Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I was given a rosy boa who is about 30" and 195 grams. He's very pretty, almost completely patternless, solid pewter color. My concern is his tail. He tapers to his vent, then his tail fattens out a bit. It looks strange. Should I be concerned?

Is he eating and pooping normally? Can you post a picture? Was he wild caught or cb? Does his previous owner know anything about it (birth defect, injury etc). Without knowing more / seeing it it's hard to say if it's a problem.

If he's eating and pooping odds are that it isn't life threatening. If you're planning on breeding, then it would be important to know it the deformity is congenital or the result of an injury.

-Alice

Here's a picture of him and his tail. The fat part of the tail, below the vent, feels almost mushy, but doesn't seem to bother him. I've only had him for a few days, but he has eaten and pooped for me. I don't know any history on him and I don't intend to breed him, just curious.

Sometimes older rosys get those fatty deposits. It not a health problem but he/she does look skinny. Maybe feed it a bit more..

Fatty deposits can be developed from the snake not being put on a regular feeding schedule. Then what happens the animal tends to store fat for those long fasting periods. Give it a healthy size mouse as often as possible. Also keep the water dish out of the encloser right before and then several days after a meal. Rosys that drink right before or after a meal can regurge.

Thank you for the info. Knowing where he came from, he probably didn't get a regular diet, so you are probably right about that. I really have no history on him, so have no idea how old he is.
What would be a good schedule for him? Is once a week enough, or should I go with more often?
This one takes f/t with no problem, but I also have a juvenile rosy that will only take live so far. Are they easier to switch as they get older? We've tried scenting and braining, still with no luck. Any thoughts?

What would be a good schedule for him? Is once a week enough, or should I go with more often?

Feed him as often as he will eat. In other words keep offering mice when the lump goes into the lower digestive tract. This probably takes 3-4 days. If he does not eat then keep trying. Once you get him going he will eat and be healthy.

Has he recently eaten in that photo? Is that a lump in the midsection(looks too high to be food) or just the angle of the pic. I've seen some males swell up a little,(below the vent)as they mature and also had a male hypo SF swell like that. He didn't make it, but he also showed other signs of being sick( nasty looking and smelling droppings).

That is just the angle of the picture. He doesn't actually have a lump up there. His eating and pooping are normal, and he acts fine, alert and healthy seeming, so I guess I'll just have to wait and see how he does. If it's just a fat deposit in his tail like bluerosy says, do you suppose it'll go away with regular feedings?