makes a snake slow down growth wise? I am curious. My boa grew like a weed in the 29gl I upgraded her to a 90gl and she hasn't seamed to grow much and has gotten more aggressive. Nothing really has changed except the cage size and having some branches to climb on. She was at 2' when put in the cage which was about June and she is at max 2'6". She also try's to bite when handled. Has bitten me once so far but had no interest in a mouse. She is eating a small mouse on a regular bases. Which I think is to big but she won't take anything smaller.
what...
- Thread starter Silvertears
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What type of boa is it? A 2' 6" boa could usually take bigger than a small mouse I think. My blood python male is just passing the 2' mark and he can handle a large rat. When she bites dont immediatly put her back in (or pull away cause ive herd you can break they're teeth by doing so) because that means she gets what she wanted, to be put back. Use gloves and just hold her loosely and let her bite away and soon she should realise you don't want to hurt her and SHOULD calm down but some snakes never calm down.
A more experienced keeper will probaly offer more help
A more experienced keeper will probaly offer more help
She is a Central American. Everyone says don't feed bigger then the biggest part of the snake. Which a small mouse is. I handled her once with gloves. She has no issue then but as soon as I touch her with my hand she gets ready to strike.
Maybe cause of the heat? When I get an aggressive snake I cover my hand in vinager and if they bite they get a very bad taste. I do this with my yellow annie lol
Does she have any hiding spaces in the tank? Maybe she is feeling threatened with such a large open space, as you said you just upgraded her. I know with some of the smaller snakes (ball pythons, corns) if they don't have any places where they can find cover they can feel threatened.
She has moss and a log I use moss because she doesn't like the log that much, she doesn't use them anymore. She buries herself. The tank isn't open that much. I will take a picture of her tank in a little bit. See if anyone has any input on how I should change it to make her happier.
What are your temperatures and what type of substrate are you using?
She can definitely take a bigger prey item, snakes are stretchy...most of them are made to take large prey... boids more so than others. A 2ft boa can easily be on small maybe even medium rats. I have an Irian Jaya carpet python that is just under 3ft long and taking medium rats... and he is a very slender snake compared to a heavy bodied boa.
It's my personal belief that redtail ssp. should not ever be fed a mouse in their life... from the time they are born most of them are big enough to eat pinky rats. and you say "regularly" how often do you feed?
If everything in your set up appears to be correct that I would venture to say that your snake is just always hungry because it is not being fed enough, thus is nippy and pissed off all that...cause it's hungry! Aren't you pissy when your hungry?
Also, snakes are not birds or mammals.. the thought process of putting her back is giving her what she wants does not really apply here, they don't learn in that way. However they DO become accustomed to handling through constant and gentle handling as suggested..however if she used to be ok with being handled and is now not it is not because she isn't used to it.
Another thing you might try. If she is in a glass tank, cover 3 of the 4 sides with an opaque material, this will make her feel safer and more enclosed since she doesn't like the hide for whatever reason
She can definitely take a bigger prey item, snakes are stretchy...most of them are made to take large prey... boids more so than others. A 2ft boa can easily be on small maybe even medium rats. I have an Irian Jaya carpet python that is just under 3ft long and taking medium rats... and he is a very slender snake compared to a heavy bodied boa.
It's my personal belief that redtail ssp. should not ever be fed a mouse in their life... from the time they are born most of them are big enough to eat pinky rats. and you say "regularly" how often do you feed?
If everything in your set up appears to be correct that I would venture to say that your snake is just always hungry because it is not being fed enough, thus is nippy and pissed off all that...cause it's hungry! Aren't you pissy when your hungry?
Also, snakes are not birds or mammals.. the thought process of putting her back is giving her what she wants does not really apply here, they don't learn in that way. However they DO become accustomed to handling through constant and gentle handling as suggested..however if she used to be ok with being handled and is now not it is not because she isn't used to it.
Another thing you might try. If she is in a glass tank, cover 3 of the 4 sides with an opaque material, this will make her feel safer and more enclosed since she doesn't like the hide for whatever reason
The temp it 86-90ish on the side she always in on the other side is 80-86. Depends on if my dad messes with the heat. She is fed every week. I have tried adult mice and she didn't touch it. Also a small rat would be to big. At least what they sell around here are. I get them for my ball python and it takes her a while to eat them. The rats are a small amount bigger then the balls biggest spot. Which just behind her head is about the biggest round my boa is. I will have to get a picture of the small rats. I am going to start breeding rats soon, so I will switch her over to a size that I know she will be able to handle. She was use to handling before then got aggressive. I use to have her out daily or 5 times a week so she would be use to it. Never for a very long amount of time though(2 hours max). She never had an issue with it. Also the substrate is jungle mix fir & sphagnum peat moss.
In my experience with boas and snakes in general (I currently have about 60ish) bigger tanks with open spaces make them feel insecure. I"m guessing that you boa was feeling much more secure in the 29 gallon than it feels in the 90 gallon you currently have her in. A snake is not a human and most snakes do not appreciate wide open spaces as you would, in nature they will cram there bodies into the tightest space possible only venturing out for food, water, and mating. I would try giving the snake a hide spot the it can literally squeeze into and ,like "Sylvias" said, cover 3 of the four sides of the tank. It would'nt hurt if you put the snake back in the 29 gallon either. But either way I wish you luck and remeber that sometimes animals just don't turn out the way we want them to and you may end up with a pissy snake. Thanks JJ
also your growth rate seems normal actually. Unless you are power feeding your snake, the growth rate will generally slow down as they approach sexual maturity. Do you know what gender your snake is? If it is a male then that would explain you growth rate slowing down as males are way smaller than females.