Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello. Can someone please provide a basic care guide for a baby Green Anaconda? Minimum enclosure dimensions, day/night temperatures, humidity levels, preferred way of heating, substrate/cage furniture, how often to feed, and everything in-between that I couldn't think of to mention. Thanks in advance!

T.J. Gould

T.J.,
The following is an excerpt from an article I wrote not too long ago that should answer most of your questions. Let me know if you have any that were not covered.

Kelly

Maintenance of Neonates

The young anacondas were setup in 28-quart plastic containers lined with newspaper. All cages were supplied with a hide box, small water bowl, and another small bowl containing saturated paper towels for humidity. This humidity bowl was placed over the heat source to increase its effectiveness. Again, a large water container for soaking was avoided. Bowls used for drinking should be small enough that the neonates cannot get their whole body into them and displace the water. Interestingly, the young showed little desire to try and coil up in their water bowls. Proper temperature was provided by heat tape under the rear third of the container and was set to produced a gradient across the cage floor of from about 80 degrees to 90 degrees Fahrenheit.

Although the female accepted food a few days after the birth, feeding attempts with the young were not started for two or three weeks. Even though none of them fed initially, this was not surprising for newborn anacondas. Juvenile mice and rat fuzzies, alive and fresh killed were tried for the next two months without success. Young anacondas can sometimes be difficult to start feeding. Previously raised neonates showed that some prefer small mice, while others may hold out for rat fuzzies. Some may want live prey in the beginning while others take frozen-thawed without hesitation. A select few may even require the use of fish to start them feeding. The young we produced required chicks to initiate their feeding response. All neonates struck and ate the chicks immediately when they were first offered. After a couple of feedings, chick scented, fresh killed weanling rats were readily accepted. Over the next month or two, we were able to switch them over to unscented rats. No health problems of any kind were encountered with the young.

The keys to initiate feeding success with young anacondas are proper environmental conditions, as little disturbance as possible, and the offering of a variety of food items. It is best to make initial feeding attempts at night, as young anacondas seem to feed best in the dark. Also, if the food item is harmless, leave it with the neonate until morning. Try different food types until you find one that works. Anacondas have very low metabolic rates, even for boids, and healthy, young animals can go months without feeding and still appear robust. Once they begin feeding, switching them over to a more easily obtainable food item by scenting is usually not a problem. It is best to get them feeding on pre-killed or frozen-thawed rats as soon as possible. Weekly feedings of a relatively large prey item works well for neonates. As they grow, the size of the food item and the feeding schedule will need to be adjusted accordingly. Sub-adults and adults can be fed larger meals, such as rabbits, at 10 day to four-week intervals depending on their age and rate of growth. Because of their slow metabolism, green anacondas are prone to obesity in captivity. While snakes in general should not be " power fed ", this is even more critical with green anacondas. When heavily fed, even younger anacondas will tend to quickly put on girth as opposed to length.