And then there was 12

[bigsnakegirl785]

Originally Posted by GyGbeetle

Skipper/BSG: I agree with you both. I don't want to breed, because I want to ensure we are selling them to capable homes, lifetime homes for them. All too often I see posts about people saying they are on to the next project, and want to unload snakes or do a trade. Or they are just tired of the snake and want to try something new. I'm not sure why but it rubs me wrong. And then there's the fact that I may not want to get rid of any of them, so we'll end up with the entire clutch of babies. We have a loooooooong way to go yet; he won't breed anyone for the first year we have them. We want to make sure both parties are healthy.

BSG: She doesn't outwardly look skinny, but you can feel every bone in her body. It definitely doesn't look like they fed her every 2 weeks like they said. We do our best to keep healthy and fit snakes; had an issue with a couple of our babies getting bigger than expected, and had to reduce their feedings to every other week earlier than our research indicated. They aren't even a year yet, but they got really round. Same thing with Fang, our big guy. We were feeding him every week when we first got him, and in 2 months he got round. So we reduced it, and now he's fit again.

She's doing well today. She's still pretty curious, but has been hanging out in her new hide. We have to modify her enclosure; it's all chicken wire on the top and the front, so all the moisture is escaping. It doesn't appear to be affecting her though.

Yes, adult boas should be eating every 4-6 weeks, so it isn't surprising he got chubby on a weekly feeding schedule. As far as the babies, that's also why I start my babies out eating every 10-14 days as opposed to the usual 7-10 days. I've gotten great results in the 2 I've raised this way so far! As I start breeding, I'll probably do more experimenting on that matter.

I would just go ahead and feed her something appropriately-sized every 3-4 weeks, she should gain any weight she needs on that schedule. If you can get your hands on small enough rabbits, throw in a rabbit every other feeding. Rabbits are very dense and help to pack on the pounds. If she's under 7' I wouldn't go over maybe 9-10 ounces. If she's around 7' I wouldn't go above 1 lb, and 1/2 or slightly larger may be better. If she is underweight, you want her to gain weight at steady pace and not all at once. It's easy to overfeed on rabbits.