Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a Columbian Boa who's been to a couple different vets and I'm having trouble getting a straight answer out of them. The last one said she was anemic due to the light color of her gums. He said we should be giving her vitamin a & d, but he never said how much. We keep asking him and he just says maybe once every other feeding and then talks about something else. He also said that my other snakes should get supplements, too. I have a 10 year old Milk snake, a year old rat snake, and 2 14 month old corns. I have Vitamin D tablets (people vitamins) that are 400 IU and Vitamin A softgels that are 8000 IU, but that seems like a lot. Any ideas?

If fed healthy, well fed rodents, most snakes shouldn't need additional vitamins. Also, the gums of a snake shouldn't be red like ours or a dog's. Light pink is what you want.

Investigate your rodent source and ask about what they feed the animals. Healthy rodents = healthy herps.

-Cole

Does your boa seem healthy? A number of vets know nothing about reptiles. A boa's mouth should be light pink, almost white. Snakes don't need vitamin supplements if they are eating rodents.

Tim