Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Can snakes develop metabolic bone disease? Do gravid egg layers need excess calcium supplementation? Do gravid female egg layers require uvb lighting?

I have never personally heard of a snake getting MBD. Since snakes generally feed on whole organisms with intact skeleton and internal organs, they are getting the benefits of the calcium and other nutrients from their prey. Snakes do not require UVB to assimilate these nutrients from their food, gravid or not. As long as the female has good body weight, egg laying doesnt require extra supplementation or UVB.

Do some people need to get some good books on these subjects if they REALLY want to know about them?

Can these subjects be reasearched better elsewhere?

Are you just asking these questions here for the heck of it?
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com

If you don't know the answer, just say you don't know. The purpose of a forum is to seek information.

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There have been several posts recently on most of the forums that are REALLY showing folks getting involved in aspects of the hobby they don't understand and that could also severly impact the health and well being of the animals they are working with. I am not picking on the OPs original post and the question was legitimate. BUT, in the case of this specific post, there are no quick and absolute answers. However, there are SEVERAL books and articles that cover this topic in depth so one can formulate their own answers on the subject and determine what they are comfortable doing with their animals. Trying to answer a question of this potential complexity on a forum is all but impossible. All you will really get is other hobbyists personal opinions. And, any opinion stated worth a dime will most likely be given by someone who has spent the time reading and studying these subjects and formulated their own course of action in dealing with the issue or subject. I get the impression some folks feel they can learn auto mechanics or brain surgery on a forum!! Tweaking something from advice on a forum is one thing, trying to learn something of any complexity from square one is just really not feasible. I find it analogous to me getting on an astronomy forum and asking why the universe exists!!

In direct response to Mr. Gordon I say "You are correct". If you dont have an actual answer or advice to give on the post, dont reply. I am going to follow this from now on and hope other folks that contribute to these forums do like wise.

UT, in the case of this specific post, there are no quick and absolute answers

In my experience, those are the best topics for discussion
FWIW, I've used UVs on garters when I've kept them, and I probably would on many of the more diurnal snakes, particularly ones that eat inverts as a large part of their prey base (some garters, rough greens, etc).
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We wouldn't have 6 and a half billion people if you had to be beautiful to get laid.
6.6 African House snakes
3.2 reticulated pythons
.1 corn snake
4.2 Florida Kings
1.2 speckled kings
1.2 ball pythons
0.0.1 Argentine boa

of this forum. I agree with some of your post, especially with the section on your agreement with Rick. If you can’t add something constructive or informative in the response to a serious question, or feel the need to make a condescending comment, it’s obviously better to say nothing. I don’t personally feel that any of the above questions were out of line on this forum. They were all pertinent to its general scope and all important questions with regards to the general health and husbandry of captive reptiles in general. They were definitely not of such complexity that they would be self-exclusive with regards to the format of this forum.

I agree that it is always important to self-research topics such as these, but this forum is all about the personal opinions of others as a learning tool and an avenue for the dissemination of ideas and experiences. Knowledge is all about getting as much information as possible from as many sources as possible so as to make an informed decision. It’s always up to the individual to weigh the opinions received and use his or her experiences and intellect to assess the validity of that information.

I thought your original answers were fairly good, as well as those by Rick below and hope that everyone on the forum maintains an open mind. Most people really are on this forum to learn from individuals that may have more experience than they have with regards to a given subject.

Kelly

Good points Kelly, I would add that one should not assume that someone asking a basic question isn't going to, or even hasn't already, researched it completely. Personally I am a firm believer in never asking a question you don't already know the answer too. For me the purpose of a question is to see someone has a different answer then what I am expecting. Many people are asking question not because they can't google it, but because they want to know what "YOUR" answer is! And you might also find that if you take your experience and apply it to answering a simple question that you might realize a new tinge of truth you haven't previously struck on before!

See, I'd rather have someone ask something where the answer's hazy. Yeah, if someone post up asking what sort of animal to feed their new corn snake...then they likely didn't do *any* research. If it's something that's debated, maybe they did do some research but want to hear from other keepers who've tried different things.
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We wouldn't have 6 and a half billion people if you had to be beautiful to get laid.
6.6 African House snakes
3.2 reticulated pythons
.1 corn snake
4.2 Florida Kings
1.2 speckled kings
1.2 ball pythons
0.0.1 Argentine boa

I concur with the Rough green snakes, they definitely do better with full spectrum, though I don't know if has anything to do with calcium metabolism. And I agree any cricket or insect eating snake should be given a calcium suppliment.

Breeding snakes do benefit from calcium suppliments, while they generally do not get bone disease, they can become egg bound if they low levels of calcium in their blood. If you allow your snakes to double clutch, you should be providing a calcium suppliment just to be safe. The type of food being feed is also a consideration pinky mice have a lower calcium to phosophorus ratio then full grown mice, so neonates also benefit from calcium suppliments.