BCI Muscle Loss

GFLY · 11-17-20, 07:13 PM

Hi guys, my 9 month old Boa has had a lot of muscle loss over the past few weeks... I took her to the vet and had a fecal and blood test, but nothing came up that was out of the ordinary. She is eating just fine, but I've noticed loose skin and that her spine is more visible than it should be. I also have noticed that she feels pretty squishy and not like a lean piece of meat. Starting to subtly feel her ribs when handling as well when I was checking for lumps (if any). Any thoughts/ideas as to what can cause muscle loss in infant boas? I'm at a loss here since I literally can't find anything online about muscle loss in Boas.

chairman · 11-17-20, 09:23 PM

I read through your earlier threads. It would be nice to get updated pictures of the enclosure, see what you ended up deciding to do.

The thing that immediately comes to mind for the weight loss is that you may be underfeeding the snake. Boas should be eating meals the same diameter as the thickest part of its body. You should be able to tell that the snake ate but it shouldn't leave a bulge. From previous threads it seems like you know this already, but just double checking.

Another possibility is that you aren't feeding the snake often enough. I'd be feeding a 9 month old boa once every 7 days or so.

If the feeding interval is good and your prey size is correct then you could attempt introducing a vitamin like herptivite or reptivite. You can also attempt feeding more frequently, though overfeeding can be a problem for boas as they mature.