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Surinam Temp. Question

03svtcobra May 22, 2005 07:16 AM

i normally kept my suirnam boas day time temp in the upper 80's. 88 to be exact but i noticed it took him longer to digest meals, and sometimes he threw it up. so i played with the temps and moved them up to 90-92 and ticed him to be more active and everything.

is it ok to keep a surinam this hot, it is working for me but if no one else is keeping them this hot, something must be wrong. any info would be helpful

the humidity is 60%. i spray him multiple times to keep it at 60.

thanks in advance
steve

Replies (1)

RioBravoReptiles May 22, 2005 11:18 AM

I was unable to tell from the info you gave whether you were providing a 92deg hot-spot or heating the whole enclosure to over 90deg.. but here's the scoop on redtail temps (as I see it)..

It is a mistake to try and heat (or cool) a Boa's cage to one temperature or another. Instead, supply a thermal gradient across the cage where one spot or end is at the upper end of the temperatures you want for the given period and the opposite end is at the lower temp range. This is a lot easier to control with substrate heat than with lamps or other radiant heat sources. If you set this up right in a cage that's roomy enough for the animal to work it for the temperature it needs or wants to be at then all the guesswork is taken out of the deal.

As a general rule body temperatures of over about 95deg (f) or under approximately 65deg are not recommended in Boa c. ssp. However, a hot spot of around 95deg (f) would not be inappropriate for a small redtail, including Surinames, as long as the boa can get as much or as little of it's body mass on (or off) the heat as it needs to. There is also a body of evidence that prolonged exposure to high temperatures in developing constrictor of some localities may temporarily or perhaps permanently reduce the fertility and breeding success of the males so getting this right is important.

Most advanced husbandry and reproductive husbandry programs for the true redtails incllude thermal cycling day/night and Summer/Winter starting at an early age.

And.. aside from temperature goofs the major causes of regurgitation syndrome in Surinames and related animals is feeding meals too large and too frequently.

I hope this helps.
-----
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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