Reptile & Amphibian Forums

If a gravid boa doesn't spend much time at all over the bellly heat, is this indicative of a slugfest?

I have found that most slug bound females tend to behave just as if they were gravid with good litters, they even defend the slugs after birth as if they were babies. I have three total slugouts in the last five years and they all acted like they were gravid. Good Luck.

Al Brown/Brown's Boas

I have an amarali that I thought was pregnant but she was due on
05/05/08 & she just shed a couple of days ago.

She is plump, and is always in a heat retaining position, but
I ended up feeding her yesterday. I hadn't fed her in over a month. I'm right about to write it off as a loss.

intermediate sheds are NOT any indication of anything, one of my females this year, Candy, had not just one but TWO sheds between her POS and having her litter. Her litter was just fine!!!
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Thanks,

Dave Colling

www.rainbows-r-us-reptiles.com

0.1 Wife (WC and still very fiesty)
0.2 kids (CBB, a big part of our selective breeding program)

LOL, to many snakes to list, last count:
26.49 BRB
20.21 BCI
And those are only the breeders

lots.lots.lots feeder mice and rats

A few warning signs of high or complete slub litters can be:

1) lower body temps. My girls seem to be around 87 to 88 at warmest when they are carrying good litters. For high or complete slug litters this CAN be about 3-4 degrees less with since they do not hold and conduct heat the same as viable embryos/babies.

2) If they are full of slugs many times boas will appear 'lumpy' as slugs are harder than a baby which is very pliable. If they are full of babies they appear more smooth (like a sack of water) so to speak. This can be a sign of high or all slugs.

I have not had a litter slug out but I have had a high slug count this season. This female was normal on temps as she still had 18 healthy babies in her, but she did apprear much more lumpy than the girls who had zero to only a few slugs in them.

I hope this is of some assistance and is only a general guideline as a rule of thumb1

Warm Regards,
Trey Stowell
Wichita, KS

Hmmmmm, I have a female that can look pretty depending on her position. When I run the dopler heart monitor over her I pick up little heartbeats all over the place. Here are a few pics of her at various POS days...

At POS + 15 (03/20)

At POS + 28 (04/02)

At POS + 93 (06/06)

Due in a week.....pace, pace, pace. I keep checking in on her and am very happy to not see anything, don't want her dropping early!!!!
-----
Thanks,

Dave Colling

www.rainbows-r-us-reptiles.com

0.1 Wife (WC and still very fiesty)
0.2 kids (CBB, a big part of our selective breeding program)

LOL, to many snakes to list, last count:
26.49 BRB
20.21 BCI
And those are only the breeders

lots.lots.lots feeder mice and rats

Hmmmmm, I have a female that can look pretty lumpy depending on her position. When I run the dopler heart monitor over her I pick up little heartbeats all over the place. Here are a few pics of her at various POS days...

-----
Thanks,

Dave Colling

www.rainbows-r-us-reptiles.com

0.1 Wife (WC and still very fiesty)
0.2 kids (CBB, a big part of our selective breeding program)

LOL, to many snakes to list, last count:
26.49 BRB
20.21 BCI
And those are only the breeders

lots.lots.lots feeder mice and rats

>>A few warning signs of high or complete slub litters can be:
>>
>>1) lower body temps. My girls seem to be around 87 to 88 at warmest when they are carrying good litters. For high or complete slug litters this CAN be about 3-4 degrees less with since they do not hold and conduct heat the same as viable embryos/babies.
>>
>>2) If they are full of slugs many times boas will appear 'lumpy' as slugs are harder than a baby which is very pliable. If they are full of babies they appear more smooth (like a sack of water) so to speak. This can be a sign of high or all slugs.
>>
>>I have not had a litter slug out but I have had a high slug count this season. This female was normal on temps as she still had 18 healthy babies in her, but she did apprear much more lumpy than the girls who had zero to only a few slugs in them.
>>
>>I hope this is of some assistance and is only a general guideline as a rule of thumb1
>>
>>Warm Regards,
>>Trey Stowell
>>Wichita, KS

Hindsights 20/20 but looking back at my slug out this season both are indictive of mine.

My female had lower body temps almost at room temp, last season she maintained at least a few degrees above. Room temps in the mid 80's or the cool side of the cage. When I measured last year it was like you swallowed a heat pack and was maintaing high tmeps even off heat.

Also the lumpy look, while she never appeared lumpy, the slugs weren't really full term. Almost like she just didn't want to re-absorb them, rather just throw them and move on. She did birth 4 stills so maybe the late season combined with less than ideal conditions made her have a premature litter. By count she was almost 30 days early....

Like I said hindsights 20/20...but I agree sometimes we really should go with our gut feeling.

Cheers
-----
Jeremy Payne
Owner
JB Reptile
www.jbreptile.com **Coming Sooner or Later**

"I am become death, the destroyer of worlds" July 16, 1945 Robert Oppenheimer

0.1 Motley Het Anery **In aquisition**
1.0 Snow "Khal"
0.2 Triple Het Moonglow "Khal" **coming Soon**
1.1 Double Het "Sharp" Snow
1.0 Ghost **coming soon**
1.0 Hypomelenistic
1.2 Pastel Hypo
0.1 Suriname/Columbian cross
0.1 Anerthrystic
1.1 Cream Golden Retrieviers
1.0 Pomeriaian
0.3 Catus Terribilis
0.1 Spouse
2.0 Child

>>Hindsights 20/20 but looking back at my slug out this season both are indictive of mine.
>>
>>My female had lower body temps almost at room temp, last season she maintained at least a few degrees above. Room temps in the mid 80's or the cool side of the cage. When I measured last year it was like you swallowed a heat pack and was maintaing high tmeps even off heat.
>>
>>Also the lumpy look, while she never appeared lumpy, the slugs weren't really full term. Almost like she just didn't want to re-absorb them, rather just throw them and move on. She did birth 4 stills so maybe the late season combined with less than ideal conditions made her have a premature litter. By count she was almost 30 days early....
>>
>>Like I said hindsights 20/20...but I agree sometimes we really should go with our gut feeling.

Yeah, but then again, my gut was telling me my DH Snow was packing nothing or slugs and you know what lil surprises popped outa her!!!!

She was looking/acting just like two others that slugged/preemied out. Only difference was she went 103 days POS vs weeks early. That and 4 nice lil babies!!! All ar edoing fine BTW!! With the Moonglow being the healthiest IMO!!!
-----
Thanks,

Dave Colling

www.rainbows-r-us-reptiles.com

0.1 Wife (WC and still very fiesty)
0.2 kids (CBB, a big part of our selective breeding program)

LOL, to many snakes to list, last count:
26.49 BRB
20.21 BCI
And those are only the breeders

lots.lots.lots feeder mice and rats

>>>> All ar edoing fine BTW!! With the Moonglow being the healthiest IMO!!!

Hey Dave, that's good to hear! Can't wait to see the post shed pics!
-april
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'There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."' -Rainshadow

>>Yeah, but then again, my gut was telling me my DH Snow was packing nothing or slugs and you know what lil surprises popped outa her!!!!

I take gut feeling like I take pychic readings, very vague. To me you either have a good litter or a bad litter. Your's Dave wasn't really either they kinda weighed each other out....Lucky SOB...LOL

I'm glad to here the moonglow is doing great.

How are the rest? Albino/Sunglow specifically
-----
Jeremy Payne
Owner
JB Reptile
www.jbreptile.com **Coming Sooner or Later**

"I am become death, the destroyer of worlds" July 16, 1945 Robert Oppenheimer

0.1 Motley Het Anery **In aquisition**
1.0 Snow "Khal"
0.2 Triple Het Moonglow "Khal" **coming Soon**
1.1 Double Het "Sharp" Snow
1.0 Ghost **coming soon**
1.0 Hypomelenistic
1.2 Pastel Hypo
0.1 Suriname/Columbian cross
0.1 Anerthrystic
1.1 Cream Golden Retrieviers
1.0 Pomeriaian
0.3 Catus Terribilis
0.1 Spouse
2.0 Child

Once ovum are released, they can't be absorbed. Thier is no way for the plumbing to reabsorb/digest them. If they do let ovum go and they aren't fertilized, they will continue on down the line. If they aren't gravid, chances are they didn't ovulate, even though it may "look" like they have.

>>Once ovum are released, they can't be absorbed. Thier is no way for the plumbing to reabsorb/digest them. If they do let ovum go and they aren't fertilized, they will continue on down the line. If they aren't gravid, chances are they didn't ovulate, even though it may "look" like they have.

I was actually refering to the follicles in regards to the reabsorbtion as I never witnessed an ovulation swell. However with the 4 stills it must have happened at some point.

All the slugs were very tiny.....

Bad year for me but mom is doing good, I'll try her again this comming season, just a bit late. Still good muscle tone...
-----
Jeremy Payne
Owner
JB Reptile
www.jbreptile.com **Coming Sooner or Later**

"I am become death, the destroyer of worlds" July 16, 1945 Robert Oppenheimer

0.1 Motley Het Anery **In aquisition**
1.0 Snow "Khal"
0.2 Triple Het Moonglow "Khal" **coming Soon**
1.1 Double Het "Sharp" Snow
1.0 Ghost **coming soon**
1.0 Hypomelenistic
1.2 Pastel Hypo
0.1 Suriname/Columbian cross
0.1 Anerthrystic
1.1 Cream Golden Retrieviers
1.0 Pomeriaian
0.3 Catus Terribilis
0.1 Spouse
2.0 Child