Still not growing, help?

I posted a thread a while back about how my boa wasn't growing as much as I'd like her to. And I'm still having the same problem. Except now it's not that she hasn't grown enough, it's that she hasn't grown at all.

I got her back in April, and the breeder said she was 11 months old. It's now January, so that means she's 20 months old. She was about 2.5 ft when I got her and she's about 2.5 ft now. I'm pretty sure2-year-old female BCIs are supposed to be considerably larger than that. At least 4 or 5 ft, right?

I got her from JPC Boas at the White Plains expo. The guy I talked to knew what he was talking about, answered all my questions, even had me Purel before handling anything. All his animals were healthy and he had several full-grown breeders there, so I don't think that's the problem.

She's in a 40 gal with EcoEarth. Her temps and humidity are right. She's got two hides and she's always hanging out in one of them. Plenty of stuff to climb on too.

I offer her one small f/t rat every two weeks. She usually takes it without a problem and refuses anything I offer sooner (when I first got her she took one every week but then she stopped). She hasn't taken it the last two feedings but I assume that's just because she's fasting for the winter.

She looks a little slim but still healthy. Not seeing any bones or anything, but she's not thick at all and she hasn't grown a single inch since the day I got her.

What's up? Is something stunting her growth? Should I take her to a vet?

The day I got her (more for body mass than length):
http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w...8111710-01.jpg
A day over the summer (again, body mass):
http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w...4111249-01.jpg
And just taken about 10 min ago:
http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w...to01080142.jpg

Why is it a problem? My BCC is over 3 years old and only just now 5 ft. Thats slightly less than half her potential. She's being slow grown the right way and is very muscular.

Boas are different from balls. If you pose this question on a boa specific forum, you would get the same reply from many more people..

People always seem worried and try to feed their boas to get them huge. The truth is, they should grow much slower than you'd think. The over fed ones that become too big, too fast, don't live as long, and don't produce as well if bred. Fact..

Your boa is fine. You'll notice a growth spurt before long and the difference will be mind blowing. Trust me. It's how they work.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Foschi Exotic Serpents

Why is it a problem? My BCC is over 3 years old and only just now 5 ft. Thats slightly less than half her potential. She's being slow grown the right way and is very muscular.

Boas are different from balls. If you pose this question on a boa specific forum, you would get the same reply from many more people..

People always seem worried and try to feed their boas to get them huge. The truth is, they should grow much slower than you'd think. The over fed ones that become too big, too fast, don't live as long, and don't produce as well if bred. Fact..

Your boa is fine. You'll notice a growth spurt before long and the difference will be mind blowing. Trust me. It's how they work.

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Okay, that's reassuring. I was only concerned because all the research I'd done before buying her said she should be full-grown at about 2 or 3 years. I have no problem waiting, just thought something was wrong with her.

I know all about power-feeding and I've never tried it and never will. She gets a single rat every two weeks. I don't force her to eat more often, nor do I line a second rat up while she's swallowing. It's a cruel practice and I'd never think of shortening her lifespan just to show off an impressive snake.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Foschi Exotic Serpents

Why is it a problem? My BCC is over 3 years old and only just now 5 ft. Thats slightly less than half her potential. She's being slow grown the right way and is very muscular.

Boas are different from balls. If you pose this question on a boa specific forum, you would get the same reply from many more people..

People always seem worried and try to feed their boas to get them huge. The truth is, they should grow much slower than you'd think. The over fed ones that become too big, too fast, don't live as long, and don't produce as well if bred. Fact..

Your boa is fine. You'll notice a growth spurt before long and the difference will be mind blowing. Trust me. It's how they work.

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x2

She fine:gj:

Shouldn't it be getting fed more often at that size? ! small rat every 2 weeks seems like a stretch, but i could be wrong. Just wondering because i just picked up my first rub the other day.

Edit: sorry i misread your post, won't eat anything sooner.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SpartaDog

Okay, that's reassuring. I was only concerned because all the research I'd done before buying her said she should be full-grown at about 2 or 3 years. I have no problem waiting, just thought something was wrong with her.

I know all about power-feeding and I've never tried it and never will. She gets a single rat every two weeks. I don't force her to eat more often, nor do I line a second rat up while she's swallowing. It's a cruel practice and I'd never think of shortening her lifespan just to show off an impressive snake.

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That's good to know. Also, they should not necessarily be full grown by 2-3 years. Fact is, every snake is different and boas do need to be grown slowly.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by yeroc1982

Shouldn't it be getting fed more often at that size? ! small rat every 2 weeks seems like a stretch, but i could be wrong. Just wondering because i just picked up my first rub the other day.

Edit: sorry i misread your post, won't eat anything sooner.

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Not necessarily. As adults, boas tend to do better being fed once every 2-3 weeks. Even though this one is a bit small, she is about 2 years old. She's not a baby anymore no matter what her size. A 2 week feeding schedule is perfectly appropriate for her. :gj:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Evenstar

That's good to know. Also, they should not necessarily be full grown by 2-3 years. Fact is, every snake is different and boas do need to be grown slowly.



Not necessarily. As adults, boas tend to do better being fed once every 2-3 weeks. Even though this one is a bit small, she is about 2 years old. She's not a baby anymore no matter what her size. A 2 week feeding schedule is perfectly appropriate for her. :gj:

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Ok thanks for filling me in!

Actually mine did the exact same thing that yours is. Between the ages of 2 and 3 she stayed the exact same size. About 3 1/2 feet. I'd had boas years ago but had forgotten just how slow they grow. It isn't a steady constant growth like balls. They only have one or 2 major growth spurts a year it seems.

With mine I alternated her feeding. She ate weekly for the first year, then bi weekly. I'd give her an extra rat some non feeding weeks when she seemed hungry. She let's me know.

Now she usually eats only bi weekly but once in awhile during one of those growth spurts, I'll still give her an extra (small rat) to fill her up. I also don't give her huge meals. For her size she could be taking smaller large rats but she gets rats that are more like a medium most of the time. Just enough to put a visible feed lump in her.

I'm not sure if temps may have anything to do with it but mine is in a Boaphile stack with balls and a Retic. Retic on bottom for the coolest temp, boa above her, balls above them for the highest temp. So my Boa is kept a few degrees warmer and she actually spends most of her time on the hot side as well. Plus being a completely enclosed Boaphile cage, the humidity is always spot on as well.

Maybe when the weather warms up a bit, yours will eat an extra rat one week out of the month if you offer one that's smaller.

Sometimes you don't realize how much they've grown until you look back a few months later after taking pictures to see it. I did the same last year between June and October, I thought my little one hadn't grown much. After taking new pictures and looking at old one's she'd grown quite a bit more than what I thought. lol