New CRB owner with question.

[Halfhand]

New snake owner here. I picked up a CRB at the Columbia Repticon show last month. She is a little cutie. She's just a little over a foot long. So far she's been fairly easy to tend. I check my humidity levels a couple times a day every day just to make sure. She hasn't tried to nip once.

They told me she was eating pinkies weekly, and so far I haven't had any issues getting her to eat. One pinky barely made a noticeable bulge so I decided to see if she would take two. She's a hungry little booger and didn't refuse or regurg. I'm on week 3 of ownership and she's downed 5 pinkies since I've had her, yet no poo. Should this be of concern?

More info:

About 5 days ago she came out of her hide and curled up in a corner. It was almost feeding time so I didn't bother her. She stayed in that corner 2 days but on feeding night she gobbled up 2 pinkies and went right back to that corner. I was getting a little worried but thought maybe she's about to shed. She was looking a little less colorful but having only had her 3 weeks I wasn't really sure. He eyes were normal.

Last night I took her to the sink for a warm bath to see if she would relax enough to take a dump. She was fighting me trying to get out the entire time so I only kept her in a couple minutes. I message a friend with multiple snakes today and he said to keep giving her baths. So today I kept her in for 5-10 minutes, still no poo, but when taking her out I noticed her skin was pale and moving. I could see the top layer and move it.

So any advice? Do you think she'll poop after she sheds, don't worry for now? Does that explain her new behavior? Today had changed location to her hide on the warm side and was out of the odd corner. Should I keep giving her baths or just leave her be until she sheds?

[Aaron_S]

1. Do you sit in the same spot every day all the time? No. So snakes can change from hides. Don't worry about it if your husbandry is fine.

2. She may be shedding. Yes, usually snakes poop as they shed.

3. Don't worry about pooping. Colubrids poop a lot but boas and pythons are generally more of an ambush predator so it's in their nature to not make their ambush spot smell like a predator. I find they usually hold onto it a bit longer at times.

4. You can up the size to fuzzy mice I bet. Just feed one.

[Halfhand]

If I would have just waited one more day I would have had all my answers. She shed today, took a poo, and is enjoying the warm hide.

[SnakeyJay]

Honestly there's no need to bathe your snake unless there's stuck shed etc.. All you'll do is add stress to a time when they're already a little stressed due to going into shed. Try not to handle too much during this period.

When you say warm bath, how warm? If it felt warm to your hand it was probably too warm for your CRB as they like quite mild temp ranges really.

Other than that, welcome to the wonderful world of snake keeping. A rainbow boa is a good choice, they're stunning animals and especially when they're in sunlight. Got any pics of the little guy to show us?

[Snakesitter]

^^ Excellent answer. To clarify a bit on #4, you said they she was eating "pinkies." However, did they say which type of pinkie? Rainbows can take a *rat* pinkie from birth, but a mouse pinkie is so small you need to feed several.

+1 for seeing a picture!