Victoria has her first quail!

So today I went to my local reptile food source and to my surprise, she now stocks chicks, quails and guinea pigs as well the regular stuff of rats, mice and rabbits. So her and I talked awhile about snakes and stuff and I decided it was time for Vicky to try a quail. Well she went completely bonkers for it. She hit that thing harder and faster than a fat kid on a Snickers. She then spent about 10 mins checking it out. Finally she ate it lol. Now soon as Rosey is out of shed, she gets to try a quail too!. Here are some pics of Vicky enjoying the new dinner.
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...495968_z_d.jpg
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...973d85_z_d.jpg
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...791702_z_d.jpg

I like how she retreated into the hide. Lol "Stop watching me"

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She's gorgeous! And huuuge! Lol

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Originally Posted by jbzapanda

She's gorgeous! And huuuge! Lol

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Lol she's actually the smaller of the 2. Rosey is about 6.5' where are Vicky is 5'. And Caesar the piggy retic is growing faster than them both and already at 4' at 6 months old. He is a stomach with eyes lol. Fed him his small rat tonight and after eating it, he sat at the front of the cage outside the hide and was just watching me as I was watching Vicky eat her quail lol. So I gave him a 2nd small rat so he wouldn't feel left out of the food frenzy from everyone lol.

Haha! I think it's funny how they all look a lot bigger in pictures than they do in person [emoji23] glad to know they're eating and growing well!

Beautiful snake!

Lol yeah, pictures always make them look huge. Omg, they all would eat themselves into food comas if I let them. Caesar gets a small rat every 4-5 days, now probably need 2 as 1 doesn't seem to do the job anymore. Rosey eats a rabbit or large rat every 2-3 weeks. Luna eats a small mouse every 7-10 days. Dottie eats a small rat every week. Vicky eats a medium rat every 2-3 weeks and Allison eats 2 large mice every week since I cant get her switched to rats so I guess i'm stuck with a mouser. Good thing she is small lol. it's like a small fortune feeding these guys. They are worse than human kids lol.

Good to see that Vicky had no problems sliding that quail down. :)

Man with that feeding schedule for all of the gang you are going through some quantity there. There are really some substantial cost savings buying online. Not only that, but the gas and hassle going to the pet store.

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Yeah I know lol. I need to just buy a little chest freezer and slap an order into Layne labs or Big Cheese.

She is GORGEOUS.

She's so pretty! I'm not very knowledgeable on boas, but do they lose color as they age like ball pythons or will she be that pretty if not even prettier as she ages (assuming she's not already fully grown out)? o: Those colors are so stunning, I'd never seen such a pretty boa until seeing your posts.

Anyhow, back on topic, good to hear she enjoyed her meal! That last picture makes me laugh, she looks so grumpy from that angle.

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Originally Posted by AlbinoBull

She's so pretty! I'm not very knowledgeable on boas, but do they lose color as they age like ball pythons or will she be that pretty if not even prettier as she ages (assuming she's not already fully grown out)? o: Those colors are so stunning, I'd never seen such a pretty boa until seeing your posts.

Anyhow, back on topic, good to hear she enjoyed her meal! That last picture makes me laugh, she looks so grumpy from that angle.

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All albinos and sunglows yellow out some as they get older. Sharps tend to hold their oranges and reds better and kahls tend to wash out. With that said, Vicky has been mistaken for sharp sunglow a lot. She is actually kahl and about 3 years old so she is pretty much where she will stay. Her mom is an EBV Redgroup and her dad is a Burke Lipstick line sunglow. For comparsion, the first picture is her as a baby when I got her and the bottom picture is her now at almost 3 years old.
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...fd8ccb_z_d.jpg
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...6a2b23_z_d.jpg

Gorgeous animal. Nice snaps as well.

It will be interesting to see how things progress at the other end in a week or so :)


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She got much better with age, at least in my eyes! She is a beautiful snake, I can't believe how bright and shiny she is! Thank you so much for sharing, it's always so fun to see the colors of other snakes I'm unfamiliar with. I'll need to look up boa morphs sometime.

I'm a BP addict, but I have to say she is gorgeous and I love her eyes!

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Originally Posted by Zincubus

It will be interesting to see how things progress at the other end in a week or so :)

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LOL that first feeding with feathers gets real interesting to clean up...

You have an amazing collection Sau! As far as the avian in the diet, variety is the spice of life. Congrats and thanks for sharing. :gj:

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Originally Posted by bcr229

LOL that first feeding with feathers gets real interesting to clean up...

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I've heard this before, but I've fed quail to my rtb and sstp, didn't really notice any difference. Maybe if you feed only birds? I offer mostly rats but have given guinea pig and quail before, I've got a couple piglets in the freezer I'm going to try on my bigger snakes one of these weeks too.

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Originally Posted by GoingPostal

I've heard this before, but I've fed quail to my rtb and sstp, didn't really notice any difference. Maybe if you feed only birds? I offer mostly rats but have given guinea pig and quail before, I've got a couple piglets in the freezer I'm going to try on my bigger snakes one of these weeks too.

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My experience has been that live chicken has nasty results. FT chicken/quail does not. Never tried live quail.

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Originally Posted by DennisM

My experience has been that live chicken has nasty results. FT chicken/quail does not. Never tried live quail.

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Lol was going to try a small chick for my retic as a treat but now i'm questioning it. He's already a poop machine, I don't need to make it worse lol.

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Originally Posted by Albert Clark

You have an amazing collection Sau! As far as the avian in the diet, variety is the spice of life. Congrats and thanks for sharing. :gj:

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Thanks and yeah, figure I would change it up for them here and there. Now that my snake food gal stocks chicks and quails, I can give everyone treats every few weeks to change up the monotony of rats only lol.

She's a beautiful boa. I love the colors and if I were to get into morphs, that's the color I'd look at.

I've never had any issues feeding quail on the waste end of things. I mix rats, quail, rabbits and have done chicks and try to keep the variety going with the snakes that will take various types of food.

One little thing you may want to do when feeding quail is to clip the beak. On occasion, but its no too frequent, I've seen that beak pushing from the inside out when they have a funky swallow.

Once with my carpet I was very concerned and once with the boa semi concerned. I just clip the sharp tip off before I thaw it and it is never an issue or worry.

Your boas, carpet and retic should all be very happy to eat quail when given the chance.

Yeah I plan on giving them all the variety. The gal also stocks chicks too so i'll probably throw those in mix too. Vicky went crazy for it lol. Rosey is in shed so i'll get her one after she sheds and Caesar ate 2 small rats and is still popping his head out of the hide whenever I go by lol. But he's stuck waiting until at least 4 days before he gets a quail or chick. I swear the snake has a wooden tail he hides food in lol.

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Originally Posted by Gio

..,.,,,,..............................
One little thing you may want to do when feeding quail is to clip the beak. On occasion, but its no too frequent, I've seen that beak pushing from the inside out when they have a funky swallow.

Once with my carpet I was very concerned and once with the boa semi concerned. I just clip the sharp tip off before I thaw it and it is never an issue or worry.
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Excellent tip about the beak Gio! :gj:

When I try some quail at some point I will definitely clip the beak.

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Originally Posted by Gio

She's a beautiful boa. I love the colors and if I were to get into morphs, that's the color I'd look at.

I've never had any issues feeding quail on the waste end of things. I mix rats, quail, rabbits and have done chicks and try to keep the variety going with the snakes that will take various types of food.

One little thing you may want to do when feeding quail is to clip the beak. On occasion, but its no too frequent, I've seen that beak pushing from the inside out when they have a funky swallow.

Once with my carpet I was very concerned and once with the boa semi concerned. I just clip the sharp tip off before I thaw it and it is never an issue or worry.

Your boas, carpet and retic should all be very happy to eat quail when given the chance.

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What did you use to clip the beak with?

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Originally Posted by Sauzo

What did you use to clip the beak with?

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Just standard house scissors. Do it while frozen. It just squares off the sharp point at the end of the beak.

I've fed without clipping it, but like I said, there were a couple of instances where I was nervous.

Think I'll buy some small quail for Wallace too!

Lol nice. And thanks, think i'll start cutting them too. And yeah Caesar is going to get one in a few days. I cant believe how fast they digest. He ate 2 small rats yesterday and today the lump is gone and he is out and about. Even took him out today and he was happy to sit on me and then explore all over. I know its only been 1 day but I am shocked how fast they digest. It puts boas to shame on the digesting lol. And it's funny, whenever I go past his cage, he pokes his head out and stands up at the front door. Then after a couple of mins if nothing happens he back pedals back into his warm hide and just leaves his nose sticking out. I also think he's going into shed again as his neck/face is starting to get wrinkly again. Good thing I didn't buy a female lol.

I really need to buy a little chest freezer for the snakes lol. The pythons are eating me outta the house. Even my BP who usually fasts for winter is on a binge now. She has been pounding small rats like clockwork every 5-7 days lol.

Anyways, thanks for the beak tip lol, get it...beak...tip..clip :rofl: I know, tacky lol.

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Originally Posted by Sauzo

Lol nice. And thanks, think i'll start cutting them too. And yeah Caesar is going to get one in a few days. I cant believe how fast they digest. He ate 2 small rats yesterday and today the lump is gone and he is out and about. Even took him out today and he was happy to sit on me and then explore all over. I know its only been 1 day but I am shocked how fast they digest. It puts boas to shame on the digesting lol. And it's funny, whenever I go past his cage, he pokes his head out and stands up at the front door. Then after a couple of mins if nothing happens he back pedals back into his warm hide and just leaves his nose sticking out. I also think he's going into shed again as his neck/face is starting to get wrinkly again. Good thing I didn't buy a female lol.

I really need to buy a little chest freezer for the snakes lol. The pythons are eating me outta the house. Even my BP who usually fasts for winter is on a binge now. She has been pounding small rats like clockwork every 5-7 days lol.

Anyways, thanks for the beak tip lol, get it...beak...tip..clip :rofl: I know, tacky lol.

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Good deal bud!

Your boa is stunning! I love her actually. You've gone camera-less for too long.

I just fed Wallace about 30 seconds ago. He's shy but crossed his long branch to get the prey and hammered it. He was quite motivated today. I'm keeping to the 7-10 day schedule that Kris recommended and am quite happy with how things are going.

You have got me into looking for much smaller quail than I usually buy, but I should have expected this with a new, baby snake.

Variety is crucial IMO. If we can mix it up in size, variety, and frequency I think we'll be looking at healthy, long lived animals.

Boas are a whole different story for digestion, but I think learning their feeding regime is helpful when owning other snakes with the exception of extremely active and foraging colubrids. I am convinced 95% of captive snakes are overfed still.

Wallace is done with his rat now LOL!

When spring hits, I want to see a "Color Morph" post from you. Though I'm a natural "Mother Nature" pattern guy I can sure appreciate beauty.

I like your animals and enjoy the differences in various collections. Its a great hobby to share with friends that have different things from your own.

Sadly, none of us are anywhere close to one another to stop by for a beer and feeding event.

I have 1, ONE, UNO, snake friends that lives near me, the rest are on the boards LOL!

LOL, I have one friend who appreciates my scale babies...and my niece (who used to be terrified of snakes until she got up enough nerve to handle mine and now has 2 BP'S and a retic). Most people look at me like I'm nuts because I have snakes!

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Originally Posted by Gio

Good deal bud!

Your boa is stunning! I love her actually. You've gone camera-less for too long.

I just fed Wallace about 30 seconds ago. He's shy but crossed his long branch to get the prey and hammered it. He was quite motivated today. I'm keeping to the 7-10 day schedule that Kris recommended and am quite happy with how things are going.

You have got me into looking for much smaller quail than I usually buy, but I should have expected this with a new, baby snake.

Variety is crucial IMO. If we can mix it up in size, variety, and frequency I think we'll be looking at healthy, long lived animals.

Boas are a whole different story for digestion, but I think learning their feeding regime is helpful when owning other snakes with the exception of extremely active and foraging colubrids. I am convinced 95% of captive snakes are overfed still.

Wallace is done with his rat now LOL!

When spring hits, I want to see a "Color Morph" post from you. Though I'm a natural "Mother Nature" pattern guy I can sure appreciate beauty.

I like your animals and enjoy the differences in various collections. Its a great hobby to share with friends that have different things from your own.

Sadly, none of us are anywhere close to one another to stop by for a beer and feeding event.

I have 1, ONE, UNO, snake friends that lives near me, the rest are on the boards LOL!

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Thanks man and it's funny, I've been looking into the natural look now and have been eyeballing BCC lol. I think the variety is what makes the hobby fun. Staring at nothing but morphs and nothing but naturals can get boring. Need to mix it up just like the snakes' food.

And you have one more friend than I got that like reptiles. I'm like the oddball when it comes to pets.

And Caesar is a bit shy when I reach in to pick him up but once on me, he loves to just curl up on my arms and relax. When it comes to food though, he definitely isn't shy lol.

There is no way I could go 10 days with Caesar. He would go ballistic. 5 days seems to be his limit before he is in hunt mode and cruising all over at night. Heck in the day he pops his head out of the hide whenever something happens near him lol. Kris told me he was an eater and would eat anything, he wasn't kidding lol.

And yeah I do think a lot of snakes are overfed. I think though that baby retics want/need to eat a lot in the first year to put on that weight and length. After a year, i'll probably drop Caesar down to 1 item a week or possibly 1 item every 2 weeks depending how he looks and acts when the time comes. Like I said, he really loves to eat and he digests food so freakin fast. Its like in the mouth and out the butt in about 4-5 days. Even the boas as babies didn't come that close to pooping lol.

He is growing faster than I planned though. I'm beginning to think he isn't going to top out at 7'. I'm going to plan for 10' and be pleasantly surprised if he doesn't reach that.

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Originally Posted by Sandi1961

LOL, I have one friend who appreciates my scale babies...and my niece (who used to be terrified of snakes until she got up enough nerve to handle mine and now has 2 BP'S and a retic). Most people look at me like I'm nuts because I have snakes!

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Lol she jumped in with both feet getting a retic. That would be like me getting a bird eating spider.....I HATE spiders lol. More power to her though as it would be cold day in hell before I would ever hold a spider haha.

I am not a fan of arachnids either! My niece will let her friend's tarantula crawl all over her! Thank goodness she fell in love with snakes instead!

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