Back in the saddle again

It’s been 8 years since I’ve had a new snake and I really missed that feeling of getting a new critter. I downsized my collection by a few animals and the empty enclosure syndrome finally got the best of me. After rehoming my Argentine Boa with a friend who wanted her (which turned out to be a him, for a breeding project, I knew I wanted another boa, even though I came very close to getting a beautiful retic. I decided I didn’t want to have to get a very large enclosure later. After a few weeks of going back and forth on Morph Market I finally decided on a female BCI. I decided to name her Peaches, but my son calls her Moana. She was born 3-20-25 and weighed 427g on arrival. I bought her from John Chausmer Reptiles in a very smooth transaction. I would highly recommend him. Anyway, didn’t get many pictures, but I’ll get more once she settles in and eats a few times. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...26c4122338.jpg
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I'm envious.

Back in the game Ziggy with a stunner!!

Can't wait to see this girl as she grows. You definitely made the right choice with both her and the breeder. John's one of the best in the business. Congrats my man!!

Sweet choice- I really loved the BCI I had for many years, & it's very nice to see you around again, EL-Ziggy- we always love updates, hint-hint. ;)

Her quarantine enclosure is set up in my bedroom, wifey wasn’t crazy about that, but it’s really cool watching her explore and get acclimated to her new surroundings. It’s better than watching television. :)

She's a beautiful snake. That lady will be a stunner when she grows up.

Another milestone. Peaches had her first successful feeding with me. She took a f/t small rat from tongs last night, and now she’s hanging out on her hot spot. She still hasn’t used any of her 4 hides though. Other than that she seems to be adjusting really well.

Awesome. She'll figure out & like (I bet?) the hides after some time to make sure they're safe. Right now, everything's "new" & under suspicion, lol.

Peaches had her 2nd meal last night, and she seems to be settling in well. She hasn’t pooped yet, but once she does I’ll be swapping out the paper towels in her enclosure with substrate. It’s been hard not handling her, which I look forward to starting after her next successful feeding. It’s been great having a new young snake again. I love watching them grow into beautiful, strong, healthy adults.

She's worth the wait. Much better to get her off to a good start, but there's nothing like holding a beautiful chunky boa once she settles in just a bit.

Ziggy,

Glad to see the new addition and that she's doing well.

On the hides - my boas are often not in them. They tend to use them in shed and after eating but even then it's not a given. They spend a lot of time hanging in the open waiting for food.

They also like to wedge themselves next to the hides and up agains the plexiglass doors or the tank side. They seem less in need of hiding than other snake species in my observation.

Full disclosure, I have drapes up over their tanks to keep them (mostly) from striking when then see movement hoping for food - especially at night and when other snakes are being fed (who eat more frequently). That might help them feel more secure as well. However, even when putting them back in their enclosures, they tend to explore or hang instead of looking for a hide. Other snakes I have (and have had) look pretty quickly for a hide.

Anyway, good luck with her and keep us posted.

My BCI used & obviously loved her hides. I think most young boids were not raised with them though, so it can take time for them to accept them as a safety zone.

It might also have something to do with boids being built heavier, & not feeling secure with the lighter weight hides that easily move when they slide against them? Try some "unofficial" but safe things for her to use as "hides" (including tubular things), & especially things she can only just fit snuggly into- many snakes want "back pressure". Or try offering a box containing deep substrate she can burrow into.

Snakes that appreciate hides generally don't want "high ceilings" or big doorways. For hatchling & neonate snakes, most commercial hides are guilty of both. When using those standard black "Reptile Basics" (& other brands) hides, try crumpling soft paper towels & stuffing some in the hide- you'd be surprised how comforting that is to a snake- both the traction & sense of security.

And anyway, don't make changes constantly or too quickly either...maybe it's just all still feeling "too new" or scary to her.

I swapped out the paper towel for substrate in her enclosure yesterday and Peaches seems to be enjoying it. She completely burrowed under the substrate and only had her tiny head peeking out, and she also used one of her hides for the first time. I had to snap a quick picture.

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Snakes don't love paper towels*, that's for sure. Especially young ones- they need to feel safe by burrowing or squeezing into hides. She looks like a very happy camper to me. :D
I always feel sorry for snakes raised in bare cages with no hides at all, as some (or many?) breeders do for convenience.

*The only exception I've seen was when I raised rosy boas & corn snakes etc.- they're tiny, & I used paper towels creatively*. I lined the cage floor, but held multiple towels in a layer, tore-shredded them & then fluffed them into a deep soft layer they could totally burrow into everywhere. Not practical for bigger snakes, but the tiny ones loved it. It cracked me up, seeing them peeking out of their tunnels, & I credit any of these methods for helping neonates & hatchlings to feed & get off to a good start. (*That was also before things like Carefresh & other substrates were commercially or readily available- it helps to be creative.)

Quick afterthought- another way to give cover to (small) snakes in quarantine using only white paper towels is to simply crumple a few & loosely stuff them into each hide box- little snakes love the soft crevices created by the towels giving them a strong sense of security, yet it's still easy to see any issues (funky stool or parasites) on the paper towels. But this is mostly for smaller hatchlings & neonates. :snake:

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Peaches is doing really well. She’s eaten a few times so I’m thinking she’ll shed soon. I’m very excited to watch her grow.


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Originally Posted by EL-Ziggy

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Peaches is doing really well. She’s eaten a few times so I’m thinking she’ll shed soon. I’m very excited to watch her grow.


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Looking good!

I'm glad I checked in.

She looks great! I love her overall pattern and her tail colors. :)

She looks so dull right now. I can’t wait to see those colors pop again after this shed. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...0391fd929d.jpg


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Yeah, snakes just look so miserable when they're shedding. It's up to us to be patient. :D

Peaches had her 1st shed with me. She’s sweet and pretty, and I love her already! I was a bit surprised that she weighed 700g, although she might not be fully empty. She only pooped once before she went into shed. She arrived on June 9, and was 427g at that time. So it’s not quite two months yet. That seems like a significant increase. I’ve been feeding her every 7-10 days. It’s been 17 days since her last meal, so I’ll feed her again tonight.

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It's been such a long time since I've had a new snake...you're making me remember just how much fun it is to watch them grow up. :D

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

It's been such a long time since I've had a new snake...you're making me remember just how much fun it is to watch them grow up. :D

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I haven’t had a new snake in 8 years. It’s exciting and fun raising up another young one. The others are all very well established, so I pretty much know what to expect from them.

Especially getting to figure out their personality, while they grow big & healthy under our excellent care. It never gets old. :cool:

Got some photos of Peaches today. She seems to be doing well. She’s been hanging out in her water bowl the last couple of days so I double checked my temps, and looked her over really well for mites. Everything looks great, so I’m just chalking it up to new behavior. I’ll keep a close eye on her though.

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She's looking great- let's HOPE it's not mites (& it probably isn't).

I think the mystery of the soaking boa has been solved. I just woke up and saw that she dumped a big deuce in her water bowl. I sanitized it and put it back.

I also revised her current weight down to 655g after weighing her empty this morning.

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Originally Posted by EL-Ziggy

I think the mystery of the soaking boa has been solved. I just woke up and saw that she dumped a big deuce in her water bowl. I sanitized it and put it back.

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:rofl: Much better answer than mites, I'd say. :D

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

:rofl: Much better answer than mites, I'd say. :D

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No Doubt! No mites ever please!