underweight snake?

[maddie167420]

hi i just got a corn, first snake, and she looks pretty good, clear eyes, not a picky eater, and is very active at night. her previous owner was not certain about the age but said shes approx four months old albino corn and i weighed her ( after eating a pinky) and she was 13 grams. i saw some corns at four months weighed between 18 and 24 g and i think she is underweight but her back is round and i cant feel her spine, so im not sure? i am wondering if i should feed her two pinkies, rn she is eating one per week
any suggestions/info would be really helpful, thanks in advance

ps my phone camera is just really bad, the viv is clean

 

[blacktip]

It is not likely that your snake is underweight, rather it just might be small for its age. At 13 grams I would feed a pinky every 5 days rather than once per week. Let her get up to 16 or 17 grams (weight before eating) before moving to two pinkies per feeding

 

[hypnoctopus]

I agree with blacktip. She looks okay, just feed a little more frequently and she'll catch up.

 

[maddie167420]

thanks so much, ill try that!

 

[Caryl]

She looks healthy. She may have hatched out on the small side, perhaps from a smaller egg. Sometimes young females or those with huge clutches lay eggs of smaller size. That's not any indication of future size or health of the babies. They'll grow and thrive with regular, appropriate size feeding and good care.

It's a good idea to keep track of their weight, of course. This will vary a bit depending upon if they're fed, just had a big drink, or need to pass waste. For example, you mentioned that your baby is 14 g after eating. It is best to weigh them before a feeding, unless you've weighed the prey item separately. That way you'll know how she's really doing on weight gain.

We look forward to updates. Btw, welcome to the hobby!