Reptile & Amphibian Forums

We have tried pinkies...even african soft fur hoppers... and they still won't eat...could I try tadpoles?...if so where can I get them?...Would it hurt to put feeder fish in their water bowls?...I just need to get them to eat something

i had similar problems, both with my old viper boa, who eventually starved itself to death, but then learned with my solomon ground boa. try anoles, or tree frogs. ive also gotten mine to eat black mice, not the albino lab grade, but the "fancy". ive talked to someone who gave me two possible reasons. the scent may be similar, since it varies between the albino and fancy mice, or the look of the mouse may resemble natural prey. also when did you get this snake, it could be a fresh import, because many fresh imports are extremely stressed they will not eat. it could also be that it is simply not hungry. they have a very slow metabolism, and only eat once to twice a month. as for your ideas, fish is a no, but the tadpoles may work.
best of luck

I've had one about a month...the other one a couple weeks...neither has eaten for me...I might try and get some anoles from the pet store...see how they do with those

I tried again and they struck at it once then that was it...I am getting frustrated

Would you mind sharing some details about how you have them set up and when/how you are offering feeders?

30 gallon tank...large water bowl (which they are in most of the time)...2 hides...for heat i use a ceramic heat emitter...and we have stopped turning light on in there...just use natural light....when we offer food...we have tried in the enclosure...in a tub with a lid on...we've tried fuzzies and hopper ASF rats...even tried rubbing them on my water dragon...lol...they strike but miss...I believe these to be imported....one is about 12 inches...the other about 16 or so inches...I am new to these snakes...our other snakes are ball pythons, colombian boa and nicaraguan boa...NEVER have a prob with them eating..so any help would be greatly appreciated

whats the temp? it could also be retained shed. both candoias ive had had retained sheds when i aquired them. you could try soaking them in warm water. you should also check for mites, ive noticed the few times ive fought them off, the snakes move horribly. you also might wanna break down the tank, paper towels water bowl and hides for a little while
best of luck

Here are a couple of things to think about...

What type of lid is on the 30 gal? Are they near any windows/ventilation/drafts?
Screen tops with a heat element just make beef jerky(dehydrators). Can you use plexiglass/lexan to cover the top with an undertank heater? Still leave some room for a little ventilation.

What type of substrate is being utilized?
Like Jerry said, Vipers are always soaking(swamp snakes) and newspaper or cypress mulch are 2 of the better options.

What time of the day are you offering feeders? Live or prekilled? Do you have access to live rat pinks/fuzzies?

Viper Boas stress very easily, how are you physically offering the feeders; i.e. teasing from tongs(overhead), leaving in over night, removing them from their water bowl, etc...?

Can you house them individually(long term) until they become established feeders (not just seperating them right before feeding)?

Not all snakes are as easy or forgiving when it comes to husbandry skills like boas or balls. The best approach is the K.I.S.S. method.

Best of luck and don't get dicouraged. Just take your time and try to limit the extremes the Vipers are exposed to (heat, stress, dehydration, etc....most importantly stress).

What type of lid is on the 30 gal?

Screen top with 2/3 covered with a styrofoam cover

Are they near any windows/ventilation/drafts?

Not near any windows...just beside the doorway to the kitchen ( I have the tank in the living room, which no one uses)

What type of substrate is being utilized?

I am using cypress mulch

What time of the day are you offering feeders? Live or prekilled? Do you have access to live rat pinks/fuzzies?

I try at night...live...and we breed rats..I been trying african soft fur...should I try regular rats?

Viper Boas stress very easily, how are you physically offering the feeders; i.e. teasing from tongs(overhead), leaving in over night, removing them from their water bowl, etc...?

We have been holding them over head..that is when they strike but miss...I haven't tried overnight yet...and we tried taking them out of the water bowl

Can you house them individually(long term) until they become established feeders (not just seperating them right before feeding)?

We have a 55 gal aquarium that we are considering putting a divider in

finding a place that is completely quiet around here is almost impossible...We have 29 birds..and someone is chirping all the time...lol...well the conures and quakers squawk...night time is when they are the quietest... I wonder if the noise stresses them out

Try this if you will. Leave them alone for an entire week. Do not bump the cage, do not open the lid. Just let them settle down for a solid week. At the end of that week, mist them down with warm water around 5:00pm. Wait until the sun has set completely and carefully remove the lid without turning on any bright lights(a hiking headlamp really comes in handy; but do not shine the light directly on the snakes). Set no more than 3 pinky/fuzzy rats(not rats that are old enough to bite back with any force) near them, but without touching them. Leave them alone until morning and see what happens. Again, minimal stress is key.

AS FAR AS I KNOW, THERE ARE NO AFRICAN SOFT FURRED RATS IN INDONESIA....TRY NORMAL RAT PUPS....FOOT LONG VIPER BOAS SHOULD NOT NEED LIZARDS OR FROGS....THEY ARE RODENT FEEDERS AT THAT SIZE....AND I GUARANTEE THEY ARE WILD CAUGHT IMPORTS....THEY NEED VENTILATION MORE THAN MOST SNAKES....EXCESS HUMIDITY WILL CAUSE STRESS OR BODY BLISTER DISEASE WHICH IS FATAL....BEEN THERE DONE THAT....GOOD LUCK....JC