After so long of wanting one...

[Iceman]

Ok, little story.

I was suppose to get a white lipped python today, but me,my girlfriend, and my friend talked about it, and we all said it would be a good idea to get a snake as a baby and raise it, so we ended up getting a baby bci, which i have wanted since i got into snakes..

But bistrobob was worried because i told him i was having problems getting the heat at a good temp,

no worries, it turned out my friend had a extra heat lamp and light, so i am using the crap heat pad i bought, and the heat light i got from my friend, lol when he told me he had one i ran down to his house so fast to get it..

the temps are perfect now, untill i go get a heat controling item tomorrow and another heat light the temps are perfect ..

i am very sorry i cannot post pics now, my mom has my camera :(

by mid day tomorrow i will post many pics in this thread..

sorry for the long post, just thought i'd say what happend :D

[bistrobob85]

well its a good thing the snake will end up at over 70 farenheit...

[ATBlover]

hmmmm ice man you didnt get the white lip?

[Iceman]

No like i said above, me and my girlfriend decided to get a snake as a baby and raise it, although i really wanted the white lipped :(

so we all went outside to talk it over and decided to get the baby boa instead..

i say that because white lips are known for being agressive, and when we went back it wasn't acting the same as it was before, lol, i didnt care, i still wanted it, but whats done is done, i got a nice baby bci instead :)

[ATBlover]

o kool...i thought u ordered the white lip tho and u were recieving it yesterday?..i guess not...good luck with your bci....Connor

[Iceman]

OK, my dam mom still has my camera, but i thought i'd post,

i went to get a hopper for the bci today, hoping it would eat it, it had no interest in it what so ever(live sadly) and the dam mouse kept attempting to bite the snakes lower area, near the tail so i kept having to push the mouse away, i stood there and watched to make sure the mouse didnt bite it, the mouse just walked around the cage for a while, the snake just sat there, then the mouse walked by the snake...

BAM! it finally grabbed it!

it held onto the head for a while, then let go, held on the head again, let go again, the finally swallowed it.

i was shocked at how fast it ate it though, makes me woner if i can try a adult mouse next time, lol..

edit: opps, forgot a few things..

atblover: I got the snake at a petstore, and this petstore is not like the others in my area, they keep there reptiles very well..

everyone: the bci is about 15 inches long, maybe 7-8 weeks old, is it a good idea to feed it every 5 days? i thought one of the care sheets i read said that, or is 7 days better?

[HeatherRose]

I know you've heard this before.... but if the mouse was snapping at the snake, it only takes a second for something to go wrong...

Why not restrain the mouse if you've got to feed live? Especially if you intend to graduate to a larger size of prey. It's must safer for the snake you've waited so long to get :D

[Iceman]

lol yes i know the law on feeding live pray, i am trying to switch it to dead..

[greenman1867]

Also a baby BCI can take Rats no problem, get on them ASAP, no sense getting him hooked on mice then having to switch. Also fuzzy rats won't hurt your Boa IF you HAVE to feed live a few times to get the snake onto Rats.

About how long is your new baby?

Shawn

[Iceman]

Hmm, about 15 inches i'd say, it seems it can eat bigger, because it took down the hopper no problem, lol.

[hbwright]

I would go to a pinky rat. Probably less then a week old pinky and try to get him on frozen/thawed ASAP. At that age/size you can feed every 5 days. I just started my 6 month old onto every 6-7 days on large pinkies/small fuzzies and believe me she lets me know when it is time to eat. Congrats BTW. You're girlfriend will love it.

[greenman1867]

I would try F/T first, to the best of my knowledge Boas are not too picky (at least mine are not). If it takes the F/T you are set, if not then try live.

Shawn

[Iceman]

ok thanks for the replys, but i have some questions that are bugging me..

1: after eating it's normal for a bci to not be active for a few days right? cause it is hiding alot.

2: i cannot remember, how long should i wait before handling it after eating? i fed it wednsday.

let me know, thanks

[joey]

i usually wait about 4 days.....or after they poop. ...i got pooped on once by one of my corns. NASTY stuff.

[BOAS_N_PYTHONS]

ICEMAN:

If the boa fed well and is now hiding it just wants a nice datk warm place to rest and digest the food. If after 5 days still hiding make sure your temp s and humidity are set correct and observe at night and see results. Still hiding give it a few days and there should be defecation and they boa will be out and hunting again.

Handling after a meal is a no no. Reasons are if right after this will only stress the boa and possibly make it regurge. Also if after a meal the boa may still be in hunting mode. Handling a few days after can still upset the digestation of the boa. If the boa defecated then its safe to say this is when you can handle the boa and the next day you can feed again and repeat the time frames and you should be fine.

Tony

[hbwright]

I usually handle Casey on the third day after eating, sometimes longer. I make sure she is up and about first and then handle her and only if her bulge is gone. They do tend to go into hiding at times. Most sleep all day and save activity for night but sometimes are inactive at night. I think Casey is going into shed because she has been making good use of her hidey since I fed her on Monday night so I've been leaving her alone. I rely on her behavior as to handling and feeding most of the time.