Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i got my guyana boa in august from lllreptiles and it came with some mites i didnt see when i bought her it took alot of hyard work to get rid of those then now shes regurging when i feed her like 3 out of 4 times i feed her she is growing realy slow too i had a full blood panel done when i first got her and it showed up normal do you guys have any ideas?

: ( my poor little one

When the regurgitating started, did you happen to over feed her? Or the enclosures lowest temp. below 78F? If it's brought on by too much food, or enclosure is not hot enough, or if it's caused by stress from the mites, you'll want to start off really slow. From the time she last ingested a full meal, wait about a month before feeding her again, and don't handle her for about a week prior to the feeding and a week after the feeding, make sure the meal is not too big, and the enclosure is at least 80F for the low side for a while. Repeat this routine for about 3mths. Then slowly go back to normal. If she regurges during this process; no food for a couple of weeks, not handling her. If this routine doesn't have evidence of improvement at all, I suggest you put her in brumation (read up on it first), after a few months her system should be completely healed from any shocks or trauma. then you treat her like a new snake, don't over handle her, overfeed her, or place her in high traffic areas. Good luck, this process worked for me on some problematic feeders I've dealt with in the past.

Make sure there is a good basking spot at about 95dgrs and leave it alone. Wouldn't try feeding for 2 weeks. No handling at all untill back to normal.

good avdice guys, yeah dont!!!! handle the snake after it ate. One major reason snakes regurge, many people like to handle the snake directly after a meal and their metabolism is very slow so would you like someone picking you up and tossing you around after a giant quiznos sub? LOL That could be the very reason. Have you been playing with her after eating? Could be the very key to your problem, and heat, she needs ample heat to digest in the correct manner.

Mike Brooks
TNS Reptiles

I think Guyanas especially babies or smaller ones that are imported are the most notorious red tails for regurgitation. They probably have one of the slower metabolisms of the true red tail boas. And those are just my observations others may differ in opinion. I would also say I think the other option may be true with heat. With Guyanas it may be too much heat causing regurgitation. They do not need as much heat as a colombian boa. They will do fine in the high 70s and lower 80s. The humidity is also a factor. Too low can cause problems. So youll want to make sure you have lower temps and higher humidity. Im not sure why Guyanas tend to regurg large food items but that just seems to be a fact with many. They just cant handle the larger rats that a colombian can choke down on. Youll want to feed your animal smaller prey items than what you would normally think a boa should be eating. Yes it stinks because its going to take a good 5 years or longer to get a female to breed but thats just the fact with some. And thats just my observations. Also youll want to place a hide box in the enclosure. The part about not feeding too close to a regurg is true. You should always wait several weeks to refeed your snake. You said you did blood work on the snake but how about a fecal exam? You may find a hidden bacteria source. But I think even healthy smaller Guyanas tend to have this problem regaurdless. So heres your formula:
Ambient Temps 75 degrees.

Warm spot 85

Humidity 75%

Hide box/no handling

Smaller food items.... less often every second or third week feedings.

Water always available

Your snake should come around. Good Luck

Pythons.Net

alot of you guys said it could be from handling and i would have probly said the same but i have kept handling to a bare minimum since mites came around i have kept the humidity up and the backin g is aroun85-90.see i have a problem with the whole not feeding every other week because shes very smallshes probly not even 3 feet yet and realy skinny from regurging and if i dont try to feel her one time i did go 3 weeks right after the mites and she was realy week and limp and rolling on her sides and she cant go that long i dont think
on a side not i realy want to thank everyong who reasponded iv been part of this forum for almost 3 years and i have learned so much, there are a lot of great people who come on here and give great advice so again thanx

josh

GUESS WHAT BROTHER,I GOT A SIX FOOT BOA FROM THE SAME PLACE AND SHE HAD NECROTIC TAIL TIP,MOUTH ROT,WORMS AND A REAL BAD RESPITORY INFECTION.I HATE THOSE GUYS FOR SELLI'N SICK SNAKES.SIX MONTHS LATTER AFTER A TON OF MONEY ON VET BILLS,BOOKS AND GETTING GOOD ADVICE FROM THIS HERE FORUM.I WAS ABLE TO FINALLY TURN HER AROUND.SHE'S AT 100% NOW. WHAT I SUGGEST FOR THE REGURITATION IS, FEED HER SUPER SUPER SMALL MEALS.GIVE HER A GOOD HIDE BOX AND MAYBE COVER HER CAGE WITH A DARK SHEET,AND TRY NOT TO HANDLE HER TILL SHE SETTLES IN REAL GOOD.TRY TO ASK AROUND FOR A QUALIFIED SNAKE DOCTOR.SOME VETS SAY THAT THEY TREAT SNAKES,BUT IN REALITY I WAS THE ONLY SNAKE PATIENT THAT THEY HAD.THE WHOLE THING WAS A HUGE LEARNING EXPERIENCE,AND WAKE UP CALL. GOOD LUCK AND MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU,ALWAYS

I would call LLLReptile and tell them you suspect that your snake had mites before you took it home. I dont know if your Local but i frequently visit LLLReptile... they are awesome... I have never seen any of their snakes to have mites.. but then again they might have been too small to see atathe time. They take excellent care of their animals and the owner(s) are great.

YOu shure you got the snake "with" mites

yeah i am sure the snake came with mites because she wasnt near any of my other snakes untill after the mites were gone. i would call lllreptile but i got her in august and the mites are gone now i dont think theres anything they can do.

after reading your post I would guess at this point your snake is probably pretty dehydrated ? I would run out to walgreens and purchase a bottle of pedialyte and soak your snake in it (room temp) for an hour or two every other day. This should help him to rehydrate. Next I would only feed your snake 1 small meal every other week and if he still hasn't passed the previous meal give him another week, he aint gonna starve to death. I'm not sure how big your snake is but if he's small enough I would feed him ratpinks or hoppers as apposed to mice, something about mouse hair seams to cause the occasional puke. If all else fails and he really is super skinny, you may need to try some nutribac to replenish his gut flora.

Good Luck