Gravid or fat?

I just acquired this large female boa last year and paired her with my 6 year old male for several weeks. I witnessed numerous copulations and then separated them again. This is a photo of the lower portion of her body and she appears to be flattened out but I am not sure if maybe she's just fat. Her previous owner was feeding her a large rat every 10 days. I feed every 14 -18.

Hard to say from a picture like this. Might be a decrease in muscle tone in the appropriate area, based on some of the pictures. Jeff Ronne remarked that he believes that to be associated with potential ovulation and pregnancy, but with her lack of scale separation it could be fat or a litter of slugs or just a coincidence.

How long ago would she have ovulated, if she might be gravid?

Also, possibly worth noting or possibly entirely irrelevant, one of my females is very near birth and very large in the lower 2/3 of her body. But, whenever I have to clean her cage or water dish or bother her in some other way, her muscles constrict and she appears much thinner. Almost looks like she's not pregnant. Usually that only lasts a little while, and then she relaxes and looks enormous again, but I can't say that is or is not happening on this picture.

In any case, good luck.

Originally Posted by Scooter1685

Hard to say from a picture like this. Might be a decrease in muscle tone in the appropriate area, based on some of the pictures. Jeff Ronne remarked that he believes that to be associated with potential ovulation and pregnancy, but with her lack of scale separation it could be fat or a litter of slugs or just a coincidence.

How long ago would she have ovulated, if she might be gravid?

Also, possibly worth noting or possibly entirely irrelevant, one of my females is very near birth and very large in the lower 2/3 of her body. But, whenever I have to clean her cage or water dish or bother her in some other way, her muscles constrict and she appears much thinner. Almost looks like she's not pregnant. Usually that only lasts a little while, and then she relaxes and looks enormous again, but I can't say that is or is not happening on this picture.

In any case, good luck.

I assume she would have ovulated approximately one or one and a half months ago. She had two sheds in rapid succession and she didn't appear as bulged before but even now when she scoots across the cage she gets that square shape again. Only when she relaxes does she get a quasi-flat tire look.

I will continue to keep an eye on her. She's not spending a lot of time coiled under the heat so I'm guessing she's just a little over weight.