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regurgitated 3 time in 2 weeks need major advice

tvrsir Apr 03, 2004 05:21 PM

i have a 5 months old boa that have not eaten a whole meal in 2 weeks. i have feed her a frozen mouse. she regurgtated, a hopper she regurgitated too. and a full grown mouse and the same. what's going on. she is getting quite thin. please let me know what it could be and what i can do thanks

Replies (7)

carl3 Apr 03, 2004 05:43 PM

I'm no expert but 2 weeks withtout eating isn't a very long time to be overly concerned. I'm sure in the wild most snake species can survive much longer without a meal if necessary.

The fact that it appears to be losing weight and that its regurging would alarm me. A can't imagine any snake looking thin & losing weight so quickly only after a two week period since its last meal. Also, I am not sure why you fed her a larger prey item after she regurged a smaller one (hopper...mouse, I assume). That could be a cause to her 3rd regurge. You may not have allowed it enough time to regain strength after her last two regurges. They lose digestive enzymes & probably important digestive bacteria when they regurge. I had a problem with a one-time regurge and it never happened after that. Probably due to temps or too large a prey item in my case. I soaked mine in a container with warm gaterade to replenish electrolytes. However, I don't know if thats the best thing in your case.

If I were you, I would take her to a vet and try to collect fecal samples to take with you for the vet to run tests on. I certainly wouldn't keep trying to feed it. Sounds like it could be something more serious but you did not provide info on your setup & temps. Also, I would start documenting & record keeping if you have not already. Keep track if it defecates and also weigh it every couple of days to see, in fact, how much weight loss it is experiencing.

"i have a 5 months old boa that have not eaten a whole meal in 2 weeks. i have feed her a frozen mouse. she regurgtated, a hopper she regurgitated too. and a full grown mouse and the same. what's going on. she is getting quite thin. please let me know what it could be and what i can do thanks"
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www.members.aol.com/northeastsnakes

tvrsir Apr 03, 2004 06:15 PM

i'm sorry i gotta clear thing up here. cage is 92 degrees at basking area and under tanks heating pad setup on a thermostat controlled device. middle of cage read 87-88 and end of cage read in the 79-82 degree. she has a fresh water bowl. and she have a hideaway. humdidity is around 55- 70 max depends on the time and day. but never below 55. i am keeping track of her meals and regurging. i think i might have fed her to early after the second regurg.

to clear up. i fed her frozen adult mouse. then a full size live mouse. then a hopper. not the order in the original post.

how long should i wait til the next feed?
i was thinking of feeding her a rat pinky for her next meal.

also i am right now soaking here in 85 degree water temperature for 1 hour.

the_reptilian Apr 03, 2004 09:07 PM

Then let the vet tell you what to do. Do not take this as me being a smart butt, but something is defiantly wrong, and what ever that is out of your control.

Jeff
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Jeff
0.1 Wife: Kim
2.0 Hogg Island Boas, Bob Sears Line: Ham-let and BLT
1.1 Smooth-Scaled Sand Boas: Xerxes, and Sa'rai
1.0 Kenyan Sand Boa: Solomon
0.2 Kenyan Sand Boas, 100% het anery: Sheba, Jasmine
0.1 Doberman: Princess Grace
1.0 Pitbull Mix: Popcorn
1.0 Rough Collie: Dante
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“It’s not bragging if you can prove it”

kasper22 Apr 03, 2004 07:18 PM

something is really worng if you can see her losing wieght already. You probally need a vet. As for the feeding, don't even think about trying for at least two weeks. maybe three weeks. Then try a small meal, like a pinky rat. Then wait another two weeks and feed another meal. bigger than the first, but smaller than normal. Then you could try going back to once a week feeding. Don't go right back up to the largest size though keep her on a smaller size for a few months.

Jonathan_Brady Apr 03, 2004 08:10 PM

this is something i typed up a couple of years ago... i would probably change a few things here and there now (a learning process), but it's pretty good info...
bellsouthpwp.net/j/b/jbuncc/feeding.htm

jb
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Jonathan Brady
"Sarcasm is angers ugly cousin" -Dr. Buddy Rydell (Jack Nicholson) in "Anger Management".

tvrsir Apr 03, 2004 10:34 PM

wow nice writeup you guys are helpful. i will try aagin in two weeks and feed her a rat pinky. unless she lose to much wait. i called my vet. he said to keep an eye on her for another week and if she doesn't look like she is loosing wait try to feed her a week later. and if she regurg thhen to bring her in immediately for a checkup.

Slimmerman Apr 03, 2004 09:32 PM

she finally decided to start eating again, and all was normal. Your snake will be fine for at least a couple months before getting lethargic, so don't panic. Panic will only cause you to try to feed her again in two days, just relax, and feed her a hopper in about 3 weeks. Don't handle her at all in that time. And if she regurges, then go see a vet.

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