What is a proper feeding schedule for boas?

Well, well this will always be a personal preference choice as to how often any of us are going to feed our snakes. I was like most of the other folks replying here, I read all I could & the consensus was to feed at least once a week during the rapid growth period. I must admit I did feed my snakes in this manner in the beginning, but as I ventured into more different species, I realized that way of thinking just wouldn't work every time.

I now feed different schedules for different age groups & species. Most are now on a 2 week for under 1 yr. & 3 to 4 week for over 1 yr. I will say I am not a breeder, mine are for my pleasure as a hobbyist & I have no desire to get them to a forced size. If it takes longer than someone else to get mine to a mature size, that is quite alright with me & none of mine are underweight or sickly for my slow growing of them.

I can attest to the health & well being of Tommy's, aka Metachrosis boas as I went to his home & picked my beautiful hypo female up in person. I got the royal tour of all his gorgeous snakes & he told me all about how he raises them. His setup is right on & the whole operation is super, so I have to say he definitely knows what he's talking about. I would follow his advice over something written in a book. Or on a google search by someone I've never met & cannot for any certainty know for sure even follows his/her own examples.

Everyone will agree & disagree on various things written or posted about this subject. I too have my agreements & disagreements about some of the comments, but in the end it's the snake & it's health & well being that should determine how you take care of it. If how you feed your snake(s) is working for you, then who's to say it is wrong?!

Originally Posted by Mikkwa

Well, well this will always be a personal preference choice as to how often any of us are going to feed our snakes. I was like most of the other folks replying here, I read all I could & the consensus was to feed at least once a week during the rapid growth period. I must admit I did feed my snakes in this manner in the beginning, but as I ventured into more different species, I realized that way of thinking just wouldn't work every time.

I now feed different schedules for different age groups & species. Most are now on a 2 week for under 1 yr. & 3 to 4 week for over 1 yr. I will say I am not a breeder, mine are for my pleasure as a hobbyist & I have no desire to get them to a forced size. If it takes longer than someone else to get mine to a mature size, that is quite alright with me & none of mine are underweight or sickly for my slow growing of them.

I can attest to the health & well being of Tommy's, aka Metachrosis boas as I went to his home & picked my beautiful hypo female up in person. I got the royal tour of all his gorgeous snakes & he told me all about how he raises them. His setup is right on & the whole operation is super, so I have to say he definitely knows what he's talking about. I would follow his advice over something written in a book. Or on a google search by someone I've never met & cannot for any certainty know for sure even follows his/her own examples.

Everyone will agree & disagree on various things written or posted about this subject. I too have my agreements & disagreements about some of the comments, but in the end it's the snake & it's health & well being that should determine how you take care of it. If how you feed your snake(s) is working for you, then who's to say it is wrong?!

I couldn't of said it better.

Well said Rick,
These animals are not Plug and Play toys as some seem to assume.
There is no one size fits all,they are NOT Designed to be cared for by animals with rationalization skills.
The only real "trick" is for a human mind to understand"the less you do" the better off your captives will be.Pull that rabbit outta the hat and things go much better for all involved.

As for the fasting,it will not hurt for an animal to fast acouple months
Where is the potential harm in allowing design its natural process?
Were not talking a 12 Step detox for an addictive habit,just cut'em off the chow
and begin anew.

I would also encourage folks to try the diet diversity thing,its pretty cool
to get involved like this with your animals.
Boa's do well when fed chicken,quail,rabbits,squirrel,hamsters,gerbils etc.
Everything comes in assorted sizes to fit so give it a go!

Hey De'A,get intouch with the wife.
We may have something for you here in acouple weeks

I knew I shouldn't have posted here,LOL. I sooo don't need anymore snakes, but you know me...I will take a look!! Thanks I'll message her, tho' I know better than to.

Thought I might add that when I reduced my boas to there current feeding schedule, there aggression or lack of aggression did not change. As some people might think a fat snake is a tame snake, it is not always true, if at all. They do tend to me more active, seeming to to be looking for food, which I like to see.

Originally Posted by mxracer4life

Thought I might add that when I reduced my boas to there current feeding schedule, there aggression or lack of aggression did not change. As some people might think a fat snake is a tame snake, it is not always true, if at all. They do tend to me more active, seeming to to be looking for food, which I like to see.

Exactly. It makes me chuckle when I hear that feeding them every 10-14 days reduces bite occurrences. I have a female Honduran, that I'll gladly feed every 10 days for a month or so...BUT, someone has to come visit me, and attempt to get her out of her cage in return. I bet you receive yourself a chomping, maybe 2 or 3, regardless of how much food is in her belly.

And I too notice the activity increase after a couple weeks go by. One of the key factors in me maintaining the schedule I use. They actually get some exorcize now, instead of just laying there all the time. How is that not beneficial to ANY animal?

Originally Posted by crotalusadamanteus

Exactly. It makes me chuckle when I hear that feeding them every 10-14 days reduces bite occurrences. I have a female Honduran, that I'll gladly feed every 10 days for a month or so...BUT, someone has to come visit me, and attempt to get her out of her cage in return. I bet you receive yourself a chomping, maybe 2 or 3, regardless of how much food is in her belly.

And I too notice the activity increase after a couple weeks go by. One of the key factors in me maintaining the schedule I use. They actually get some exorcize now, instead of just laying there all the time. How is that not beneficial to ANY animal?

Exactly.

I have noticed a few "habits" that my snakes seem to have made a daily or every other day occurrence.
My youngest snake (4 months old) I have on a once weekly schedule.
My second oldest (a yearling) is on the same schedule.
I have 2 09 females. One was on a weekly feeding basis when I got her and the other was on a every two weeks schedule. Obviously the weekly eater is larger..

With the two younger boas, they have a habit of being in their hides during the day, and during the night they cruise about their cages and monkey around. (Yes I know they are nocturnal animals.)

The every two weeks female acts the exact same way. Out and about at night.


When I first got the weekly fed female, she just laid around, and only moved for water. She didn't move during the night, actually she was more active during the day..I decided I would change her feeding schedule to every two weeks rather than weekly just to see what would happen.

Her aggression didn't change, she wasn't any different attitude wise. After a few feeding on her new schedule she started to act the same way as the rest of them. It was very interesting to see happen, and I'm actually surprised at the difference it made.

Just figured I would throw some info out there for those that are still "on the fence" about the issue.

Very interesting thread and many good points provided. My boas are typically on a 12-14 day schedule with smaller prey items. Looks like I may mix it up a bit. Thanks all!