Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Thanks for all the replys to my past post. I have tried a number of things but still cannot get my Dumerils to eat. I have had him for exactly 10 days now. Is this typical for this species, should he come around soon? When should I be getting worried (I already am)? Thanks for any replies

and everything else is consistent ie it is not a male breeder. Then the first place you need to look is within the husbandry methods that you keep and the snakes general health(direct effect of husbandry) Make sure you are keeping proper temps to ensure metabolization. If the animals temps are to low then they well resist food in knowing that they can not digest it. Look at your substrate and make sure it is correct. That is general topical info. Other health issues, ie parasites internal or external or respiratory issues can also hinder feeding(might require vet visit). Hope this points you in the right direction. OHH don't get to alarmed find the situation asap and remedy it a dums with good body weight won't have problems for a few weeks or month(S) providing it is healthy. Best

Justin Higgs
ECTOTHERMZ...

How certain are you the animal was feeding beforehand with the previous owner and if so what was it feeding on? A sudden switch to something other than what it was used to could cause this. I'd find out more about it's previous feeding habits before getting to worried. Maybe it was fed live and it could care less about f/t or the opposite. I had a dumerils that was an on again off again feeder in the winter months. One thing that's key is they love to hide and ambush their prey. I've had to wiggle prey just out of reach to get mine to eat and only at night.

How often are you offering food? Are you handling the boa at all? If the boa refuses food, give it several days or even a week before offering food again. If it's not feeding, don't handle it. The boa will need time to acclimate to a new environment. Dumerils can be shy boas and dumerils babies are not as easy going as redtails about a lot of handling. As long as the boa has good body weight, the husbandry is correct and it otherwise appears healthy, I wouldn't worry. Leave it alone in a proper setup in a quiet area of the house (if one doesn't exist, cover the cage with a towel or sheet to provide privacy). After a few days of quiet, offer a prey item in the early evening or at night. It would also be a good idea (as already mentioned) to find out if it was feeding beforehand, and if so, what it was feeding on.