My hognose just laid a beautiful clutch of eggs. My first, I am so excited. I bought her gravid. So I was planning on feeding her this afternoon but I found a regurgitation alongside the eggs. So now I am thinking I should wait two weeks?
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Definitely wait at least 10 days if her body condition is such that she can tolerate that. Size down the meal, consider offering a cup of pinkies instead of a larger meal.
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Don is right, asolutely. Do wait at least 10 days before offering anything, and go with a much smaller prey size and volume. I usually offer about half the usual amount of food subsequent to any regurge, thankfully a rare event.
Regurgitation in snakes is a much more destructive process than vomiting in a mammal. Think about how long it takes us to swallow, or to reverse that process. Our throat can burn from stomach acids if we can’t keep food down. Now think about how long it takes a snake to swallow and imagine reversing that process. Digestive acids are in contact with the esophagus and mouth for a much longer time than we mammals experience. Their metabolism works at about 1/5 the rate of ours. Healing and replenishing the list digestive juices take time, and trying again too soon virtually ensures another regurge.
I am a huge fan of the probiotic NutriBac. (So is my vet.) It’s dusted on prey items, and I’ve never had a snake refuse it. I give it monthly to everybody once they’re feeding regularly. I also give it before/after shipping, and anytime there’s anything going on with an individual like first feeding after gestation. Since I started this, knock on wood, my collection really has had great digestion. Can only recall one regurge and that was because of an unexpected temperature drop.
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