My boa is about 15 months old. I believe him to be C. Imperator. I notice that every few inches he has a ring of scales that stick out. When I say ring, I mean one scale all the way around the back and sides of the snake, but not on the bottom. They all stick out the same way, making a perfect semicircle. They stick straight out to the sides, rather than flat on top of each other like they should... His sheds seems normal, and I do not notice scale rot or anything like that. Could it be a genetic flaw? A problem with the feeding schedule? He does not appear wrinkled, and with the exception of the rings, his scales appear healthy and smooth, and he is fairly active... They vaguely resemble stretch marks on a human. He is about 4 feet long or so, and a few inches thick at his thickest part...
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Boa with "rings" of scales...
Replies (2)
It sounds like this is normal. It usually results from the snake coiling up in a small space, such as a hide box. The tight turns that the snake makes actually bends the scales. Try getting your boa a bigger hidebox, see if that helps.
Good luck.
YES,IT IS COMPLETELY NORMAL,EXEPT THAT MAYBE YOU MIGHT HAVE TO WATCH HOW MUCH YOUR FEEDING YOUR SNAKE.OBESITY IS VERY COMMON IN BOA CONSTRICTOR IMPERATORS.THOSE RINGS YOU ARE SEEING ARE SOMETIMES CALLED FAT RINGS,AND IS ONE OF THE SIGNS OF OBESITY.GO LONGER BEETWEEN MEALS AND SMALLER PREY AND YOUR BOA WILL LIVE A LONGER AND HEALTHIER LIFE.GOOD LUCK
