Hey guys my little dude Lestat just started going in to a shed. I took him out of his enclosure and noticed his eyes are clouded over. I’ve been watching videos and reading everything I can about possibly feeding while he’s in shed. And just like everything else everything I’ve read has mixed reviews/answers.
Since joining this community everyone here has been insanely helpful and kind and over all just Dope! lol….so I’m gonna trust the direction you guys point me in. What are your thoughts on feeding your boa while they’re in shed? Is it to stressful on them should I just wait it out? Happy Saturday.
And yeah I’ve been around long enough to know you guys like pictures. lol. Here you go.
Honestly it can really depend on the snake. Some just refuse to eat even before they go ‘in blue’.
Some are still ravenous when blue. Lol.
I personally try to avoid feeding though. Unless they are really rubbing or getting acting out I just wait them out and get them back on track after. If they are acting out, I give them a smaller than usual snack to tide them over a bit. Like half size meal.
My reasoning personally is I have noticed that any of my snakes that have a good size meal while cycling tend to have some rougher times shedding. It could just be coincidence, but I have heard they tend to divert the fluids necessary to aid shedding to the gut for digestion.
@armiyana okay yeah that makes sense to let his body do its thing while it’s in shed and not use it’s resources for digestion since he’s not starving. Appreciate you
I think you guys are right. It for sure makes the most sense. I guess I was just worried about him starving. But. That’s not exactly how it works. lol I feel like a helicopter parent dude. haha
My boa will happily eat in shed. She truly doesn’t seem to have gotten the memo that snakes typically don’t eat while in shed. I’ve also never experienced the issue @armiyana mentioned, as all my boa’s sheds have been clean, and I haven’t noticed any difference in her ease of shedding based on whether she was fed recently or not.
That said, it certainly won’t hurt to hold off. He’ll be just fine skipping a meal.
Yeah for sure I 100% agree with you guys. I appreciate you. I’m gonna hold off and just focus on making sure that his humidity and temps are spot on so he does not have a bed shed.
@jawramik thanks!! He really is. He’s a baby so he’s still a little hissy and defensive but once I have him out he calms right down. These pictures are actually of my wife handling him a few weeks ago. lol but yeah I’ve grown super attached to him and wanna make sure he’s good. Haha
Yeah, I would just say wait until after he’s done. The reason being because a snake that’s healthy is gonna benefit from a little bit longer wait between feeding anyway. I do not feed the way the hobby normally feeds. Usually the hobby way over feeds their snakes so I think that you’re good just waiting.
Good looking noodle you have there. I have kept snakes for almost half a century now and been through all the great things we used to do that are now very bad and the hobby goes on, lol!!! Every snake is going to be different when it comes to certain things. In nature, if a snake is in Blue and a prey item wonders by I can assure you he/she is going to consume it, if possible. There have been countless times I have prepared a meal only to find out the one it was prepared for is in Blue. Well over 75% of the time the feeding would proceed like normal. Now that I’m old, and down to a single snake that I handle almost daily I know before preparing a mouse or rat if Clyde is in Blue or not. If he is, I don’t bother and I will wait until he has shed before offering him food. During this time I also do not handle him, I just leave him alone. The fact that you are concerned about your snake starving tells me that you truly care for your snake and want what is best for him. For your peace of mind, starving your snake isn’t something that you need to be concerned with. They can go a lot farther between meals than a dog or cat can. My best advice is to let he/she be until after it has shed and then resume with your normal feeding schedule. On a side note, there is no harm in skipping a meal now and then, many will even recommend it. Sounds like your snake is lucky to have an owner that cares so much about it’s well being. Congrats to both of you.
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