Reptile & Amphibian Forums

OK, I've had a young burm for 7-8 weeks now. She's about 3 feet long. To date she's eaten 4 adult mice and 5 small rats. If it were up to her she would probably take a rat every other day. The question is......can she absorb every last bit of what she eats. In all this time she has passed 2 good sized urate balls but no fecal matter what so ever. How is this possible, and is it healthy? Thanks in advance.

Quig

People are always so worried about the bodily functions of their snakes. As long as you are feeding it properly and providing a good environment, it would be very rare for it to have some sort of blockage problem. I only have 2 retics, 1 burm, and 1 boa, but they are all at least 4 years old now. While young, they all converted an amazing % of ingested weight to body mass. I believe all of them were well above a 50% conversion rate. My burm can seem to eat and eat and only defecates 1 or 2 times per month even though she feeds weekly.

Lance

Thanks for the comeback. I'm just not used to a snake that eats and doesn't poop eventually. I do have a feeling at the rate she's suckin' down rats, she's gonna grow like a weed

Quig

Although I may agree with the above post, it is hard to assume proper husbandry ect is in place without the description. Double check your temps and hydration. A comprimised burm may have digestion/defecation problems that should be addressed. With the amount of prey given I would've assumed fecal material is present. I would suggest inviting a more experienced burm keeper from a local herp society to come over and have a look at your snake and setup. A vet check isn't out of the question either as playing on the safe side is never a poor idea.

Am calling the vet on monday, just to be on the safe side. Hot side fluctulates between 85-90, cool side is 80.have UTH and overhead lamp on hot side. Tank is sprayed 4-5 times a day to keep humidity between 60-80%. She's got a waterdish and a hide. Her digestive juices seem to be working overtime, unless this is normal for a burm. A small rat leaves quite a visable bulge when swallowed, by the next day you can't tell shes eaten. It's just gone. She will also be very responsive to any monement outside the tank, as if lookin' for the next meal. She certainly doesn't seem unhealthy, I just didn't think it normal to absorb THAT much of the food item. As I said, 8 weeks and only urate (once). I have Ball Pythons, so I'm familiar with the routine, I normally only feed them after they pass the last meal. They will eat 2 or 3 times a month on a regular basis when they are on their feed.

Quig

Try giving the snake a warm bath in the bathtub...they seem to go poop in the warm water just about everytime...
Good luck

My burm will go for weeks, 3-6 without defecating. Of course the small mozarella balls come out regularly but not the brown stuff. If he goes to long or looks like it's been in the launcher for to long I'll inject a F/T rat with an appropriate amount of mineral oil. I got this advice from the forum and from a book I read. Getting the needle is the hard part. I've only done this once and with good results. If anyone disagrees with this please say so and explain why.
-----
DZ

"People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." -- George Orwell

I'm familiar with the mineral oil treatment, I've used it on my ball pythons on occasion. After as little as 2 or 3 days the burm goes back to her normal size except for the mozzerella balls LOL. She will pass them and be right back to normal size. It's just a puzzlement not quite understanding where the rest of the rat goes. She seems healthy, alert and responsive in every way. Maybe she got a hollow leg???