ques. about viper boas

[beagle]

I have recently aquired a wild caught viper boa and have been having troubles getting him to eat, he is in good health, I have the temps. at 80-82 and a basking at about 88. It has been a month now since I have had him and was wondering if they are hard to get to feeding. I've offered it live and dead mice and a rat pup once with no luck. Also I am wondering if I should try a lizard of some sort. Would anyone have some experience with these? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

Todd

[LdyDrgn]

They are mostly lizard and frog eaters in the wild. Have you also had a fecal done? WC viper boas usually come in with a heavy parasite load.

[beagle]

No I have not had a fecal done because I have not had a fecal sample from the snake yet. I treated it for mites as a precaution. It is about 28 inches long and is in good shape, meaning that it's body weight is good. It drinks and acts normal I am just having some trouble to get it to eat. I have also read that they can be tricky to get eating in captivity. I am going to try feeding a lizard to it but I would like to try to get it to eat mice eventualy. Thanks for the reply.

Todd

[Piers]

Give it some place to hide or better yet a substrait to dig down and hide. Bark mulch works well. the bark mulch shuld be damp but not wet, this will get the humidity up.
I'd try to get the hot end a little higher about 86 and the cool end room temp or a little higher. This will let the snake pick the temp it wants to be at.
As for feeding wait a week or so between each try. Offer it live mice/rats of appropriate size at night for a few hours. Check often and leave food for the pray item. If you need to you can sent the pray with a lizard.
Don't handle or pester the snake till its eating regularly this may take a few months. And when it deficates get a fecal test.
Piers

[Vanan]

In leiu of the recent trend of starting amphibian eaters with fish, why not try a minnow scented hopper or even cod-liver oil scented. Worth a try. Keep us posted on how it does. :)

[beagle]

Hey guys thanks for the replies. I'll try a few different things over the next couple of weeks and see how it goes. I'll keep u guys posted on how it goes and if I can get it to eat mice eventually. Thanks

Todd

[DeviledDiablo]

hey.. sounds interestin that u got a WC viper.. im new at the whole snake deal.. i juss got my first snake in april this yr.. but do u got pictures of ur viper? and are "viper boas" juss vipers? or is there a difference? sry to ask a noob question
i like vipers.. the only thing that kept me from em was the poison.. if they werent poisonous i think i woulda gotten one over a BCI ty and keep us updated.. i wanna hear how that lil guy/girl does
peace

[Linds]

Originally posted by Vanan
In leiu of the recent trend of starting amphibian eaters with fish, why not try a minnow scented hopper or even cod-liver oil scented. Worth a try. Keep us posted on how it does. :)

LOL or even easier (and you can eat the rest ;)), as Roy suggested worked well for him, Tuna! :p

[beagle]

LOL Tuna. Never heard of it but sounds like it could work, I am going to give it a try, then I can eat the rest. Thanks for the reply guys.

[Linds]

http://www.ssnakess.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=55547

Good luck with your little guy! :thumbsup:

[bistrobob85]

You can also try some spray called Lizard Maker, which is something you spray over your food items to get it to smell like a lizard... I just hoped you don't have too much parasites in your snake, good luck!

phil.