Jamaican Boas Breeding

Originally Posted by Snakesitter

^^^ Amazing job. It is informative, reads well, and helps encourage people to get involved with a species in need. Huge props.

totally!

Originally Posted by Helenthereef

totally!

Thanks, Helen. It means a lot what you guys think of it.

Maybe you'll inspire me to do something similar for the Fiji Boa - been meaning to forever, but I'm not quite as systematic as you!

Awesome info and great care sheet!! This thread will come in handy for lot's of people wanting to work with them. I will have to print some of it out for myself in the future. I have a friend that is working with Jamaican boas here in Canada. I'm on the waiting list so hopefully I get a chance at working with this beautiful species!! Too bad there Cites 1. I would be trying to get some of your babys

Originally Posted by Helenthereef

Maybe you'll inspire me to do something similar for the Fiji Boa - been meaning to forever, but I'm not quite as systematic as you!

You should. I know there isn't an abundance of information out there about them, either. Let me know if you do, I'd love to read it.

Originally Posted by Monkey Tails Canada

Awesome info and great care sheet!! This thread will come in handy for lot's of people wanting to work with them. I will have to print some of it out for myself in the future. I have a friend that is working with Jamaican boas here in Canada. I'm on the waiting list so hopefully I get a chance at working with this beautiful species!! Too bad there Cites 1. I would be trying to get some of your babys

Great to hear you're on a waiting list. Yes, I understand the basic point behind CITES I and ESA protection (drive down prices through illegitimizing commerce, thus making it harder/not worth the effort to remove animals from the wild) but I can't help but think that it does more harm than good with regard to CBB live animals. Best of luck, and please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions once you get your new program up and running.

Feeding Update:

E1, E2, H2, and H6 all declined their second thigh, but ate the first. All other holdbacks ate both thighs. I'm wondering if the decline on the second is an appetite issue or simply an issue of awareness. I think it will be time to move to quail chicks soon, as that will certainly answer the question.

The "unscented pinkie eaters" all ate, but one of them only ate one pinkie.

T1 declined. This is very uncharacteristic, but T1 is still a Jamaican Boa, so skipping a meal is not alarming.

T3 ate the scented pinkie. Great news here. I will feed scented pinkies for another week or two and then attempt the transition to unscented.

All non-holdbacks and T4 ate without issue. The non-holdback that ate the scented pinkie last week did not eat the unscented pinkie this week. I think I jumped the gun on this. I'll go back to scented next week.

While you're doing updates...

Harper (T2 for those who may not have read the whole thread) is still doing great. He has graduated to unscented pinkies, which certainly makes my life easier - he even took a pinky from the tongs once! He weighed in at 19.9 g on March 1st, so he's growing steadily. I'm expecting him to go into shed soon, after which I will post some new pictures. His coloration is still largely the same, but it seems to me that his pattern is becoming more distinct.

Happy to hear all of his siblings are still doing well!

Originally Posted by GillianC

While you're doing updates...

Harper (T2 for those who may not have read the whole thread) is still doing great. He has graduated to unscented pinkies, which certainly makes my life easier - he even took a pinky from the tongs once! He weighed in at 19.9 g on March 1st, so he's growing steadily. I'm expecting him to go into shed soon, after which I will post some new pictures. His coloration is still largely the same, but it seems to me that his pattern is becoming more distinct.

Happy to hear all of his siblings are still doing well!

That's great news. I'm glad he's doing well. I'm also glad he switched over to unscented pinkies for you. I have noticed that they don't tend to need much in the way of transition time between scented an unscented. It is getting them onto scented pinky's that seems to be the trick. Looking forward to pictures when he is ready. Thanks again for the update.

For everyone's convenience, I linked the post with the care sheet in my signature, so people don't have to go fishing around looking for it as the thread progresses further.

I know it's been a little while since I gave you guys a picture update, and I noticed that H6 shed last night, so here you go. I'm really pleased with how the color on this one is coming along. She has great definition, and is lighter and brighter than most of the others. She wasn't too feisty, but did seem a little squirmy to try to hold her by hand. Plus, she was musking like crazy, so I didn't want to risk the bite/her making a break for it.