snake too skinny?

[jennixnay]

Hullo.

So, we adopted Clementine, a 2-yr-old female corn, last month. She's settled in nicely, is very docile, very tolerant of handling/out-of-viv playtime, & eats one f/t adult mouse every 8 days, & poos four days later. Like clockwork, she is.

Given that she's adult -- is it strange that her spine is very apparent? That she seems...thin? Her previous owner said he was feeding her every 10 days or so, but I'm wondering if she's under-sized -- & if so, what do I do?

 

[VickyChaiTea]

You could post some photos and we could tell you whether the snake looks thin, or weigh her and we could tell by that.

 

[bitsy]

One adult mouse every 10 days is pretty standard feeding for most adults. When mine go up to adult mice I usually reduce them to 14 day feeds (sometimes less depending on how the individual reacts).

However, each Corn is different and at two years old yours may just still be a growing gal. It's not bad for the spine to be showing a little but we'll only really be able to tell by looking at a photo.

If she's on the skinny side then increasing feeding is partly the way forward. However, you need to make sure that she puts on muscle bulk and not just excess flab. My personal view is that a fat Corn will be in worse shape than a slightly skinny one. You may need to increase handling to keep her toned and that will depend on how well she tolerates handling.