Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I bought a juvenile Dumeril boa from Bob Clark and she is gorgeous. However, we have had her 3 weeks now and she won't eat. Bob told me she was eating live, medium sized mice. I've also read that Dumeril's are somewhat sensitive and can take a couple of weeks to settle in to new housing. I have her in a 58 qt sterilite with heat mat, water bowl, substrate and two hide boxes, one on cool side and one above the heat mat. I have handled her only a little to give her time to settle in. And I bought a couple of the smallest mice I could. At first I tried to feed her in a seperate container than her cage, but after she refused the mouse in that situation a couple of times, I took to placing the mouse in her cage. She refused the mouse there although a couple of times she seemed to show a little interest (would turn her head toward the mouse). So, now I've had her 3 weeks and I am starting to get kinda worried. Anyone have any ideas or experience that they could share with me? I will force feed her if I have to but I would REALLY like to avoid that since I am sure it is extremely stressful to the snake. Thanks in advance.

KFKester

If your worried, why haven't you contacted the breeder? Since you did not mention this in your post, I'm assuming that you have not contacted him. One of the best reasons to go with the big name well known breeders is because of the support/assistance they can offer. I'm sure he can offer you some real good advice.

You might try aspen bedding. If that does not work try a baby quail. That will work. They really like them. This male only ate quail his first year. He is now almost 2 is 3 1/2 feet.

shoebox size,and a layer of aspen that is thick enough for the Dum to bury itself in.Offer a hopper at night and if not going into a shed,the Dum should eat for you.

d
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Gus
A. Rentfro
RioBravoReptiles.com
www.riobravoreptiles.com

"Quality is not an accident. Perfectly healthy animals are a minimum requirement.. everything else is just salesmanship" gus

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Gus
A. Rentfro
RioBravoReptiles.com
www.riobravoreptiles.com

"Quality is not an accident. Perfectly healthy animals are a minimum requirement.. everything else is just salesmanship" gus

I second what illianreps, to add to that a little, make sure you don't attempt to feed the animal more often than 7 days between attempts. If you attempt to feed the animal too often instead of looking at the mouse as prey, it looks at it as a cause of stress. What I would do is put it in the small rubbermaid with the aspen, leave it completely alone, no handling, just make sure it has fresh water. Put the container in a low traffic area. Then after about 7 days attempt to feed it. I wouldn't think about force feeding yet.

Danni
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Jason & Danni
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Thanks for all the great advice. I will try the things you all have suggested immediately. And yes, I have contacted Bob Clark. He responded quickly but all he said was that the boa was eating medium sized mice before I bought her and that she should eat fine. Anyhow, thanks again.

KFKester