Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Okay so I fed my guy a little weaner rat.It was bigger then the mice Ive been feeding it but figured it would be okay.this morning it was still in there and I know for sure he took it last night.
But it was slimy.Not at all digested but covered completely in slime.I dont know if he just didnt like it or if its a regurge.How do you tell? It was a big smelly, thats how I knew something was up.

My first thought was the heat was too high and while the temps were a bit higher then normal because I bumped the dimmer accidentally looking for an escapee cornsnake, it was not that high at 89, I reset it back to 85.

Any thoughts on what I should do at this point?
Just let him rest for a few weeks and try with a small mouse again?

I did do something different this time as well.I dusted everyones food in some herptivite.Just the back ends so they wouldnt taste it..Maybe he could taste it and spit it back out.IDK..

85 is too hot, at 89, no wonder it came back up. I keep my babies at 79-80 and the adults at 82 on the warm side of the enclosure.
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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 (02/01/2010):
42.61 BRB
27.40 BCI
And those are only the breeders

lots.lots.lots feeder mice and rats

89 is way too hot for these snakes. Especially when they are small. Hot temperatures will often result in regurgitation. temperatures in the high 80s with a few regurgitations will result in dehydration and death. My little Rainbow Boas are in unheated cages. The snake room is usually in the mid to high 70s. On the hottest days of the year it may go up to 81 in the afternoon. During the winter when I am cooling my adults the room is often in the 60s and again the little ones have no cage heat and they eat and digest and grow just fine. If you are keeping a little one in a smallish cage it is imperative that you not heat the cage above the very low 80s. If you have a larger cage it is fine to have most of the cage in the 70s with a warmer spot or corner of the cage in the 80s. The snake will choose the location in the cage that provides the temperature it wants. When my adults are digesting they are often in the warm spots in their cages with their body temperature (measured with a temp gun) in the low 80s. When they are not digesting they are often in the cooler part of the cage with their body temperature around the mid 70s. They know what they need and want. They are even telling us what temperatures they like. We should listen to them.

Ive turned off his heat entirely.I didnt realize they didnt need a basking site.The room is usually in the high 70's on average.
I will skip a feeding and then start small again.Poor guy, didnt know I was frying him.