Need advice (BRB)

[jglass38]

I went in to my local reptile store today to pick up ratsicles and came across a Brazilian Rainbow Boa that they are nursing back to health. Apparently the person who had him didnt feed him for what looks like over 6 months. He was limp and all bones when brought in to the store. They have fattened him up (he is eating a few times per week) and he just had a shed (still lots of dry skin because he wasnt kept in proper humidity). The owner who is a well respected herpetologist is willing to sell him to me for $149. He is about 3 feet long (maybe a little longer) and possibly 1-1/2 yrs old. I have read up on them and am prepared for the responsbility (i have a ball python currently). Is this a good deal and is it worth taking a chance. The snake is super sweet and loves to be out and handled. No head shyness and no nippiness which is great consdering he was abused. Thanks in advance!

Jamie

[ta2dshtrbug]

Your heart is in the right place I assure you. However you can buy baby BRB's from reputable dealers for about $125-130, with none of the health complications of this one. If the snake has been treated that poorly for any length of time, you are likely to still incur vet bills further down the road from problems you cant even see yet. I defintiely advocate people "rescuing" animals as long as they are fully aware of what they are getting into. I am against someone trying to get near market value for a snake that clearly still has problems and likely has more that have been undetected yet. I really have a problem with people representing they "rescued" a snake and before it is even fully healed, trying to sell it for market value. I would definitley think this through good, and if you decide to purchase it, I would explain to the owner that seeing as the snake will likely need vet care in the future, market value isnt really a "fair" price.

[Detroit Boas]

Ya well with dead skin on it i would say no..Unless you have delt with Brazilians before and have experience in getting old shed to come off..they require very high humidity in wich the previous owner failed to provide..I think as long as you know what you are getting into then ok..Just keep in mind that along with the damage that is done visibly to the snake then there just might be some internal damage as well..if you do decide to get it best of luck to you... :D

[jglass38]

Well I decided to take a chance with him and we will see. I have seen babies for that price but not older ones. Anyway, what is done is done and I am pretty aware of the humidity requirements. I really got attached to him when i held him earlier. He is very docile and sweet. Felt like the right thing to do. We will see, right? Thanks for the advice guys...

Jamie

[jglass38]

Just to add, he doesnt have any dead skin on him now. He had a poor shed last time around but they got all of it off. I have him in a rubbermaid with cypress mulch. Half log hide and a large water bowl.

Temp is about 85 under the hide and 81 on the other end. Humidity hovering around 80%

[Alias47]

Good luck!!

Although you should have haggled with the guy...I mean you are taking a big responsibility off his hands.

[jglass38]

I know, I know...But I thought it was a good price. What can I do now?

[Alias47]

Take great care of a snake that needs it...and have a great pet.

Nothing wrong with that.


I have paid too much for a snake in the past...it is still to this day my favorite in my collection.

[ta2dshtrbug]

Sounds like you got him all set up. Good job. Ive been known to overpay for a snake to, once or a dozen times :D Have a great time with him and take good care of him!

[jglass38]

I'll do my best. Thanks for the advice. I have him in a 90QT rubbermaid right now. Just working to get the temps right. Right now they are 80 on both sides and humidity is 85%. He loves the cypress mulch and is burrowing as we speak.

[jglass38]

Just an update on the newly named Sasha the BRB. He ate 2 mice (one with vitamin powder) today and immediately retired to his water bowl to soak. I went in later in the evening and thought he was dead and dragged him out of the bowl. He just gave me a look and went back in. I guess they can hold their breaths for a while underwater. His eating method was a little odd. Of the two F/K mice he ate, the first one he took from the tongs without striking, just like a baby. After taking it down he was very active and we offered a second one. This time he struck hard, didnt constrict and ate it. Weird behavior?

[jlconstrictors]

I like to see people making a good attempt to take care of neglected animal. Your heart is in the right place :wink:
Cypress mulch is a very good way to keep the humidity High.

Good luck and Keep all of us updated on your progress :mrgreen:

[jglass38]

Thanks for the encouragement! I will post some pics later on.

Jamie

[earthpig23]

the BRB cage heating is still a littl high due to its health you can keep one side slightly above 80. Brbs do not like or tolerate high temps as most boas do. they tend to like to keep their bodies at a specific 78-79 degrees. They also do not bounce back from captive health issues as quickly. Make sure above all to keep it in a 80% humidity conastant for awhile to prevent dehydration especially if it is not a full adult.Cypress Mulch does work great with that both my brbs are on cypress.

www.corallus.com/cenchria/index.html

check that link for great info on Rainbow boas.

p.s. I applaude your efforts but try not to make a habit of rescuing snakes from petstores or shops it just keeps them in business selling snakes with poor health.

[jglass38]

Thanks for the encouragement. Right now, warm side is about 82 with an ambient of about 80. I think the ambient needs to come down a little but I am going to have to drill more holes in the top to make that happen.

[earthpig23]

keep us updated..as long as the temps dont get above or around 85 for to long it will be fine. Let her soak till she gets good and hydrated dont worry they dont get scale rot as easy as other specimens due to the high hunidity requirments.
Good Luck

[jglass38]

Thanks again. I am amazed by his temperment. Or hers...He is super sweet and not the least bit headshy. Itll be nice when his weight gets back up because right now his skin is really loose and almost gummy due to the lack of weight. I am debating when to start him on rats. Right now he is eating a mouse (2 last night) every 2-3 days. I would like to get him back up to weight as quickly as possible. Should I continue the way I am going? He did regurgitate a small rat at the store when they were trying to bring him back to health. But they admit it could be because he had already eaten 2 mice before. Thoughts?

[geckogirl171]

I could tell from the moment you said you held him that your decision was made. :) No matter what happens he has a wonderful home with a caring owner and that is worth it! Good luck and keep us posted ..
..oh yeah, don't forget pics, we love pics! :D

[earthpig23]

Glass yes keep up with the mouse diet til it starts making some weight gains. BRBs are not usually hard to switch to rats so dont worry about that. when he starts gaining weight just up it to a couple of large mice every five days when it has some girth for rats go for it id wait a month on the mouse diet than go with rats the same size as its girth. BRB's gain weight quickly so if its eating itll gain weight soon. sounds like it just might do fine. Keep it fed and hydrated and youll soon find out why I love BRBs.

BTW the nippy reputation in rainbows arent the norm..like all snakes when they are babies they tend to nip more but once trust is gain my brb'se no more than big softies.
I'm glad to see you care and that you are doing everything right and taking advice..I'm sure you both will have new friends

[Alias47]

I agree with EP.

Although everyone of us would want to help an animal in poor health...sometimes the saving of one animal perpetuates the risk for others.

Putting the good of one over the good of many.

I read an interesting article about culling offspring...which many people probably will NOT agree with...but it provides a very different and valid view.
It was written by Clay Davenport. His site is linked to from Kathy Love's (of CornUtopia, one of the top corn snake breeders in the world)

Very interesting site...and some very interesting views...worth taking some time and reading some of his stuff...he also has GREAT instructions for Building cages, wiring flexwatt, building an incubator (out of an old fridge for LESS than 100 bucks!!) and some other things.

The link to the culling article is:
http://www.arbreptiles.com/lastword/culling.shtml

[jglass38]

I have read the article and understand the intent but I dont believe it has any bearing on this situation. This snake is not a baby nor is it deformed, a problem feeder, non feeder or inbred. What it is, is a snake that was dropped off at the store because it wasnt being cared for properly and was being starved. I believe the store did a service to the animal by trying and succeeding in saving its life. It is a wonderful, tame, gentle snake that deserved a chance to live despite what some idiot did to it. From my point of view, it was worth the taking a chance on. I am aware of the risks that it might have irreversible internal damage and may not live as long as a snake that hadnt been neglected. I am willing to do my best for him (and I dont half ass anything when it comes to my pets) and see what happens. The article was certainly interesting reading and I whole heartedly agree with it (although I still dont know how I would kill off something as it bothers me to see them prekill a rat for me at the store). I am new to the snake hobby and so far I have a healthy, voracious ball python and a recovering BRB that I enjoy the hell out of. Thanks for the info!

Jamie

[Alias47]

I apologize if I offended you...I definitely had no thought about culling your snake. I think what you have done and are doing is wonderful. Given half the chance I would do the same. And if the pet store you got the snake from is reputable and responsible then I applaud them as well for taking this snake in.

I was speaking generally regarding the pet stores that do NOT take care of their animals and sell inferior or sick animals for an inflated price...these people deserve to go out of business...and the whole discussion made me think about the unrelated topic of culling offspring. I tend to go off on tangents sometimes (ok, alot :D )

Yeah, I don't think I could do it either, but I have seen pics from someone's webpage...if I can find the link I will post it...of him feeding a baby corn to his Florida Kingsnake. I doubt I would do this either, just because of the kingsnake's attitude...I don't want it dependent on other snakes for meals...and I don't want to get bit every time I have the scent of one of my other pets on my hands. Better that they know only mice.

[jglass38]

I was not offended at all and as I hear more about this store that I bought the animal at and the poor reputation of the owner (who claims to have 59 years of experience but doesnt keep animals in the best condition) I question his practices in general. Whats done is done and we can hope for the best. Thanks for all the support!

Jamie

[Alias47]

Absolutely...hey...bottom line...you got a wonderful snake out of the deal.

[jglass38]

For sure! I will post some pics later tonight. I have a good pic of him curled up in his water bowl.

[ta2dshtrbug]

Absolutely...hey...bottom line...you got a wonderful snake out of the deal.

I have to second this thought! And looking back at my original post, I hope I did not offend you with it jglass38, I was simply trying to offer both sides of the issue. Im happy for you that all has turned out well!

[jglass38]

I am more thick skinned than that guys and girls. No worries. I appreciate the input and believed and still believe what I did was the right decision.

[jglass38]

Well so much for my excellent husbandry. I had my BRB out of the enclosure today and after I put him back in (he was out for about 10 minutes crawling on me) he regurgitated most of the 2 mice he ate 48 hours ago. I suspect I didnt wait long enough as his temperatures have been pretty good. I havent had this problem with my ball where 48 hours wasnt enough before handling but I am going to give him at least 3 days from now on. As for my BRB, I am going to leave him alone for a week and then try to feed 1 mouse instead of 2. Could have been the handling but could have been the fact that he had eaten 1 mouse 2 days earlier and 1 mouse 2 days before that. Overfeeding possibly?

[Quigs]

Just my opinion...

I think if it were me in this situation I would let him settle in for a week or two before you mess with him at all. Of course I would try to offer small meals but other than that, no contact!

I know this is hard to do but usually it's in the best interest of the animal at stake.

Another opinion...

I know you are trying to put weight back on this guy but maybe try to wait a full week before offering the next meal. In two or three days feeding increments, I don't think that they go through the whole cycle of processing a meal yet.

Furthermore, I would tend to wait 10 days and up to two weeks to feed again after a regurge.

Again just my opinions, I admitedly have no experience with BRB's but that is my general husbandry practices with all my animals.

Regards,
Quigs

[ta2dshtrbug]

I have to agree with Quigs on this one. I understand the pressing feeling of needing to put the weight back on him. One of my worst husbandry qualities is that it tend to obsess over an animals weight. But a regurge is a real good sign that you are likely pushing too hard. I would back down a little, and give him the 10 days quigs said before trying again.

[earthpig23]

Again I too agree with quigs wait a week because of the regurge and than slowly put some weight on him. I know its gonna be tough but try not to handle till he is making some real good gains health and weight wise. Trust me it'll be worth the wait.
I'm glad you take the time to learn and take all advice you can from others. I wish some newbie snake owners were as thoughtful of the animal.

[jglass38]

I am going to wait the 7-10 days with no handling other than cleaning his enclosure if necessary. I really do always want to do the best for my animals. Admittedly it is tough to not want powerfeed so the weight comes back quickly but I understand that i need to do what is right.

[Alias47]

I concur with the last two posts as well.
I have zero BRB experience, but I would wait at least 10 days...and definitely NOT feed every 2. Doesn't leave enough room to cycle, and your snake is constantly digesting food, which can be very hard on it...especially if it is already having problems.

[earthpig23]

jglass whats the update on this hows things going?

[jglass38]

Sorry about that. The hurricane put me out of contact with the real world for a while! He is doing well. Ate a mouse 9 days ago and 2 days ago and no regurge as of yet. I have 2 more mousicles and after that I am going to go to a comparable size rat and start working my way to a larger sized prey. Ill keep you updated!

Jamie

[earthpig23]

thanx

[LLAP101202]

GREAT to hear he's doing well...we are STILL waiting for those pics though.......would be GREAT to see how he looked when you got him and see more as he progresses....Laura

[jglass38]

sorry! I will get them up ASAP. With the hurricanes and now a new job, I have so little time.

Jamie