BRB Issues

1010011010 · 06-21-13, 03:22 PM

I have a brazilian rainbow boa that is having a few issues right now. It is a baby and I have only had her for about 2 months. In those 2 months I have had her, she ate one fuzzy. She has not pooped yet but she has passed urates. I have tried bathing her in lukewarm water and massaging her but to no avale. She also moves very strange. She brings her tail up to her head and then moves forward. She already shed (two pieces) and when she shed she did not appear to shed. She did not go blue. I am extremely worried about her. I need to get her to a herp vet but there are any around, I am low on money and I don't have the time. She is currently staying in a 10 gallon (I am about to upgrade.) Humidity is 85% to 99% Temps are from 75 to 80 I keep a shirt of mine her tank to make her feel secure and I keep it damp, it acts as a humidity box. Substrate is eco carpet.

Amadeus · 06-21-13, 06:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1010011010

I have a brazilian rainbow boa that is having a few issues right now. It is a baby and I have only had her for about 2 months. In those 2 months I have had her, she ate one fuzzy. She has not pooped yet but she has passed urates. I have tried bathing her in lukewarm water and massaging her but to no avale. She also moves very strange. She brings her tail up to her head and then moves forward. She already shed (two pieces) and when she shed she did not appear to shed. She did not go blue. I am extremely worried about her. I need to get her to a herp vet but there are any around, I am low on money and I don't have the time. She is currently staying in a 10 gallon (I am about to upgrade.) Humidity is 85% to 99% Temps are from 75 to 80 I keep a shirt of mine her tank to make her feel secure and I keep it damp, it acts as a humidity box. Substrate is eco carpet.

Without seeing the snake in person and examining its habitat I can't even guess.

My suggestions is to save some money up and drive to a herp vet dude.

smy_749 · 06-21-13, 09:03 PM

If you have any other snakes, new additions maybe? Anyways, if you do, keep them separated from her in a different room. Could be any number of things wrong, its only guesswork. Borrow some money for a vet if you can ..

marvelfreak · 06-22-13, 07:59 AM

We need pictures of the snake and set up.

shaunyboy · 06-22-13, 08:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1010011010

I have a brazilian rainbow boa that is having a few issues right now. It is a baby and I have only had her for about 2 months. In those 2 months I have had her, she ate one fuzzy. She has not pooped yet but she has passed urates. I have tried bathing her in lukewarm water and massaging her but to no avale. She also moves very strange. She brings her tail up to her head and then moves forward. She already shed (two pieces) and when she shed she did not appear to shed. She did not go blue. I am extremely worried about her. I need to get her to a herp vet but there are any around, I am low on money and I don't have the time. She is currently staying in a 10 gallon (I am about to upgrade.) Humidity is 85% to 99% Temps are from 75 to 80 I keep a shirt of mine her tank to make her feel secure and I keep it damp, it acts as a humidity box. Substrate is eco carpet.

hot end temperatures 75F to 80F don't sound very hot,snakes need the correct heat or basking spot to aid digestion

re BRB's
i dont keep BRB's so it may be the case your hot end temps correct,it just seemed a little low in general for a snake...

i'm sure a BRB keeper from our forum will be able to revise your temps with you

re poop
even when a snakes eating a fuzzy EVERY feed,it absorbs most of the fuzzie,resulting in little or no poop coming from the snake,there's not very much feeding/bulk in,pinkies,fuzzies,rat pups,its usually when they start taking prey with fur on it,that they start pooping more regular,in larger amounts #(you'll be wishing it was back to its younger days,after you see an adult poop lol )

re prey size

what age is your retic ?

you say you've had it 2 months,imo even a 2 month old retic,should be on much larger prey items,a small wiener rat would be better suited,or at the very least a rat fluff

please let us know how it goes

cheers shaun

Amadeus · 06-22-13, 10:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shaunyboy

hot end temperatures 75F to 80F don't sound very hot,snakes need the correct heat or basking spot to aid digestion

re BRB's
i dont keep BRB's so it may be the case your hot end temps correct,it just seemed a little low in general for a snake...

i'm sure a BRB keeper from our forum will be able to revise your temps with you

re poop
even when a snakes eating a fuzzy EVERY feed,it absorbs most of the fuzzie,resulting in little or no poop coming from the snake,there's not very much feeding/bulk in,pinkies,fuzzies,rat pups,its usually when they start taking prey with fur on it,that they start pooping more regular,in larger amounts #(you'll be wishing it was back to its younger days,after you see an adult poop lol )

re prey size

what age is your retic ?

you say you've had it 2 months,imo even a 2 month old retic,should be on much larger prey items,a small wiener rat would be better suited,or at the very least a rat fluff

please let us know how it goes

cheers shaun

Brbs generally like cool temps.

Dumped_e46 · 06-23-13, 12:08 AM

It's possibly a shy eater leave some food in her tank and leave the room for a few hours,check and see if that helps.Another is possibly try feeding her with the room being quite dark. 85 to 99% to me is very high humidity I don't know anything a bout rainbow boas except they are gorgeous.my white lip's humidity is 82 day and 75 night and sheds gorgeously,however I don't know much about brbs,I am just merely stating.

Valvaren · 06-23-13, 07:03 AM

First off I would try to bump temps up to 80-82. Humidity should be closer to 90-95%. Try bumping these and see how that goes. I would say leave him/her alone as much as possible, no more handling or baths until you get them feeding. Mine were very very shy when I got them home but once they got a few meals into them nothing bothers them anymore.

As someone said try leaving a meal in with the, again with my pair the first meal I had to leave it in.

As far as the head movement goes i'm not sure I totally understand what is happening I would have to see it.

I keep my brbs at 80-82 degrees and 95%+ humidity, mine eat fine and have no shedding problems. I would believe due to your shedding problem you probably go through those drops to 85% a lot. I would look into something more stable as far as humidity, I don't have to mist my enclosure at all and I never get drops.

I also keep my brbs on paper towel, might help you with your humidity.

RBD · 06-24-13, 12:45 PM

Binary code person,

Lets address the main problem, feeding. My guess is if your BRB ate once for you it should eat again. Lets not monitor it's poop so closely. No more handling and bathing until your BRB is eating regularly. Mouse pinkies are a little on the small side for baby BRBs, try day old (or 2, 3 day) rat pinks. That will be much better for food for your BRB. A 10 gal. tank is very big for a baby so try confining your new BRB in a smaller space. I would get a small brown paper bag, the kind you would pack a kids lunch in and staple it shut with the snake and live rat pink in there. Let me know how that goes, john@rainbowsbydesign.com BRBs feeding is mostly a night time affair so I would do this at night. Hope it works for you.

Valvaren · 06-24-13, 03:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RBD

Binary code person,

Lets address the main problem, feeding. My guess is if your BRB ate once for you it should eat again. Lets not monitor it's poop so closely. No more handling and bathing until your BRB is eating regularly. Mouse pinkies are a little on the small side for baby BRBs, try day old (or 2, 3 day) rat pinks. That will be much better for food for your BRB. A 10 gal. tank is very big for a baby so try confining your new BRB in a smaller space. I would get a small brown paper bag, the kind you would pack a kids lunch in and staple it shut with the snake and live rat pink in there. Let me know how that goes, john@rainbowsbydesign.com BRBs feeding is mostly a night time affair so I would do this at night. Hope it works for you.

I know you breed them but I don't agree with the tank being too big.
I brought mine home at a month old and put them both in tubs bigger then I would use for a baby or juvie ball python and they did fine, ate first meal and haven't missed one ever.

As long as you offer proper cover and hides (mine had leave cover and four different hides) then nothing is too big. Wild animals aren't born and raised in bubbles or small boxes, as long as offered lots of places to find comfort and hide space isn't an issue.

RBD · 06-25-13, 11:35 AM

Valvaren,

I think that all animals, even in the same sp. are unique and will respond to the same conditions in very different ways. In my experience if a baby BRB is not eating the problem could be any number of things but the very first thing that I will do is "confine" the baby in a small enclosure with the pray item. This works most of the time. This is not really saying that a 10 gal is to big for the baby but it may be to big to feed in.

Amadeus · 06-25-13, 12:33 PM

Moving the snake before feeding could stress it out and result in another missed meal...

Snakesitter · 06-25-13, 10:37 PM

Welcome -- as John put it -- "binary code person"!

Pictures of your snake and setup, as well as some details on how you offer food, would help.

Temps seem fine; I know many breeders who have had success at those levels.

Humidity is a bit low -- aim for 90-95%.

Tank size is fine, provided you have enough hiding places.

The odd movement could be due to wariness. How does her viv look in terms of cover (hides), lighting, and side coverings? This is a very secretive species, and without adequate shelter or under too much light they will not do well.

The pooping is normal; until you start feeding something with fur, you don't get much waste.

You said "fuzzy," but not what type -- rat or mouse? If rat, it's a bit too big; baby Brazilians can handle pinks from birth. If a mouse, it's a bit too small; baby Brazilians can handle hoppers from birth.

Try offering her next meal as a mouse hopper. These are like crack candy to a baby rainbow, and the fur will hep her poop. Make sure it is piping hot and offered at dusk, when these animals are most active. Turn out all the lights in the room before hand, offer it wiggling on tongs, and leave right after. You can keep it overnight if you like; some rainbows prefer to eat late at night when no one is around.

Hopefully this helps. Please keep us posted!

Web Wheeler · 06-26-13, 01:22 PM

"binary code person" aka "666" aka "devil person"

Snakesitter · 06-26-13, 01:50 PM

Sorry, did I miss something?