Just Acquired a Neonate "Indo Tree Boa"

ThomasH · Dec 13, 2009

I got him yesterday from the Northern Virginia reptile expo where he was being kept with about 8 of his siblings in a little display marked $12 each. He's around 6" and doesn't even seem to have the girth of a pencil. The little guy is currently residing in a temporary enclosure, it is basically a 16 oz deli with a 1 oz cup for water, tightly packed paper towel for substrate and a cheap plastic vine for climbing which is about half in the water dish. Yesterday he sat wrapped around his vine by the water and today he has chosen to spend the entire day wrapped around the vine in the water dish. Micro-amigo appears to be very well hydrated. The batch was apparently born in captivity to freshly wc females. Either way, he appears to be very healthy which brings us to the questions...

What is the scientific name? I know, it sounds idiotic and "newb-ish" to ask but I really can't find any quality information on them. What should I feed him? I bought pinkies and I was planning to cut the hindquarters off and offer that. If it is a species that may require scenting I could always rub it on my tokay geckos or pacman frog.

Thanks,
TBH

joshuai · Dec 13, 2009

http://www.kingsnake.com/candoia/gem.html
here is a link for ya

UrbanJungles · Dec 14, 2009

Probably Candoia bibroni, good luck with the feeding...it's a pain especially with babies.

Lucas339 · Dec 14, 2009

it will probably take way more than just senting. i had to skin frogs and put the skins over the pinkys for them to take rodents.

Jmugleston · Dec 14, 2009

My success with this species has come from using green treefrogs and anoles. Eventually mine switched to rodents, but it was not easy. Good luck.

Alejandro45 · Dec 14, 2009

did you ask how old he is? I had vine snakes born in captivity and there a real hassle dont worry if he is not feeding for about a week or two just keep him hydrated if he is really young he might still have his own yolk nurishment.

and yes scenting will be very hard try introducing young anoles first and work your way up.

if he isnt fully hydrated you can give him pedialyte.

hope this helps

ThomasH · Dec 14, 2009

joshuai said:
http://www.kingsnake.com/candoia/gem.html
here is a link for ya

Thank you! I'm glad to see one apparently solid article, info for these is almost as obscure as the actual specimens.

Alejandro45 said:
did you ask how old he is? I had vine snakes born in captivity and there a real hassle dont worry if he is not feeding for about a week or two just keep him hydrated if he is really young he might still have his own yolk nurishment.

and yes scenting will be very hard try introducing young anoles first and work your way up.

if he isnt fully hydrated you can give him pedialyte.

hope this helps

From what the vendor told me, I could gather that they were freshly born and that they haven't been fed yet. I'll try a pinky hind tonight, if that doesn't work I'll order prey lizards, humanely kill them [then freeze for at least 3 days] and try their tails, assuming I won't be able to find hatchling anoles or geckos. Honestly, I really don't think there are anole hatchlings small enough for this snake.

Thanks for all the help,
TBH

dtknow · Dec 14, 2009

Wonder if african dwarf frogs would work, thoughts?

I talked to the vendor and am thinking of buying the remaining 5. He plans on starting them on mouse tails(tease feeding?) They are Candoia carinata carinata.

ThomasH · Dec 14, 2009

dtknow said:
Wonder if african dwarf frogs would work, thoughts?

I talked to the vendor and am thinking of buying the remaining 5. He plans on starting them on mouse tails(tease feeding?) They are Candoia carinata carinata.

African dwarf frogs would probably work, a little bit of a stretch though as far as girth goes, do you think they'd eat tadpoles? Unfortunately the season for me to catch little green tree frogs and the like has passed.

I'm not sure if there are 5 left, did you talk to the dealer [OutBack] before or after Saturday? Very healthy, beautiful animals by the way.

Cool, they're C. carinata carinata! I was hoping so after reading the descriptions on that link, smaller than bibroni, I prefer smaller snakes.

TBH

UrbanJungles · Dec 14, 2009

dtknow said:
Wonder if african dwarf frogs would work, thoughts?

I talked to the vendor and am thinking of buying the remaining 5. He plans on starting them on mouse tails(tease feeding?) They are Candoia carinata carinata.

Unfortunately this entails "forcefeeding" the the mousetails. If you do this regularly they will eventually "assist feed" where they will start to swallow on their own eventually. After they shed a few times they are big enough for pinks which they will usually readily switch to after being fed mousetails for seemingly ever!

I did this for my candoia as well as a few tiny tiny Tropidophis.

dtknow · Dec 15, 2009

He has 4 left. I am really tempted to take the entire group off his hands but hope I'm not biting off more than I can chew.(also not 100% sure this is the species for me...they are neat snakes tho!)

You can usually find tiny african dwarf frogs...practically fingernail size in large shipments. How large are the heads of these babies? Apparently they hone in on movement so my only worry is whether or not the frogs will hop around enough. I suppose you can confine both in a delicup with some perches overnight and see what happens.

Lucas339 · Dec 15, 2009

i had success with new borns eating feeder green tree frogs a few months after birth. they never looked at anoles....ever! i tried several times. i would avoid force/assist feeding due to the tiny size of these guys.

ThomasH · Dec 15, 2009

dtknow said:
How large are the heads of these babies?

Approximately the size of a standard no. 2 pencil. Very tiny.

i had success with new borns eating feeder green tree frogs a few months after birth.

What'd the specimens eat, if anything, before those few months?

TBH

Lucas339 · Dec 16, 2009

nothing! they were the most frustrating animals i have ever owned! i would do it again though!!

they refuse everything for a month and a half. one took to the feeder frogs after this time. the other took a couple more weeks.

they eat when they are ready. they have bellies full of yolk.

Alejandro45 · Dec 16, 2009

yes new borns are extremly frustrating and nerve racking:wall: when they dont eat.

but if there as freshly born as they seem then in time they will thicken and soon take on frogs and anoles

DavidD · Mar 29, 2010

Any update on this feller?

Just Acquired a Neonate "Indo Tree Boa"

ThomasH

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