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Hello, I have Two baby ETB's they are about two months old. they have not been eating well on there own and the last three weeks I have resorted to force feeding them. Interesrtingly they have both eaten on their own before but just stopped. my ? is does forse feeding lessen their feeding response or instinct?
They are house separatly know and are kept in optimal conditions.
Thanks for your time.

How big are the enclosures? Can you describe your normal feeding attempts?
Craig

They are in ten gallon glass aquariumswith secure pearches and plastic leaves for cover. there is a thick layer of peatmoss and a water bowl inthe cage. As for the feeding atempts, The first week I got them one ate a fuzzy with out any problem the other did not. The next week the one who had not eaten ate and the other did not. So i waited a week and tried live warm fuzzies offered by twezzers in the evening around 10-12. Then I triedkilling the fuzzies and warming them up a bit they struck but did not Stranlge them. Last week I tried again live, dead/warm, and finnaly i ripped the fuzzies head open to expese the brain. the smell seemed to interest them but nothing. For now my plan is to let them eat on there own/ stop force feeding and keep trying. Another ? how long can they go without eating at this age?
Thanks

Sounds like you are feeding them way too frequently. They will only need to eat once every 12-22 days. If you alterate large and small you should be feeding a large item, wait 16-20 days and feed a smaller item and then wait 12-14 before feeding again. Of course it is arguable but for the most part that is a decent rule of thumb. Do fresh killed, run it under hot water, pat dry and then offer. Make sure to have all lights out for at least 30 minutes to put them into hunt mode. If you do that regiment you should have a problem.

I mean't "shouldn't have a problem".

First off nix the petemoss! Too many problems with that stuff. If you want a substrate like that, go to cypress mulch that has been rinsed of "dust". Next, We have had very little success with anything smaller than a hopper. Try putting a live one in a small, high sided bowl just below where the snake is hunting and leave it! If using under tank heating, turn it off when feeding.

We have had great success raising our neos on live hoppers and graduating them to pre-killed off tongs and then f/t off tongs. There are always going to be slow starters, which require assist feeding. We feed on a 10 day interval for neos, which doesn't change until they are yearlings. Of coarse, good feeders may graduate to 14 day intervals before then. Once they are large enough, we get them on f/t rat pups and increase from there.
Craig

Thank you both for responding. I'm gonna try taking out the peat moss and waiting another week bofore tring to feed them agian. The info was help full I hope it works.
Thanks again

What problem have you experienced with peat moss? Has it been only with Baby ETB's or with adults or all boas in general? I ask because I use it with all of my tropical snake to keep the humidity up.
Thanks again

Personally I have never used the stuff. When I first got into emeralds, folks warned me off of it. If you think about it, it is very loose material that can produce dust that could cause respiratory problems if inhaled. If you have to feed live, the snake may grab pieces of it when taking prey from the cage floor. Those pieces could become lodged in the mouth leading to problem such as mouth rot or infection. Go to some corallus exclusive sites and you may find someone who has tried the stuff and can give you more conclusive reason for not using it.
I use water substrate or a combination of water and paper towels. I find that it is much easier to spot defecation and urate with this type of substrate. We have a lot of cages and cleaning is much easier with this substrate.
Craig

Thanks for responding I used water as a substrate for a while, but strangly enough the humidity was not as high as it is with peat moss. I'm gonna researh the topic some more.
Thanks again.

I think why one may get higher humidity readings with the moss than with a simple water substrate maybe due to the "wicking effect" of the peat moss. The total surface area of water-to-air margin for transfer is much greater with the poreous sponge-like medium. I get higher humidity readings by laying paper toweling into and over the sides of a large water pan in the bottom of the enclosure than I do with the water dish alone.