Re: Rubber Boa fasting

[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ The Rosy and Sandboa Forum ]

Posted by Dexter6185 on March 31, 2003 at 22:39:58:

In Reply to: Re: Rubber Boa fasting posted by SnakeBiteJunkies on March 31, 2003 at 13:26:19:

:Although I don't currently keep rubber boas, when I did some were finicky eaters sometimes. One male I had would only eat maybe once or twice a year, and only if I set up a little mouse "nest" complete with pinks. He would eat the whole or most of the litter and then not accept another meal until the following season. Others I had were chow hounds and would accept food right from forceps.

:Always give your rubber boas a long cold hibernation period. I think they need it in order to do well. Also, I never kept mine on heat, like I did with rosys. I just kept them at room temp and usually in the coolest spot (near the floor). I kept the rubbers for 10+ years. They were always very interesting and made great captives.

:Good luck,
:Mike

:Good luck.

I don't think a hibernation period is nessesary unless one is attempting to breed. Anyways, I was a bit surprised that he resumed feeding so early. I had expected him to fast for at least another month, through the breeding season. This is actually the first time he has gone through a winter fast, as I had mentioned before.
I second your opinion that rubber boas are excellent captives. My rubber boa almost seems to "like" me. He will actually climb onto my hand from under his hide box or resting spot. He tolerates handling very well, and is just absolutely fascinating!
Reguarding setup, I have provided my rubber boa with a "forrest floor" environment. I am using calci-sand as a substrate, and have included a large branch of drift wood and a huge acorn for climbing. In addition to this, a large "vine" (plastic) extends across the top of the cage, interwoven with fake leaves. A piece of bark and a long hide box/water bowl provides hiding. The cool side of the cage remains constant with the room temp, about 65-70 deg. A 40 watt bulb provides a basking spot at about 80. Humidity is moderate, averaging 60.
He seems to enjoy this setup very much, and has shown significant growth since I have provided it (he's around 20+/-").

Follow Ups:

mine has never stopped fasting! rudedogsurfrat 03/31/03 (2)
- Re: mine has never stopped fasting! SnakeBiteJunkies 04/01/03 (0)
- Re: mine has never stopped fasting! SnakeBiteJunkies 04/01/03 (0)