Best Feeders For Large Boas?

[RedTailRutiodon]

I currently have a female boa constrictor who is feeding on XL rats, but I'm anticipating sizing up in the near future. However, I noticed on rodentpro's website that from 2XL and up, they note that those rats have a higher fat content which some boas may have difficulty with digesting. Has anyone experienced any issues with using these rats with their animals?

Also, I'm not at this point yet but I want to be ready when the time comes, which of the larger feeders (rabbits, guinea pigs, chickens, etc) offers the best nutritional value? I was anticipating staying on rats for a while, but if it's healthier for my snake to switch to say, young rabbits, I can make that transition sooner.

[Andy_G]

Boas don't require food larger than a large rat unless they're an absolute freakishly large specimen. That would be the healthiest choice. They have slow metabolisms and require very little food for their size. How big and old is the boa you have?

[trailblazer295]

I agree with Andy, if you have available a reliable source of young rabbits you could rotate a mixture of rats and rabbits. It's my understanding that rabbits are leaner muscle to fat vs rats.

[bigsnakegirl785]

Rats and rabbits. Regular larges by themselves should be plenty up to 7.5'-8'. Once they get that big I would do a mix of 1 lb rabbits and regular large rats, 2 lb rabbits are imo much too large for nearly any boa in captivity. A rabbit-only diet tends to make them chubby even spaced out to every 2 months, and a large rat is almost too small for a staple at that size, so doing a mix keeps things in balance.

[serpentgirl123]

Rats and rabbits. Regular larges by themselves should be plenty up to 7.5'-8'. Once they get that big I would do a mix of 1 lb rabbits and regular large rats, 2 lb rabbits are imo much too large for nearly any boa in captivity. A rabbit-only diet tends to make them chubby even spaced out to every 2 months, and a large rat is almost too small for a staple at that size, so doing a mix keeps things in balance.


Yup, I agree. I tried the rabbit only diet for about 8 months (3 feedings) and it was too much (even though they were only 0.5-1.25lbs), especially at his age. Then mixed rabbit and rats and fortunately, my big boa (over 8ft) leaned back out again. Now he is mostly getting rats with an occasional rabbit.

Most boas won't need a larger than a large/possibly xl rat. Just because they can "swallow" it doesn't mean they "need" it. In the wild, they would (imo) be far more active while they looked for meals/traveling and meals spread out generously.

[bigsnakegirl785]

Yup, I agree. I tried the rabbit only diet for about 8 months (3 feedings) and it was too much (even though they were only 0.5-1.25lbs), especially at his age. Then mixed rabbit and rats and fortunately, my big boa (over 8ft) leaned back out again. Now he is mostly getting rats with an occasional rabbit.

Most boas won't need a larger than a large/possibly xl rat. Just because they can "swallow" it doesn't mean they "need" it. In the wild, they would (imo) be far more active while they looked for meals/traveling and meals spread out generously.

I had Cloud on a rabbit-only diet for about a year, and he got a bit thicker than he is now and less boxy-looking. He was eating 4-8 oz rabbits once a month. Then I put him on just rats for a few feedings and then mixed in rabbits. Now he gets about 50/50 rats and rabbits and he's at a good body tone. I prefer to use rabbits to bulk him up before and after a fast and then rats the rest of the year.

Although rabbits are leaner, they're more nutrient-dense, so they can quickly pack on the pounds. haha

I think most adult snakes of any species probably do well on prey items much smaller than their girth spaced out a bit more than we normally feed them. Assuming the snake is healthy and already at a good weight of course.

[RedTailRutiodon]

Boas don't require food larger than a large rat unless they're an absolute freakishly large specimen. That would be the healthiest choice. They have slow metabolisms and require very little food for their size. How big and old is the boa you have?

She's an adoption so I'm not sure of the *exact* age, but she's a hair over 7' now and between 2-3 years old, and feeding every 2 weeks. I've had her for a little over a year now and she's put on about a foot in length.

This is actually the first I've heard of boas staying on large rats their entire life, I was anticipating sizing out of them, if only barely so. It's at least easier on my wallet this way!

[bigsnakegirl785]

She's an adoption so I'm not sure of the *exact* age, but she's a hair over 7' now and between 2-3 years old, and feeding every 2 weeks. I've had her for a little over a year now and she's put on about a foot in length.

This is actually the first I've heard of boas staying on large rats their entire life, I was anticipating sizing out of them, if only barely so. It's at least easier on my wallet this way!

If she's 7', unless she's been powerfed to death, she's not 2-3 years old. That's more of the size of a 4-6+ year old. She may have been with the previous owners 2 years, but if she is actually 2-3 years and already 7' I would not expect her to live past 10 years old, and if she does no more than a year or two.

Every two weeks is drastically overfeeding a boa of her size, I would cut her down to a large rat or xx-small rabbit as suggested earlier, and feed every 4-6 weeks. Maybe even go as much as 8 weeks with the rabbits, but 4-6 weeks is generally fine.

[RedTailRutiodon]

Most of the books and articles I'd read, and her prior owner, said to feed her every two weeks. Is that actually pushing into powerfeeding territory? The last thing I want to do is shorten her lifespan.

[bigsnakegirl785]

Most of the books and articles I'd read, and her prior owner, said to feed her every two weeks. Is that actually pushing into powerfeeding territory? The last thing I want to do is shorten her lifespan.

Yes, it is. A lot of information, especially regarding feeding, is horribly outdated.

This is how I break down my feeding regimens for my boas:

Birth - 1 year: 10-14 days, newborns will have their first 2-3 meals spaced every 7 days apart

1-2 years: no more than 14 days

2 years: 3 weeks

3+ years: 4-6 weeks

Baby boas are allowed a barely noticeable bulge at most, and adults are fed meals small enough you cannot tell that they have just eaten. On their second winter (1.5-2 years) they are fed monthly throughout the winter, and on their third winter (2.5-3 years) they are completely fasted for 90 days. I also drop temps by a few degrees during this time. I go from ambients of 80-85F and hot spot of 88-90F to ambients of ~80F and hot spot of 85F.

I would not advise doing this with an overweight boa, though, as going that long without food could be deadly. They won't starve, but like cats, the fat will travel to their liver and potentially kill them.

Although this way of feeding results in slightly smaller boas than most are used to, it is a lot healthier for them and my boas are all robust but leaner than average (as that is the goal). This feeding regimen is also backed up by several successful and experienced breeders, who breed females season after season on this method (not all fast every boa during the winter, but most do fast gravid females at least).

[RedTailRutiodon]

She doesn't appear overweight, she definitely still has a squared cross section to her. Would it be best to transition to longer intervals gradually? As in, adding an extra few days between feedings to build up to a 4 week schedule, or briefly having her on a 3 week as a transition?

Edit: For that matter, the FAQ here recommends 2 weeks for adults as well.

[bigsnakegirl785]

She doesn't appear overweight, she definitely still has a squared cross section to her. Would it be best to transition to longer intervals gradually? As in, adding an extra few days between feedings to build up to a 4 week schedule, or briefly having her on a 3 week as a transition?

Edit: For that matter, the FAQ here recommends 2 weeks for adults as well.

Nah. If she's not terribly overweight it isn't going to hurt her to go straight to 4 weeks. My normal boa was roughly a pound overweight and pudgy looking, I went straight from weekly at 2-2.5 years old to every 4 weeks and a fast and he was fine. He's 5 now and doing great, took an entire year to shed the very small extra weight he had, though.

As I said, much information is behind the times. If you need solid "links" Vin Russo advises monthly feedings for adults. "14-30 days" but he says that really depends on the size of the animal and the size of the meal, this was published in the books he published in 2007. I personally have had much luck feeding my adults on smallish prey monthly. My new proven breeder female has been fed every 1-2 months, albeit on much larger prey than I'd give her myself (with the occasional 2-3 weeks if fed smaller prey - like small or medium rats), but she's 8 years old and nowhere near skin and bones. I wouldn't do every 2 weeks unless I was giving a 6'+ boa like a small rat or something. (All assuming the snake is starting out at a healthy weight and not disastrously underweight or ill.)

A common denominator I see on care sheets everywhere when I get to feeding is feeding as big of meals, as fatty of meals, as much as possible. Resulting in grossly overweight animals and early deaths. There's no need to feed an adult boa anything larger than a regular large rat unless it's a particularly large boa and then I'd do a mix of large rats and xx-small to x-small rabbits as I mentioned above. Pigs, Guinea pigs, etc. are all 100% unnecessary and dangerously fatty to be feeding to a boa at all. Too fatty of meals causes color loss, liver failure, and death in boas. Rather quickly, too, if fatty enough.