Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Is it the moment the year changes? Say if an animal was born on Christmas - is it then a yearling Jan. 1st? Or is a yearly one that is at or near one year old? This yearling business can be very deceptive.
I purchased a yearling (supposed to be 2.5'+) from someone...it is 24" stretched (I didn't stretch it of course - but it was barely or almost there)and no biger around than my middle finger (too thin in my opinion - it did not feel very strong, my baby is stronger). The boa is a salmon, so not as large as say a BCC, but I would still think yearling size would be more along the lines of at least 30" and fatter for sure.
I am not trying to critisize the breeder or anything like that...just seeking opinions. He is accepting the boa back, that is not an issue.
I've tried to take obscure pics of the snake so that it cannot be recognized, but yet general size can be seen.

In a lazyboy chair:

Compared to my hand:

comparison again:

Please give me your opinions.
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Photos

n/p
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Photos

Hi Laura, well, a yearling CAN be anywhere between say 18" on the extreme end, to as much 48" on the other extreme end..
Not that these are healthy measurements though! lol

I've seen extreme cases either way..

One thing to remember is that most hypo's still have a strong Central American influence... these babies are much smaller and thinner compared to colombians..

Another thing is that some morphs these days grow faster and some slower than others...
I have heard of some Albinos growing very slowly and some hypos growing extremely quickly, on a normal diet..

FROM YOUR PIC, it looks to me that this boa is extremely thin..

Usually, if you see loose skin around the stomach, this can lean either way... maybe he didn't eat for a week or so, he could be just fine..
As i'm sure you know, boas store fat around the tail region, and in this case, it looks as though there is much loose skin around the tail region.
If my vision is correct, from those pics, it appears as if this animals Fat Reserves are very low and almost nil - this can be and usually is a bad sign and usually a sign that the animal has been underfed, whether by choice, or because he won't eat well.

I don't know what he looks like in the flesh or who you got him from, but unless you were willing to dedicate some time and patience to nurse him back to weight, and possibly lose him and $ in the process, I would return him immediately.
Again, this is just my opinion from what I can see in these pics.

I also have some salmons that appear smaller than some babies... they are long and thin, but they have their fat reserves... they are not loose and 'baggy', especially around the tail area.

Hope this helps...

P.S. If he eats for you with NO problems, I may take the chance and keep it.

thanks, Joe
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Thanks and take care - Joe Rollo
'Tis not the stongest of the species that will eventually survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change' Charles Darwin

A 'yearling' would be any of the days between the first birthday (if you will) and the 2nd. Much like the post below your about average sizes, there can be a GREAT difference, like Joe pointed out, in the sizes of your snakes (see my post below under "slithern"....if I spelled that right).
I have a pair of stripes/66% het albino. They were both born in May of last year. They BOTH have the exact same diet and feeding times. My female is twice the thickness as the male and she is about 6-8" longer.
Humans are no different. I am 6'1" and 185lbs. I eat two to three meals a day and weight does not change. I have a good friend who is about 2' shorter than me, eats BIG MEALS 3-4 times a day and I have never (in 12 years) known him to weigh more than 150lbs. People (in this case snakes) just differ from each other.

I would agree that your snake is thin. Look how the body towards the belly goes in so much. Almost like a lightbulb shape if you will. I would think with a steady diet of small rats about 5-7 days aprat, you will see that the hypo will be fine and proportionate like it should in a couple months.
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Brian Oakley
Phoenix, Arizona
BrianOakley@cox.net

Hi Laura,

Just to add a tad to what has already been said... The term "yearling" is a word that is commonly used for livestock like cattle and horses. It refers to an animal that is 1 year old. Because an animal nearing 2 will be considerably larger than one that has just turned 1, a yearling nearing two will sometimes be referred to as a "long" yearling.

Your baby there does look very slender, indeed. In my Ghost litter born last spring, I noticed quite a size variation in the babies. After a few months, all but two ended up being about the same size. Those two, which are among my keepers, are quite a bit smaller than their littermates. Looking a them, you wouldn't even think they are from the same litter as the others. I don't care, really, I like them as individuals even though they are smaller. It will be interesting to see if they continue to be smaller, comparatively, or if they eventually catch up.