Dwarf boa(cay caulker) Size Difference

[yoshi0988]

hello all, im seeking some knowledge from people with more experience then i do at the moment.
not that its a problem, just a questions that i would like to have it answered for my curiosity and future references.
any advise or input would be greatly appreciated.

before i get into anything i do wanna say first, i luv em! they look amazing and very well taken care of, huge thx to breeders whom let me get this beautiful animals if they happen to recognize me on here.
so here it goes....

i recently acquired 3 cay caulker boas.
2013 cay caulker female. 146 gram 10/13/17 approx.

2016 cay caulker male. 191 gram 10/17/17 approx.
2016 cay caulker female. 320 gram 10/17/17 approx.

got the 2013 female as single, and 16's as a pair from two different breeders.
weights are basically recorded on the date i received em if not day after.
far as what i learned from numerous source of info's. generally females will hit full maturity for breeding at 4-5 years since they are really small feeders and slow growers.

so my question is...
as you guys can see by weight of them, my year old female is pretty much twice of size as to 4 year old female. 16's female is not twice longer then 13's female but significantly longer and thicker.
since 2013 female is 4 years old, she should be right at her full maturity but so small when compared.
could there be such a difference in size even in same species?
im also under a impression that they have very small gene pool, which means they can't be too differ from one a another, only makes harder for me to understand what could be the factor for such an growth/size difference.
i do not doubt their integrity of a blood or purity as of dwarfs, since i got them from reputable breeders.
just wondering if this was common things to happen.
if i were to say ex:
one female BRB from one clutch hitting 4ft mark on its first year,
while another female BRB from different clutch hitting only 2ft mark on its first year when fed identically.

previous owner/breeder of 2016's did told me their mother was a big girl considering when its a dwarf species ( 5- 5.5ft)

thank you,

16's female is rivaling size with my 6mo' Suriname boa which dosent mean anything but i still find it to be pretty cool lol.

 

[yoshi0988]

plz disregard -apporx- after weights.

weights are exact.

 

[AbsoluteApril]

It can happen, boas grow mainly based on their feeding schedule, both how often and how large of the food. A baby boa started on mouse fuzzies and only moved up to adult mice, fed once every 2 or so weeks, will be MUCH smaller and grow much slower than a baby boa stared on rat fuzzies and moved up to small rats fed every week for instance.
A boa started slow (either with really spaced out feedings or food on the smaller size) will still reach a 'normal' adult size it can just take a few extra years.

I personally prefer the slow growth and most of my boas are on the smaller size. Boas continue to grow their entire lives regardless of locality.

I would probably be a little concerned with the 2013 animal being so small and you may want to try to get more info from the breeder about what and how often she was fed. Regardless though, she *should* still reach a normal size over time unless there is a parasite issue going on.

Good luck with them!

 

[elena]

146g is not a normal weight for a 4 year old boa constrictor of any locality. That's my opinion. Did you know she was that small before buying her? Is shel active? Has she fed for you? I'd recommend speaking to the breeder about her feeding habits and weight at birth, as well as getting a fecal sample to your vet to rule out parasites. With an animal that small I'd want to rule out underfeeding, poor appetite, failure to thrive and parasites.

 

[yoshi0988]

It can happen, boas grow mainly based on their feeding schedule, both how often and how large of the food. A baby boa started on mouse fuzzies and only moved up to adult mice, fed once every 2 or so weeks, will be MUCH smaller and grow much slower than a baby boa stared on rat fuzzies and moved up to small rats fed every week for instance.
A boa started slow (either with really spaced out feedings or food on the smaller size) will still reach a 'normal' adult size it can just take a few extra years.

I personally prefer the slow growth and most of my boas are on the smaller size. Boas continue to grow their entire lives regardless of locality.

I would probably be a little concerned with the 2013 animal being so small and you may want to try to get more info from the breeder about what and how often she was fed. Regardless though, she *should* still reach a normal size over time unless there is a parasite issue going on.

Good luck with them!

Thank you for your insight.
far as what breeders have told me, 2013 female has been fed no more then once every 2-3wk with which ever was availiable, mice, rat, live, or f/t. 2016s have been feeding on small f/t mice once every 3 wk if not once a month.
So forth...2013, older but smaller girl has been fed with more frequent schedule actually, if what breeder stated is true.
I don't mind her being small, actually I prefer it that way, just wanted to have concrete idea what could cause such a phenomenon
Now I won't be over feeding her either just to put some size on her, since yet again...i prefer her to stay small since that was most appealing reason for me to get these guys in first place.
I'll try to put some picture up too later.
They are the adorlablest thing in the world for me.

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[yoshi0988]

146g is not a normal weight for a 4 year old boa constrictor of any locality. That's my opinion. Did you know she was that small before buying her? Is shel active? Has she fed for you? I'd recommend speaking to the breeder about her feeding habits and weight at birth, as well as getting a fecal sample to your vet to rule out parasites. With an animal that small I'd want to rule out underfeeding, poor appetite, failure to thrive and parasites.

Thank you.
Those are very good, straight to the point pointers I could do.
Seller did told me before the purchase that she is still very tiny where her parents were pretty small too.
These guys are second smallest bci's only beaten by tarahumara mt. Bci's. (Maybe crawl cays too but not sure..)
I have been advised full adults will be anywhere between 4-5ft with slender body with girth of only little thicker then broom stick. (Male being smaller ofcourse)

Now her temperament is just perfect, little head shy sometime but mostly very calm and super curious. Very active, always venturing around her new cage at night.

I think the biggest thing that playing a role with me at the moment is, I never gotten to see the actual adult of these guys in person.

As you advised, I'll try to talk to seller some more for any additional info.

Thank you

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[elena]

Personally, I feed juveniles every 10 days, and adults/subadults every 14. It sounds like the 2013 is on an appropriate feeding schedule, but I would feeding young, growing animals like your 2016s more than every 3-4 weeks. But that's just me. I will openly admit, however, that while I have worked with Argentines, mainland Nics, Hogs, Suris and Colombians, I have never worked with Cay Caulkers.

 

[AbsoluteApril]

Here's a photo I snapped at the recent Sacramento Reptile Show of an adult Calker Cay, I'd estimate it was between 3-4'
Very neat looking boa

 

[elena]

That's gorgeous. Maybe I should start working with them after all...