On 12/10/09 Steve-o weighed 40gr. he shed yesterday and his shed measured 28in. To me he seems awful skinny and I was wondering if any one could tell me if his weight and length are proportionate. Would these measurements give a clue to his age ? We have no idea when he was hatched. Thanks as always your help is greatly appreciated.
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Size question
- Thread starter 8292tom
- Start date
raynefyre
Taste the Rainbow
Length is usually not used to determine age and size with your snake, usually just how many grams it weighs. My two corns are siblings, weighing 28 and 30 grams as of Sunday before their last feeding. They are both 5 months old. So I would guess yours is a little older than mine. Where did you buy your snake from? Most sellers keep records of what they produce and should be able able to fill you in unless you bought from a pet store.
If you are worried about Steve-O being skinny I suggest following the Munson Plan if you haven't heard of it yet. I keep the chart on my phone. Lol. Here's a link.
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=50106
If you are worried about Steve-O being skinny I suggest following the Munson Plan if you haven't heard of it yet. I keep the chart on my phone. Lol. Here's a link.
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=50106
Emily1188
Smells Like a Rat
A picture is really the only way we can tell if he is underweight for his length. A snake should be shaped like a loaf of bread; rounded on the top and flat on the bottom. If they start to look triangular, they're underweight, and if they start to look totally round, they're overweight.
Feanturi
Go USARK!
Keep a watch on skin turgidity (firmness) for signs of dehydration. If you lightly pinch the skin (lightly!) and it stands up there's an issue. A healthy snake should also be active if hungry, hunting for food. If listless it is likely in energy-conservation mode and needs to be fed. Or it could be too cold, too, I suppose. But that doesn't sound like an issue here.
It's not really possible to use a ratio of length to weight to get anymore than a _very_ ballpark estimate of appropriate size. Your better off with "if the scales overlap they're too thin, and if they don't touch they're too fat"! Seriously though, the best gauge is this: does your snake seem constantly looking for a way out? If so, feed him. If he just lies there all the time (nights especially, as they do tend to sleep during the days) he's probably hungry and too low energy to waste. If you feed him and after a day or two, he's out and about, he's probably needing more food. I usually feed, wait a few days (2-3 for a snake in your size range), check for defecation, and if the snake is active I feed. If you want to encourage weight gain you could try slitting the feed along the spine with a sharp knife to upon surface area and make the meal easier to digest, freeing up energy for growth. And use the Munson plan guideline as suggested above Raynefyre. It's good advice she gives.....
All this is of course speculative and general. The best thing to do is have him checked over by a vet since there are questions. A physical is good for any new snake and worth the cost of a visit and a parasite check. Depending upon the source of feeders used from wherever you got him the chance is they fed live, and he could have picked up some parasites though pinkies are not major parasite carriers. Or he was in with other young snakes from different breeders and picked something up. Or the store (?) you got him from had contamination issues. Or, or, or. You could also try checking with somebody from a local herp group in your area. It seems like there should be one or 2 in PA. Lot's of members in your general area.... Reptiles USA, the annual issue from Reptiles Mag also lists Reptile/Exotics Vets state by state. A great resource.
It's not really possible to use a ratio of length to weight to get anymore than a _very_ ballpark estimate of appropriate size. Your better off with "if the scales overlap they're too thin, and if they don't touch they're too fat"! Seriously though, the best gauge is this: does your snake seem constantly looking for a way out? If so, feed him. If he just lies there all the time (nights especially, as they do tend to sleep during the days) he's probably hungry and too low energy to waste. If you feed him and after a day or two, he's out and about, he's probably needing more food. I usually feed, wait a few days (2-3 for a snake in your size range), check for defecation, and if the snake is active I feed. If you want to encourage weight gain you could try slitting the feed along the spine with a sharp knife to upon surface area and make the meal easier to digest, freeing up energy for growth. And use the Munson plan guideline as suggested above Raynefyre. It's good advice she gives.....
All this is of course speculative and general. The best thing to do is have him checked over by a vet since there are questions. A physical is good for any new snake and worth the cost of a visit and a parasite check. Depending upon the source of feeders used from wherever you got him the chance is they fed live, and he could have picked up some parasites though pinkies are not major parasite carriers. Or he was in with other young snakes from different breeders and picked something up. Or the store (?) you got him from had contamination issues. Or, or, or. You could also try checking with somebody from a local herp group in your area. It seems like there should be one or 2 in PA. Lot's of members in your general area.... Reptiles USA, the annual issue from Reptiles Mag also lists Reptile/Exotics Vets state by state. A great resource.