Non-feeding Calabars

After getting burned on several recent acquisitions of Calabar Burrowing Pythons, I decided to explore the offerings from various suppliers and the ability of getting WC Calabars to feed in captivity.

Currently, I keep about 200 of these animals in my collection. All were WC and feeding success has been on an exception basis. In addition, I now have many Calabars residing in Africa that I am trying to get to feed using various native rodents. I'm trying to sort the feeders from the non-feeders in the 2 months following collection. Ultimately, what I have found is that less than 5% of the animals will take native rodents in their place of collection, never mind here in the U.S. Once in my possession, I set up the appropriate environment and attempt to feed with pinkies and fuzzies of the following:

1. Rats
2. Mice
3. Gerbils
4. Russian Dwarf Hamsters

The results are that no animal has eaten more than once in the last 6 months and some have never eaten. Currently, various suppliers are offering Calabars that they represent as feeding. When I ask for proof, none can be provided.

Now, I'd like to inquire of the members of this forum:

1. Has anyone had success in feeding Calabars?
2. Can anyone provide recent pictures of a feeding Calabar?
3. Did anyone buy a Calabar with the claim of "currently feeding?"

I really enjoy this docile species, but the mortality rates in captivity are extremely high. I'm questioning whether they should be imported at all.

Possibly, if we put our heads together, we can solve this riddle.

Thanks,

Mitch Behm

P.S.- The only upside to all of this is that my 3 daughters have one heck of a Russian Dwarf hamster colony.

Mitch,...I just read your post. Perhaps I can offer some help. Over the years I have kept calabars, and like you have had problems with wild caughts. One major help during that time was an article in REPTILIAN magazine.( published in the UK) Volume4 Number5 Borderline Boids byFrank Schofield. You may be able to find a back issue online. I believe it was early-mid nineties. Dave and Tracy Barker( VPI) also hatched out baby calabars. You may want to contact them as well. I think(?) Rick Staub might have kept them at some point in time as well( although I could be wrong on that one)

For me, in keeping calabars that did eat. I had a very deep substrate, covered cages( to keep out light and disturbances) I also used a feeding dish.( I did keep one big fella who I bought at a show. He was huge, and would live in a regular sweater box type set up. He had no fears and fed on small f/k rats)

I hope the info helps.............. Regards,Ken

Ken,

I really appreciate your feedback. I'll try and find the article. I have communicated with the Barkers, but they don't work with Calabars any longer. I do communicate regularly with Rick Staub, he's the one who steered me on to the hamsters.

I have all of my Calabars in 6 inches of substrate. I have re-created a rodent nest for feeding purposes, but still no luck. I'm now considering force feeding, to keep the non-feeders alive.

Mitch

Mitch, keep me posted on your luck in finding that issue. I have it if you cant find it. Just email me.........Ken [email protected]

Calabar feeding..

I've had a few successfully feeding Calabars, so I'll post my recipe:

Housed singly

Deep (10-12"), damp substrate (I used Bed-A-Beast, because it was less compacting than top soil and does hold moisture well)

Absolutely no movement of the cage - even pulling out a rack drawer would probably do it. I used larger Iris containers stacked on top of each other.

Humidity close to 100%

Very warm ambient temps, 80-85 +. I had the best success when I lived in a house without AC, in S.Florida.

Multiple (3+) prey items offered under a piece of cardboard/cork bark or plastic hide on the surface of the substrate. I never got the bowl method to work for me.

Definitely smaller prey items - nothing bigger than a small fuzzy mouse at first. I have pictures of multiple prey constriction that I can e-mail you, if your interested in those. They're not great pictures, taken with an old Sony Mavica.

Not offering food for a least 3-4 weeks once they are set up in their new enclosure.

Obviously, some of these things would be more difficult when your dealing with large #'s of these guys, but all of this in combination worked well for me.

Once they took two meals, they were good to go. I would then increase the size of the prey items in relation to the size of the snake and they generally never refused food after that. Once they start they definitely have voracious appetites. I never was able to get any of mine to take anything larger than a small rat fuzzy though, even though they were adult size

At one point I had a 3.8 group, all eating F/D mouse fuzzies, but then I moved into a different and bad working/living situation. Because they had always been so easy in the previous house, I just kind of left them to do their own thing. Instead of being housed in tubs I moved them all into a 55 gallon tank with a screen top, undertank heater, feeding them outside of the tank I didn't pay close attention to humidity and I ended up inadvertently killing them all. I feel incredibly sad about that.

I tried again a year later, with 1.1, the female being absolutely huge when I got her, and never got either of them to feed at all. I tried these two in a rack system.

My first two attempts at acclimating WC Calabars were pretty dismal too. Both of those times (8? years ago) I started with skinny, dehydrated snakes and didn't really know any better. Once they become visibly dehydrated, that seems to be the end.

Sorry this turned into a novel I'm incredibly jealous of that picture you posted in the classifieds! Seeing that many Calabars in one place .... definitely a cool thing. It does make me even sadder about what I did with mine though.

I would eventually love to try again.

I hope some/any of this helps you (or anyone else working with Calabars) out. Let me know if you would like me to e-mail those feeding pics.

Best of luck,

Elizabeth West

Elizabeth,

Your post is greatly appreciated. I would love to see the pics, please post or email me directly at [email protected]. Of all your suggestions, only three are new to me:

1. 10 -12in substrate, I use 6
2. prey under a piece of bark
3. humidity near 100%

I'll try this on several. Currently, I'm tubing with Zoopreem to keep the non-feeders alive. What was the origin of the Calabars that you did get to feed? By the way, what animals do you work with now?

Thanks,

Mitch

Have you tried African Soft Furred rats yet? I kept a pair of Calabars a few years ago that ate for the first two weeks, then they both died within a day of each other. I gave them f/t small adult mice. I kept them in strilite sweater boxes on bed-a-beast ( one brick per box). They ate two days after I got them, then once more a week later, then they died. I am planning on getting a few more once I have a group of ASF rats going.

No. I have tried Russian Dwarf Hamsters. Where do I get African Soft-Furred Rats? I'll try anything? Keep me in mind when you're ready to acquire the animals.

Thanks,

Mitch

Hey Mitch,

Sorry to hear about the difficulty with the calabars. They are cool snakes. I came across this site a few weeks ago when I was looking into getting a pair. Maybe it/he can help....
http://www.snakespecies.info/index.html#THE COLLECTION TODAY


Best,
Vinny

(By the way, the pair of saharans I got from you is doing great.)

Vinny,

Thanks for the link. Glad to hear that the Saharans are doing well. I know its rediculous, but if you get a chance, would you please add to my Trader Rating?

Mitch

Hi Mitch et al

Are you serious Mitch? You have 200 (two hundred) of these snakes and you don't know how to keep them??

Here's what I do.

Small plastic boxes for cages, about 18 X 10 x 10 inches (LxWxH). Heat pad under the cage , outside it, and a heat pad about 2 inches above the lid of the cages.

Heat pads thermostatically controlled.

About 1 inch of substrate, Aspen bark, normal room humidity. Good size water bowl, which they drink from but don't sit in.

Hide made from an upturned plastic seed tray about 9x6x1 1/2 (LxWxH) with an entry hole cut out of one side. Heavy weight on top, a bit of brick or a tile, to give them a sense of security.

Temperatures in the hide box are about 88F during the day and 83F at night.

Food is a live rat, about two weeks old, maximum weight 35 grammes. I put the rat into the snakes' hide boxes and it is gone by the next morning.

The snakes feed approximately every 6 weeks.

Hope this helps.

Guy

Guy,

You didn't read the whole thread. Thanks for the education.

Mitch

Hi Mitch

Sorry if I've upset you.

Is this the key point you thought I hadn't seen?;

"I'm trying to sort the feeders from the non-feeders in the 2 months following collection."

If so, all I'm trying to say is I don't think they feed too often once adult, like most snakes.

You also say "Currently, I'm tubing with Zoopreem to keep the non-feeders alive."

If you've only had them a couple months you may not need to do this.

Please get back to me.

Guy

I have no experience with Calabars but if you are at the point where you are willing to try anything, try this. I read in a book that some snakes are afraid of the smell of rodents, so wash them in hot water with a mild detergent and rinse them off really well and offer the rodent while it is still warm and wet.

I have used this technique with perfect results on rubber boas. Good Luck

we have a trio of calibars at the shop i work at . the male has been eating well since we got them 2 months ago using the rodent nest method . we keep all three in seperate enclosers with about 4 inches of coconut bark and we mist everyday . temps are right at 88 on one end and 78 on the other . we put a combination of 2 mouse fuzzies and 2 rat pinks under a hide and so far the male has taken between 2 and 3 feeders a week .

the females on the other hand came in with stomatitis and slight respitory infections . they have been treated and are clearing up nicely , but have not eaten yet . we tried feeding them the first couple weeks , then decided to wait till they were in better health to try again . today was the first time we have attempted to feed them again . i left the rat pink/mouse fuzzy combination in each of their enclosers this afternoon , and will know tomorrow if either female ate or not .

we are also pretty sure that both females came in gravid(the vet agrees) so this may also be part of the reason they are not eating . we are hoping and expecting that they will drop pretty soon . i'll post any updates as they happen .

Mark,

I have used several variations of what you suggest, including recreating a rodent nest both above and below the substrate. I have created hides of various weights, sizes and shapes. I have used wood, ceramic tile and larger water bowls.

Here's what I have found. In my opinion, the problem is temperment. We have the same problems getting them to feed in West Africa. Captive Bred do not appear to exhibit the same problem. I am currently working with a large breeding colony to see if I can produce larger quantities of CB neonates.

In the meantime, tubing with Zupreem's Monitor and Tegu Diet works well. Animals are growing, appear healthy and are dropping eggs regularly.

Mitch

Mitch