Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Just wondering.

Linda

Linda,
. There are two common theories about why some snakes eat their slugs. The first theory is that they do it to replenish all those calories that were lost in reproduction. The second theory is that they do it to get rid of the slug so that it does not decay and smell and attract predators and scavengers to the newly born litter. Both of these theories seem reasonable and if either is correct then there is probably no reason to let a captive BRB eat her slugs. You can easily dispose of the slugs before they decay and you can easily feed your snake some nice clean rodents. BUT.....what if there is actually some totally different reason that some snakes eat their slugs? Perhaps something similar to babies elephants and some plant eating lizards needing to eat feces from the adults of their species to get the correct bacteria in their guts to digest plant matter. Snake eggs, at least while they are alive are amazingly bacteriostatic. Perhaps there is something in slugs which helps the mother snake to rebuild her immune system after having it weakened by the stress of reproduction. Who knows why snakes eat their slugs for sure. It seems to me that until we know different for sure it is probably a good idea to let them eat their slugs. BTW, slug eating is not common in many snake species. I think that Tree Boas and Anacondas fairly commonly eat their slugs. A few Boa Constrictor breeders have reported seeing Boa Constrictors eat slugs but only very rarely. I have heard that some of the live bearing colubrids eat their slugs but I am not sure which ones. I have had WC gravid Gartersnakes and Ribbonsnakes and Watersnakes lay litters with at least some slugs in them and never saw one of them eat one of their slugs.
Jeff

>>Just wondering.
>>
>>Linda

Thanks for the reply Jeff,

I just love the detailed replies you give that allow me to have to choose what I think is best in my situation.

I will allow her to eat slugs within a reasonable about of time if she chooses. (Like I have a choice if I'm not present)

Your reply made me think of what I would suggest of a [bleep] whelping ....take the pup, don't let her chew the cord, throw away the placenta when possible. There are times when a cord is chewed too far to the abdominal wall, and eating placentas can cause diarrhea and vomiting. Yeah, I know it's probably placenti. But, the people who allow these things come out just as well most of the time. Unless it is that these same folks are least likely to pick up the phone and ask.

The only thing that keeps me wondering is that I think natural instinct dominates over captive husbandry, meaning that although in nature eating of slugs would be beneficial in more than one way, maybe the adaptation hasn't caught up with the hunger instinct. Snakes likely live meal to meal--even in captivity and will eat something not of benefit to them for the odds of survival, which doesn't mean that it's in their best interest.

My guess is that females in the wild are frequently killed due to their emaciation after laying and that only a few of their litter would actually survive to the point of gravidity.

Linda

-----
"There is a principle which is a bar against all information, which is proof against all arguments and which cannot fail to keep a man in everlasting ignorance- that principle is contempt prior to investigation." Herbert Spencer