Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Fed our '07 BRB 2 medium fuzzies tonight. I'm used to dealing w/ Gophers & Kings (hardy eating machines). I was a bit worried about feeding our BRB,(his name is Copper) the second fuzzy, but he looked hungry. Are there any regurge or overfeeding issues we should be concerned about?

reako45

If the enclosure conditions are good then BRB's are eating machines lol. Definitely more so then my kings and a close race with my gopher snakes.

Sean.

2 fuzzies should be ok. I use one large fuzzyfor my new babies for 2 to 3 weeks until I feel they are settled in. I then switch them to a hopper once per week and then try to get them to small mice after a few weeks on hoppers.

I like to feed only one feeder per week to each animal.

I plan to switch to rats even for my babies, so I am currntly trying to use my frozen mouse supply up.
-----
Mike

6.7 BRB
1.2 Spotted Python
1.0 Cal. King

Thank you for the advice and info. I wasn't sure hat to expect when my wife bought this snake @ first, but after handling it for the first time a couple of days ago I really like him.

reako45

CARE OF NEWBORN BRAZILIAN RAINBOW BOAS

Epicrates cenchria cenchria

By Jeff Clark

Brazilian Rainbow Boas (BRBs) make great pets. They are very hardy and
typically grow to around 6 feet in length. Many BRBs have been kept in
captivity for over 20 years. Their size is much more manageable and
practical than many of the other Boas and Pythons. They do require high
humidity. This is especially important when they are small. If kept too dry
they will dehydrate. Minor dehydration will cause feeding and shedding
problems. Major dehydration will kill them. Baby BRBs should be maintained
with close to 100% humidity in their cages. This can be accomplished by
using damp substrate and limiting the ventilation. They do require some
ventilation but in cages with large screen sides or screen tops the humidity
will rapidly escape from the cage. Ideal substrate material for little BRBs
is paper-towels or newspaper. The advantage of paper-towels and newsprint is
that it can be easily changed. Damp substrate will quickly grow mold. It
should be changed often. BRBs drink more water and pass more liquid urine
than most other snakes. Substrate that is kept in the cage too long will
become contaminated with urates which are very acidic and this will harm the
snake's skin. Many people use mulch and chipped bark substrates. Some of
these substrates are excellent but you should be careful not to use one that
is too acidic or one from a garden center that may have parasites in it. I
especially like the cocoanut husk chunks and chips substrates for BRBs. It
is vitally important to not use cedar substrate. The oils in cedar and
similar woods are toxic to snakes. Pine shavings and aspen shavings are also
not suitable for BRBs. Did I mention that you should change the substrate
often? BRBs require cages with a cool end in the low 70s and the warm end
in the high 70s to very low 80s. If you keep them in cages that are too
small to maintain a temperature gradient in the cage they should be kept
with the entire cage in the mid 70s. Temperatures higher than 85 can quickly
cause dehydration and death. Most reptile heating products are too hot for
Rainbow Boas. These snakes are nocturnal and secretive. Using overhead
lights to heat their cages will create too much stress for a BRB. Cage
temperatures must be controlled with a proportional thermostat or a
carefully set and monitored rheostat. Don't guess what the temperature is
down in the cage where the snake spends most of it's time. Invest in good
temperature measuring equipment and use it often to make sure you do not
overheat your BRB. BRB temperature requirements are 10 to 15 degrees cooler
than what is required for many other boids including Ball Pythons, Boa
Constrictors and Burmese and Reticulated Pythons. People who try to keep
BRBs hot like they keep their other boids often kill them. Extra care should
be taken when transporting BRBs. If left in a closed car in the sun the
temperature will rapidly rise and kill them. BRBs should be provided with
caging with hiding spots so that they can avoid light and activity. Small
plastic containers like margarine is packaged in with a small entry hole cut
into the side of the container work well. Place substrate material such as
damp moss or damp papertowels in the hiding container. BRBs need a waterbowl
in their cage that is large enough for them to submerge. They will often
soak in the water for several days before shedding. However, when they do
not have a good hiding spot they may have to use the waterbowl for a hiding
spot and spend too much time in the water. Adult BRBs can be set up in
elaborate naturalistic caging. They look especially nice in large cages with
exotic plants. However they will spend much of the daylight hours hiding in
or under the plants. It is best with a new little BRB to keep the caging
simple to make sure the snake is doing okay before adding too many variables
that may cause problems. After the snake is acclimated and doing well you
can make small changes in the caging and try different substrates and plants
making one change at a time. Little BRBs should be fed small live mice at
first. Many will also take live pinky rats for their first meals. They will
feed much more readily on a live meal than a dead meal. They also like mice
that are large enough to run around much more than they like pinky or small
fuzzy mice. I have actually fed full-grown adult mice to BRBs for their
first meal. They can handle very large prey but are more likely to
regurgitate if fed extremely large meals When they have become accustomed to
eating live prey they will easily switch to eating fresh killed and then
frozen and thawed prey. Thawed prey will work best if it is heated to around
105 degrees for the first feeding attempts with it. BRBs are always more
likely to eat undisturbed in the dark than when being closely watched in
bright daylight. Do not force-feed a BRB. Force feeding is very stressful
and stress is often the reason that one will not eat. These snakes are
eating machines. If your BRB does not eat it is because of stress or
improper husbandry. Eliminate the stress and correct the husbandry and they
will eat readily. The most common husbandry problems are keeping the snake
too hot or too dry or subjecting it to too much light or activity. Little
BRBs have a very simple outlook on other living things. Anything it sees
moving is either a predator or prey. When first born they will often strike
and bite. The bite of a little BRB is not painful and usually does not
bleed. If you handle the snake for several minutes everyday it will quickly
become tame. If it bites or strikes it is because it is afraid of you or it
thinks it can eat you. Just let it bite and hold on and chew if it wants. By
doing this it will learn that you are too big to eat and that you are not
harming it and that striking and biting will not make you go away. If you do
retreat when it strikes you will reinforce the striking and biting behavior.
Little BRBs can be handled for as much as an hour per day. Too much handling
can cause stress and stress may cause them to not feed. It is okay to have
them out of their cages in humidity much lower than 100% for short handling
periods.

If you have any problems with your BRB email me at
jclarksnakes@comcast.net

Visit the Rainbow Boa forum on kingsnake.com to get answers to any questions
you may have about Rainbow Boas. The archives of posts there are full of
information. My Rainbow Boa website has information on breeding Rainbow Boas
and also has information about and photographs of the other subspecies of
Rainbow Boas. The website is located at
http://www.corallus.com/cenchria/index.html