Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a 10 year old red tail colombian boa. He is about 7' long and has never got very fat compared to many that I see in pet stores. He is in a 6' x 2' x 2' wooden cage with astroturf substrate. There is a large water container and a hide box always available. I heat the cage with a back heating pad under the substrate that is always on and keeps that spot about 85 degrees at all times plus there is a full spectrum heat lamp mounted on the ceiling of the cage. Under the light it is usually about 90 degrees. The cool side of the cage is typically room temperature which ranges from 60 - 75 degrees. He spends most of his time between the warm and cool sides next to the water container. He has not eaten since January and I am beginning to worry. Up until about 2 months ago he would not even look at the rats, for the past two months he just kills them then leaves them behind. I have been trying to feed him medium size feeders about every other week. In the past he was able to eat any size rat that I could get for him. The rat cemetary in my back yard is becoming over crowded. He has not deficated in at least 5 months but regularly urinates the hard white clumps. He is just now starting to get skinny, I can really tell when I pick him up, he is getting very light. I have seen him skinneyer than this in the past after a bout with a rat where he came out the significant looser but he has fully recovered from that several years ago. I mist the cage every other day for at least 2 minutes. He is in the same cage with the same heat and light setup for his entire life. There are no signs of respritory problems which I did encounter about 5 years ago but after daily shots he came out OK. Though he has never been very tame he seems to be even more irriatable now when I handle him. Can anyone make any reccomendations about getting him to eat? A book that I have about venomous snakes describes a process of force feeding, should I consider this? Is he just getting too old?

Your snake is sick...8 months and you're NOW beginning to worry. He needs to see a vet. He could have a GI (gastrointestinal) problem (infection, blockage, parasites). Also, you say he is in a wooden cage with astroturf. Wood is porous and is impossible to clean thoroughly and astroturf just plain sucks. Bacteria may be overwhelming him. Put him in a plastic or melamine cage with aspen or pine shavings or something else that can be disposed of when soiled. Stop feeding him live rats....especially if he is reluctant to feed. Bottom line....SEE A VET!

keep it warmer bro .. that imo is wayyyyyy to cool for it as well .. and like the other guy said "SEE A VET ASAP"
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NO BEAUTY LIKE THE BEAUTY OF A TRUE REDTAIL !!

Glad you caught that. 70 degrees at the cool end isn't that bad, but 60 degrees definitely is.