Hog Island Boa

[Cclark4108]

We rescued a boa about 2 months ago. He turned out to be a Hog Island, thank you for everyone who helped identify him, and we named him Lucius. We have been handling him regularly and have been feeding him large to extra large rats bi-weekly. He is very sociable and attentive. He has a hide but seems to prefer to stay out on his Rock watching in the afternoons as we go about our business. He just shed and though he seemed to have a little trouble after giving him a nice lukewarm bath I was able to get the remaining skin off and he is gorgeous. I got on the scale with him and he weighs 28 lb. I know Hogs are supposed to be slender but at six and a half feet I expected him to at least way upwards of 30 to 35 pounds now. I can't seem to find a weight scale anywhere that would tell me what a healthy weight would be for him. Anyone have any ideas? He doesn't look thin like sickly thin but he's definitely not as girthy as our python gypsy. He's very active he loves to climb any and everything you get close to walls ceiling fans curtains LOL I just want to make sure he is indeed as happy and healthy as he seems.

[Andy_G]

If that weight is correct, he would be obese. About half of the weight you stated would be healthy (10 to 15 pounds, or maybe a bit heavier if he is very old).

[richardhind]

I only feed my adult boas who are 8+9 and one’s 6ft and the other 7ft who are on large rats once a month. Twice a Fortnight is too much as they are high in fat and will make him obese pretty fast if your not careful

[Cclark4108]

Maybe my scale is wrong then, because he is no where near obese. Will recheck and see.

[Andy_G]

I'm betting on that being the case. :)

[bigsnakegirl785]

My 6.5' boa is 8-9 lbs, 28 is morbidly obese. Even my 7' female is under 15 lbs.

He should only be eating a large rat every 4-6 weeks, no xl due to the fat content.

Definitely re-check his weight if you think the scale is off.

[Cclark4108]

He weighs 10.5lbs guys. And is up to 7 feet. We remeasured and recalibrated the scale �� my bad. We have also switched him to medium rats, as the xl seemed to make him sluggish (probably because of that high fat content as you suggested). He now eats two bi weekly. Now our only issue is that he seems to be territorial more than our other two. Once you get him out, he is friendly as can be. But getting him out, he likes to puff up and hiss. Anyways to help this behavior? I don't want him scared/anxious whenever the tank opens. And id like to be able to scoop his tank without worrying about over stressing him. His past owner used a hook, and we are thinking they were rough with it because he HATES the hook so we use our hands. No bites or even attempts, yet. He just tries to be a tough guy lol

[Andy_G]

Tap training with a hook is the way to do things properly with a cage defensive boa...or any snake in my opinion. Lots of information online about it. It quite simply means gently touching the snake on it's head/neck with a hook before reaching in. Over time, this does in fact condition the animal to know that it is going to be held. It is of my opinion that for any cage maintenance, the inhabitant should be removed unless completely comfortable and hidden.

As an aside, that is a large hog island, especially being a male, and it's probably been fed a bit heavy in order to get that way, so please go easy on the food. :)

[bigsnakegirl785]

He weighs 10.5lbs guys. And is up to 7 feet. We remeasured and recalibrated the scale �� my bad. We have also switched him to medium rats, as the xl seemed to make him sluggish (probably because of that high fat content as you suggested). He now eats two bi weekly. Now our only issue is that he seems to be territorial more than our other two. Once you get him out, he is friendly as can be. But getting him out, he likes to puff up and hiss. Anyways to help this behavior? I don't want him scared/anxious whenever the tank opens. And id like to be able to scoop his tank without worrying about over stressing him. His past owner used a hook, and we are thinking they were rough with it because he HATES the hook so we use our hands. No bites or even attempts, yet. He just tries to be a tough guy lol

Only feed one prey item. 2 medium rats have more fat and calories than a single large rat would have (even if the 2 mediums were the same weight as one large rat), and would still be considered overfeeding. I'd just feed him a single regular large rat 150-280 grams once a month. If you do mediums, I'd still keep that at one, and feed it every 3-4 weeks. Every 2 weeks is way too often for him.

As far as hissing or striking, you will just have to give him time. I've found it can take a few years to get boas to "tame" out. Keep handling semi-regular, use the hook (but don't pick him up with it), and keep handling sessions as positive as possible. Don't handle him too often, and don't have him out too long at any one time. I'd say once a week or a couple times a month for 15-30 minutes at a time, and give him a year at least before you decide his attitude isn't changing. I've had my 7' female almost 2 years now, and she's very slowly coming around. She doesn't hiss or strike or anything, but she runs away from my touch and constantly tries to climb off of me.

Sometimes they also just don't outgrow it, so they may have to become a hands-off snake or rehomed. They're still wild animals, and even domesticated animals can still be "questionable."