Is something wrong with my female red tail?

[Justinbolleurs]

Hi I'm Justin. I have a female Nicaraguan red tail boa that's probably 3ft or so, she's about 5 years old, and she's acting really strange lately. She's not moving much at all and didn't eat for about a month or so and its breeding season here in south africa and she's living with a male for a couple of years, so I assumed she is pregnant but then, recently she started eating normally. She is also lying on her side and sometimes just her head is laid normally.. will really apprieciate if someone can help me out and I haven't bred with boas yet so..

[Tsubaki]

First of all, i would like to point out Nicaragua BCI's are not 'red tailed boas', BCI are referred to as 'common boas'. (BCC are red-tails) Gravid boa females frequently turn their belly sidewards, being gravid also changes behavior including feeding habits. Only feed small meals, do not handle her. Also cohabiting (keeping the male ans female together all the time) is not the best way to go, i would certainly advise against it. Read up about boa breeding as much as you can! ;)

[Minkness]

Isn't 3 feet small for a healthy 5 year old?

[sirtalis]

Isn't 3 feet small for a healthy 5 year old?

Ikr, I would with no bci experiance on my part think @ 5 years a boa should be like 6-7 ft?

[bigsnakegirl785]

Ikr, I would with no bci experiance on my part think @ 5 years a boa should be like 6-7 ft?

This is a Nic. They average 3'-5'. 3' is a bit small for a female, but they aren't going to be 6'-7'.

[Justinbolleurs]

Thanks though. She was since a baby ahe was a bit very small because my male was always a bigger, since baby and he is also a nic that is from the same breeder and same breeding season but he is over 5 feet now and still growing..Yeah true they aren't red tails, sorry still getting over the fact that they not all red tails and only recently understood the BCC and BCI thing. My mistake.. when I got them I never attended to breed and for money sake I had to let them stay in one cage because I couldn't afford two separate cages for them, the beginning it seemed fine because they were young but now I get it. So does she look like she's gravid?

[bigsnakegirl785]

Not trying to be mean, but if you could only afford one cage, why did you get two snakes?

[Justinbolleurs]

I was about 13 years old and my parents were financially stable and things change and we had to compromise... when i saw pictures of them and i put some money aside just for them, and for the price I got them for I couldn't have said no. Admit it if u that young and seeing these two boas following each other around it really seemed fine, actually looked adorable at first until they grew bigger and learned that they needed to be separated.

[Tsubaki]

My female Nicaragua is 2,5 years old, and around 3 foot. The male is 6, he is also about 3ft... 3ft is fairly small for an adult female, but not unthinkable. And i can see why you used to house them together, however now you are not 13 anymore (18 now?). And you have acquired more snakes since then, yet still you have these 2 living together. Would still be wise to separate them, and yes it does appear she is gravid.

[Justinbolleurs]

Yeah I put her in a separate inclosure for gestation period, meanwhile I'm preparing permanent separation for when she's done giving birth. I have a fairly large cage, 200x120x40 (l. w. h.), Measured in centimetres. if I split the cage it would be big enough right (100x60x40) might give my bigger boa more space? Cuz they both pretty small. And will the scent be a problem?

[Nightflight99]

Justin, the enclosure that you're using is sufficiently large enough to divide it and separate the two animals. Just make sure that your heating setup reflects that division (i.e., make sure that you're not just heating one of the two partitions). Housing them individually is of course ideal (especially in the case of gravid females), but co-housing two subadult or adult snakes of the same species is not a big deal at all, and is commonly practiced in many amateur and zoo collections. You obviously need to separate them for feedings, and be vigilant about maintenance, but aside from that there is no need to worry excessively about that setup.

PS: You live in one of my favorite herping areas! I've done quite a bit of work throughout Mpumalanga/Swaziland/KZN.

[Justinbolleurs]

Yeah will make sure, luckily, or in some cases unfortunately heat isn't much of an issue here but will make it as two separate cages, including all the heating and necessities. Unfortunately yes my female is very small but let's hope for the best. Thanks for all the help so far and all the comments..