Rescued a BP today off CL

[Highline Reptiles South]

I posted yesterday about a bp i was going to look at. 12 years old and 4.5 feet long...in the hopes I might add a breeding size female for next year.

Well when i got there the snake was in a huge reptile basics enclosure...big enough for a full grown boa. It has the heat panel and no thermostat. i go to take it out and it is SKINNY. I mean....really skinny. I guess he was feeding a mouse every 2 weeks or so? She was so hungry she tried to EAT ME! I saw her eyeing me up and took a slow and premeditated taste.

So here I am bleeding my butt off and i've decided I've gotta rescue the snake no matter what the sex. We struck a deal for $100 and I got a Reptile Basics enclosure with lights and heat panel, Reptile basics pedestal and some other gear that will be perfect for when my boa gets larger.

I go to sex the snake as soon as I get home and there goes two sperm plugs.....damn I can still fatten him up and find him a good home.

I put him in his new tub and sure enough he looks like he is hunting tonight. So after one of the scariest days of this 12 yo pythons life there is no way he is gonna eat right? Wrong - I dangled a live rat for less than 2 seconds before it got snatched and it was down in probably 5 mins. Gonna let the poor guy be for a week and have another go.

What would you think a 4.5 foot ball should weigh?

[Skittles1101]

Sorry all my snakes are 2010 so I can't help with your question. However I feel the need to express my sorrow when I opened the thread and didn't see any pictures of your newly acquired ball python Congrats on the pickup, I'm sure he/she is in good hands and will gain weight without issue, especially if he/she eats you

[Highline Reptiles South]

I guess i'm not too tasty because he spit me right out. You should have seen this guys's poor kid. He saw me get bit but I didn't react....he was like "OH MY GOD DID HE BITE YOU" I was like "just a little love bite" then he saw the blood....and started telling me now I got venom in me hehehe... he calmed down and all was well

I should take a picture now...he kinda looks like a garden hose swallowed a softball...

[Sammy412]

I rescued a 7yr old female almost a yr ago......she was 4.5 ft at that time and weighed 454g. No muscle tone. I wasn't sure how it was gonna go, but she ate as soon as I got her home and in a nice tub. She now weighs 1500+g, and has nice muscle tone, also. Start slow.....go with smaller than normal prey items so you don't stress out his system. I fed her every 5 days for the first month or so, then cut back to every 7 days. She's a great snake....never struck or hissed, and she eats in blue, too Good luck......My guess is once you see him in 6 months, you won't want to let him go

[Highline Reptiles South]

ooof...this guy wasn't that bad...maybe 1000 grams...but should be thick and 2000....

[Kingofspades]

He'll catch up.
I've dealt with plenty of skinny rescues.

[Kymberli]

I'm sure he'll look great in a few months. Out of the two rescues I have, my female has been the most impressive "before and after". I won't go into what she looked like and went through, but I will say she was two years old and 300g. In a matter of four months she has shot up to 712g, not "power feeding" either.

I love seeing how quickly they can recover. Such incredibly hardy animals. Good luck and post pictures!

[mommanessy247]

these poor CL snake stories is why i'm staying clear of CL.

[jeffreybas]

Yeah I've seen several Cl listings near me that say the BP includes everything and everytime they have listed lamps and heat rocks. Then the pictures are hard to see so can't get a good look at them

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[Anya]

Awww. That's really awful. I actually had a good Craigslist experience, believe it or not. They weren't doing everything right, but I do believe they really cared, and she's definitely not overly skinny, even though they weren't feeding her enough. She's a total sweetie, not even head-shy, So I know they didn't just stick her in a corner and leave her, lol.

I'm sure under your care he'll spring back. GL!