sand boa

[olly]

hi all! ive had my sand boa (suze) for over a month now he's an adult not sure his exact age. he settled in fine and eat the first week i had him but since then he just wont eat, tonight he opened his mouth as if he was about to grab the mouse but then changed his mind. anyone had any problems with sand boas? or can give me any pointers?

[BP_okay]

When I got my sand boa, he gave me some problems with feeding. From all my research, I understand they have very low metabolisms, especially males. I have even read of sand boas going off food for 4 mos. or even in one case 8 mos., but now that spring is approaching he should be getting hungry more readily.

Mine didn't eat for 2 mos. when I first got him. He's a Saharan. He had only been fed live mice. He didn't eat for 2 months and had 2 shed cycles. The girl who had been taking care of him, I think was trying to feed him mice that were too large, and described him as a difficult snake. Personally, I think sand boas weren't her specialty. Every week, I'd offer and still no response. Finally, I decided to strike out on my own and got a mouse that was quite small, about the girth of his body(much smaller than the ones I had offered in the past). Maybe you should try a smaller meal. I am not sure what size you are trying to feed him and not sure what your husbrandry is. Also, are feeding in the cage or outside? I prefer inside, and I think they like the security of being hidden before the attack.

Mine is also very shy and doesn't like me to watch, so I just leave the mouse in for a while at night and check on him periodically to ensure his safety.

His second meal is coming up on saturday(2 weeks later) and I hope he eats, but I wouldn't worry too much if he doesn't take it. They are so hardy. I hope this helps and confirms any concerns. Btw, it's soooo nice there are other sand boa ppl out there. We seem to be less active than the other forums. :)

[olly]

thanks for the pointers thats a great help, they are quite secretive creatures and people prefur a lively active snake but i think there beautifull snakes. i told my sister he's actually quite cute!!! she really didnt understand how a snake could be cute!!! i feed mine on half grown mice which is no bigger than his girth, he is rather large for a male almost 2 feet! thanks again fellow sand boa keeper!!!

[BP_okay]

It's sounds like the meal size is great! Yeah, I feel like I love mine like a mother. I think he's adorable. I have a striped corn now and in my husbands words - he thinks the sand boa is cuter because he looks like a cute little "sausage". Not the words I would use but funny nonetheless. Pleasure helping you hopefully. By the way, what kind of sand boa do you have and how often do you handle him?

[olly]

haha cute little sausage!!! mines a kenyan sand boa i handle him maybe 3 times a week, he's very tame and i can dig him out when he's hiding and he never acts intimidated or goes for me. i also have a corn snake he's a cali corn called barry!!

[BP_okay]

Kenyan's are beautiful. My saharan is the same way...very tame and goes with the flow. I am so excited b/c last night for the first time I was able to watch him feed...right on schedule(2 weeks). He really went for that mouse and the funny thing was that he didn't even hide under the substrate to hunt. He was very exposed on top and just went for it. I just felt like saying proudly, "that's my boy." When do you plan on trying to feed Suze again? I know you were you having issues.

I have a striped corn. He's just been in his new home 3 days and he's about a year(20 - 22 inches) He's very shy though - spending most of his time in his hides. I am sure he is just adjusting. Did you corn do that in the early stages of having him too?

Traci :)

[olly]

i'm gonna try feeding my boa again tomorrow hopefully he'll take this time, ive just fitted a new regulater for his heat bulb so his temps are spot on. my corn is about 14 months and 30" - 34" long he had his first full grown mouse on sat and i too felt like sayin thats my boy!! he was half way through shed when i put him in his bigger tank, i put all of the substrate from his old tank in there so he had familier smells and as soon as he shed he was all over the place!! he loves climbing and is allways up in the branches that i put there althogh he's not been too active since saturday as he's stuffed!!!
anyway wish me luck for my boa tomorrow!!
take care
olly

[BP_okay]

It sounds like everything is set! I will definitely cross my fingers for ya'. I know how anxious and excited I would be everytime I'd try to feed my sand boa(Nicolai) during his eating issues.

Sounds like Barry has lots of personality :)

How old was your corn when you first got him? Was he pretty shy the first week? Mine will go from hiding to hiding place and then at night when he becomes more active he will explore, but it's really strange....when we go into to the room where he is, he will either jump or run to his hiding spots. Do you think this is normal for his first week? He is from a breeder, so I think his interaction with humans has been minimal at best. Just a guess on my part.

Good luck with the feeding and have a great day :)

[olly]

barry was only 4 weeks old when i got him and his tank has always been in my bedroom also i handled him pretty much every day for the first few months i had him so he's got used to me but he does shy away at first when i go to get him. corns are notoriously shy animals and there first instinct is to hide when they feel threatend or unsure but with plenty of handling yours should be ok. how long have you had him then?
as we speak barry is climbing around the top of his tank and has fell down twice!! lol!! he is a funny little dude!!
olly

[BP_okay]

Well, that is a bit more comforting. It is good to know his behavior is not atypical. I got him this past Thursday,so he's only been in his new tank(home) for 5 days. He's an 08', so I think he's between 8-12 months of age. I have not handled him and have just let him settle in, as I have heard that about a week of alone time for them is best before trying to interact. I plan on feeding him his 1st meal on Thursday night(f/t fuzzy), and then try to handle him for the first time 3 to 4 days or after the meal.

It's neat that he's in your bedroom, b/c that's where mine is. I figured he would get use to me more easily in there.

Btw, let me know how Suze's feeding goes, and thanks for the info. It really helps to know my snake isn't a scaredy cat...or snake :)

Traci