Adult Boas - feeding intervals

[Zincubus]

Hey

I know many /some overfeed their adult Boas but I was just reading about a bloke who's been feeding his adult Boa every 10 to 12 WEEKS , his vet reckons it's in perfect condition and health .

I sometimes leave my 5yr old for 3 weeks or so but THREE months !?

Any thoughts ?


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[bcr229]

It also depends on how big the feeder is.

I feed my females every 4 weeks, males every 5-6 weeks. March thru October they get a feeder that is 50-75% of their girth so it doesn't really leave much of a lump, usually an XL rat or 8-10 oz rabbit. From November through February they get a feeder half that size.

[pretends2bnormal]

What I found as the common consensus in my research preparing for my BCI was that you should feed adult boas about every 4 to 6 weeks, most of them saying XL or Jumbo rat, though most of what I've seen is pretty negative on the fat-levels of a jumbo rat (and some for XL rats too?). Some sources said 6 to 8 weeks if you choose to feed a larger prey item, but other than it being commonly stated, I don't know how correct that is. I presume the timing variance is due to individual metabolism differences and/or gender or just for the keeper to vary it between those.

I have seen pictures of some boas in other groups that are stated to be fed every 2 months and look in good body condition with similar sized or slightly larger prey in the form of rabbits instead of rats. Bigger prey, more protein, lower fat, and less often than the 4 to 6 weeks. I can't say one way is better or not.

3 months seems pushing it, though I'm far from an expert. Definitely is not a schedule that I think people should mimic, but I have to wonder if that could be an individual animal prone to excess weight gain at the higher meal frequencies than is normal for a boa. Personally, I'd prefer to go down another prey size and feed at 6-8 weeks if it is a case of an extra slow metabolism in that individual.

I'd love to hear from any of the boa breeders here what they think makes a good feeding schedule for adult boas.

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[AbsoluteApril]

My biggest boa, when I would give her a large rabbit (large for her) she could easily go 1-1/2 to 2 months on that one feeding. I didn't do that very often as I felt it was a bit too large (i'm overly cautious about too large prey). Boas really don't need to eat that often. I usually am feeding my adults every 4-6 weeks but they can (and have) gone longer before and been just fine. As long as you watch your animals and ensure they maintain good healthy body weight, it's fine. Boa starts getting too little food, it's usually noticeable near the tail first. If I see one of mine getting a little thin in that area I know I need to increase the feeding spacing. My adult females that will be bred get pumped up a bit before hand as when breeding they can go 1-2 months without feeding just fine (I usually don't separate breeding pairs until the male takes a break from courting).

[bns]

Hey

I know many /some overfeed their adult Boas but I was just reading about a bloke who's been feeding his adult Boa every 10 to 12 WEEKS , his vet reckons it's in perfect condition and health .

I sometimes leave my 5yr old for 3 weeks or so but THREE months !?

Any thoughts ?


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Lots of thoughts and many variables will skew the answers…

Some of the variables:

1. What is an adult boa? There is some variance based on subspecies but I tend to think of them as adults after 6 years. However, I wouldn’t treat a 6-year-old the same as a 12+ year-old as it pertains to feeding. Age matters.
2. Sex. If female, is it producing litters?
3. Is seasonality offered and to what extent?
4. Subspecies.
5. Meal size.
6. The individual boa. Many keepers like to schedule/track feedings. If you have a great many snakes a schedule could be more important but the best way to feed is by observance…accepting food and being hungry is two very different things.

I offer seasons involving temperature during ‘winter’ of about 70 on the cool side of the enclosure for about 6 months. I allow the sun to dictate the hours of daylight through indirect lighting in the room. Daylight hours without temp change are enough to change the habits of an adult boa, combine that with temp drops and subspecies habits for an even stronger influence.

Adult boas go between 3 and 6 months without a meal during winter in my care and if I handed you one of the boas in my care that went 6 months without a meal, you would have no idea it had been 6 months. One large female is currently breeding and will require more food over the next year but she is in top physical shape for breeding and has eaten 6 meals in the last two years -she still grew larger. This female Occidentals in my care (along with her mate) can eat largemeals with an ease that is not possible for most other boas.
Inexperienced keepers kill boas by overfeeding…regurgitation and obesity leading the way. It is very difficult to wrap the mind around how little an adult boa constrictor needs to eat for it to be healthy.