Boa Feeding Question

[the_flaxseed]

Hey Everyone.

I recently got a 2 month old Jungle Sunglow Boa and she's beautiful. She's my second snake and I just had a few questions about her feeding. I'm probably just overly concerned, but wanted to get some advice from you all.

So she was feeding on f/t adult mice in her enclosure every seven days with the breeder before I got her. I got her on the day before she would typically be fed. I waited 3 days to let her settle and tried to feed her outside her enclosure (just how I feed my snakes - they're on aspen and I don't want to risk her eating that), she was uninterested. I tried again two days later and cut the mouse's head to expose the brain (10 days after last feeding) and she struck and ate immediately. I then waited 2 days for digestion and started handling every other day for 15 minutes each day. Tried feeding her again with the same technique 8 days post feeding. Did not eat. Tried again 2 days after that and she struck at the mouse twice, but let it go and acted as if she was scared of it. Left the mouse in feed box for 10 minutes. She seemed uninterested and I gave up.

She is in a 33x16x16 enclosure with a hide on her hot and cold side. Temperatures are from 91-92 on the hot side and 79-81 on the cold side. Humidity is anywhere between 55-70.

Could it just be that she's stressed and I should stop handling her and continue to let her settle? Why might she be striking and letting go?

Thanks for any help. I know this is an easy issue to resolve and it has only been 11 days since her last meal. I just wanna get some feedback on why I might be having these difficulties. I've heard that most boas are very aggressive feeders.