eat...but im still concerned)...

i feed her f/t mice..once per week...the first 2 weeks i had her she ate perfectly...the next 5-6 weeks afterwards, i had to leave her in her feeding bin all night with the mouse to get her to eat it.... now, she just wont eat.

i'm a little concerned...she seems otherwise pretty healthy...shes inquisitive and friendly...

so far to try to get her to start eating i have:

reduced handling
scented mouse with used gerbil substrate (to get gerbil scent on)
put mouse inside a hide to simulate rodent burrow...
black vs. white mouse
small adults instead of large adults (mice)

so far nothing has really seemed to have made a difference...
she has NO feeding response at all...she totally ignores the mouse...and if you put it near her, she shies away...

to my knowledge she has never been harmed by a mouse, in my care she has only been given f/t...

she DOES have an underbite, but i dont think that is effecting her, considering she ate perfectly fine before...

i was wondering if perhaps she could have problems defecating?

she seems to go normally....i feed all of my snakes on sunday night, and i usually soak them in a warm bath around wednesday/thursday evening... they usually defecate in the water....

she has a heat lamp & heat pad...

i'm not sure what else to do...
any advice?

thanks!
jessica

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0.1.0 Hogg Island Boa
0.1.0 Albino Columbian Boa
0.0.1 Red Albino Cornsnake
0.0.1 Aberrant California Kingsnake
1.0.0 Greek Tortoise
1.0.0 Normal Leopard Gecko
0.1.0 Argentine Black & White Tegu
1.0.0 Leopard Toad
0.1.0 Wolf Spider
1.2.0 Dogs
1.2.0 Cats
2.0.0 Rats
1.0.0 Rabbit
1.0.0 Gerbil
0.0.1 Golden Snail

it might be me but the lower jaw looks to have a big underbite. was the snake born that way?

yes she does have an underbite, she was born like that.
-----
0.1.0 Hogg Island Boa
0.1.0 Albino Columbian Boa
0.0.1 Red Albino Cornsnake
0.0.1 Aberrant California Kingsnake
1.0.0 Greek Tortoise
1.0.0 Normal Leopard Gecko
0.1.0 Argentine Black & White Tegu
1.0.0 Leopard Toad
0.1.0 Wolf Spider
1.2.0 Dogs
1.2.0 Cats
2.0.0 Rats
1.0.0 Rabbit
1.0.0 Gerbil
0.0.1 Golden Snail

Birth defects might be hiding other internal problems.

Why do you soak your snakes to cause them to defecate? That is much sooner than they would normally have a bowel movement following feeding. Let them go on their own, unless there is an obvious blockage issue.
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http://www.GilbertBoas.com/

i dont soak them to cause them to defecate...
i soak them to help with shedding...

also, i like to soak them to give them some exercise (swimming)...

i dont like the thought of snakes being locked in cages all their lives...they deserve some sort of physical and intellectual stimulation...
-----
0.1.0 Hogg Island Boa
0.1.0 Albino Columbian Boa
0.0.1 Red Albino Cornsnake
0.0.1 Aberrant California Kingsnake
1.0.0 Greek Tortoise
1.0.0 Normal Leopard Gecko
0.1.0 Argentine Black & White Tegu
1.0.0 Leopard Toad
0.1.0 Wolf Spider
1.2.0 Dogs
1.2.0 Cats
2.0.0 Rats
1.0.0 Rabbit
1.0.0 Gerbil
0.0.1 Golden Snail

I agree they need stimulation and exercise, I was just a little confused by the original post.
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http://www.GilbertBoas.com/

If your soaking dureing a "blue phase" then your most likely stressing the feeding response right out of the animal.
Try misting instead of the other aggressive human interferance.
Sorry but the "intellectual stimulation" part aint happen'n.
Its a snake and it doesnt care how smart you think you are,its not interested.

Good Luck !

M/

>>i dont soak them to cause them to defecate...
>>i soak them to help with shedding...
>>
>>also, i like to soak them to give them some exercise (swimming)...
>>
>>i dont like the thought of snakes being locked in cages all their lives...they deserve some sort of physical and intellectual stimulation...
>>-----
>>

Try bumping your temps up acouple degrees and see what happens.
It has worked for many stubborn feeders,yes something as simple as 2* will will kick'em right off.

M/

will do...how do you reccommend doing that?

should i turn up the temps in the entire room? or just put a heat lamp or two on her cage?...how long do you reccommend leaving the lamps on?

also, she is going to shed soon...i noticed her eyes blue over & then clear up in the past few days, so i have a humidity box...its pretty basic...its just a critter keeper with a warm damp towel in the bottom that i placed on the warm side of her cage...(with lid open so she can come & go as she likes)

if you have any other advice i would be glad to hear it!...i am by no means an expert, and i am most concerned with the physical and mental health of my animals...

thanks so much, your advice is helpful!
-----
0.1.0 Hogg Island Boa
0.1.0 Albino Columbian Boa
0.0.1 Red Albino Cornsnake
0.0.1 Aberrant California Kingsnake
1.0.0 Greek Tortoise
1.0.0 Normal Leopard Gecko
0.1.0 Argentine Black & White Tegu
1.0.0 Leopard Toad
0.1.0 Wolf Spider
1.2.0 Dogs
1.2.0 Cats
2.0.0 Rats
1.0.0 Rabbit
1.0.0 Gerbil
0.0.1 Golden Snail

If you saw her eyes go blue recently then it is perfectly normal for her not to eat. The shed process starts before you can actually see the eye blueing and it is harder to tell with albinos. Leave her alone until after she sheds and if she was a good eater before I bet she will eat after she sheds.

I've always had luck when I heat the mouse up (assuming it's frozen thawed of course). I don't remember ever reading that boas have temp sensitive pits but whenever I've had a stubborn feeder, if I soak the rat in hot water for a few minutes, dry it off and offer it, they take it with no problem.

BCI are not like BP's. They don't just go off of feed for what seems to be no reason at all. A non feeding BCI is usually a sign that something is seriously wrong. However, it has only been 2 weeks, and the shed cycle can account for last week. But I would not waste time waiting to see what happens.

What are your temps in the cage? Temps that are too high can stress a snake and turn it off of food just as fast, if not faster than low temps. With summer approaching temps can creep up quickly in any cage heated buy heat lamps if a quality thermostat isn't used. Recheck your temps and make sure that you have a warm area around 90-92 degrees with an ambient temp around 80.

Also, get a fecal exam done. Not that you sould expect a problem, but it is nice to eliminate the possibility of a high parasite load. Even captive born and/or wormed snakes can get parasites from food, other animals, etc...

The whole jaw deformity thing would not be something I would be thrilled about. It is a sign of a sub par animal that could have other problems that are just starting to show up. Any real breeder would have not sold that animal, IMHO.

I got her to eat finally... i think the raising temps helped a lot...also, i fed her in her enclosure...which maybe she feels more secure in there, but either way...she took them perfectly...

thanks for all the advice!
-----
0.1.0 Hogg Island Boa
0.1.0 Albino Columbian Boa
0.0.1 Red Albino Cornsnake
0.0.1 Aberrant California Kingsnake
1.0.0 Greek Tortoise
1.0.0 Normal Leopard Gecko
0.1.0 Argentine Black & White Tegu
1.0.0 Leopard Toad
0.1.0 Wolf Spider
1.2.0 Dogs
1.2.0 Cats
2.0.0 Rats
1.0.0 Rabbit
1.0.0 Gerbil
0.0.1 Golden Snail

Great news,some people just get way to anal when it comes to these animals.They are not complicated animals,unless you involve human interaction. There are a ton of web-wizards with pockets full of cures.Stick to the simple basics.

M/

>>I got her to eat finally... i think the raising temps helped a lot...also, i fed her in her enclosure...which maybe she feels more secure in there, but either way...she took them perfectly...
>>
>>thanks for all the advice!
>>-----
>>0.1.0 Hogg Island Boa
>>0.1.0 Albino Columbian Boa
>>0.0.1 Red Albino Cornsnake
>>0.0.1 Aberrant California Kingsnake
>>1.0.0 Greek Tortoise
>>1.0.0 Normal Leopard Gecko
>>0.1.0 Argentine Black & White Tegu
>>1.0.0 Leopard Toad
>>0.1.0 Wolf Spider
>>1.2.0 Dogs
>>1.2.0 Cats
>>2.0.0 Rats
>>1.0.0 Rabbit
>>1.0.0 Gerbil
>>0.0.1 Golden Snail