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Puff Adder husbandry??
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Anonymous post on September 11, 2004
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Who, in here has alot of experience with the notorious Puff Adders? Do they require similar needs to that of their cousin, the Gaboon Viper? I have noticed over the years that Gaboons must be cohersed into their drinking bowls to hydrate as well as ocassional misting (every 2 days)What are the Puffs eating habits as neonates? Do they eat twice a week on pinkies or only once? When a Puff reaches approx. 15 inches, should he be fed weekly? Is their metabolism just as slow as the Gaboons? Even when properly hydrated the Gaboon still deficates only once every 3 weeks. Does the Puff deficate more frequently? Thank you all very much.
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RE: Puff Adder husbandry??
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by captiveherps on September 12, 2004
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They seem to have a faster metabolisim then gaboons. My puffs were wild caught in Tanzania, and did not need as much water as my gaboons from tanzania. The puffs came in by mistake, 2 did great right from the start, the biggest one (3.5 feet) had a broken rib and would not eat, no surprise, she got thin enough to need force feeding, but she was fine after that.
They were hissy and upity at first but were much better than their reputation after a few months.
I dont recall having to "teach" them to drink as I have had to do with gaboons and rhinos. They were very easy to care for.
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RE: Puff Adder husbandry??
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by Phobos on September 12, 2004
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Hi:
For a start see this current thread: http://www.venomousreptiles.org/forums/Experts/9491
Why post anonymous for such straight forward question?
They are very different from their cousins the Gabbys & Rhinos. True Gabbys & Rhinos they need to be dragged hissing to the water bowl once a week but calm down when thesy figure out why they are there.
Puffs seem to be "dew lickers" see the referenced thread above. Her prefered way of drinking is right from the sprayer when my fingers are closer to ther head than I like them to be. She has a whole different posture when drinking from the sprayer. tongue flicking, no hissing/puffing. Head & neck flat and relaxed. Not cocked and flexed down is her normal defensive posture. Overall keep them on the dry side except after the opaque period before shedding. I use wet sponges to raise & maintain a good humidity levels.
Since most of their growth happens in the first year I feed my neonates twice a week in the first year, of course if they are willing to eat that much.
My Gabbies & Rhinos defecate much less frequently than 3 weeks...sometimes 5 to 8 weeks. Keep them well hydrated and this won't be a problem. My Puff defecates on about a 3 week schedule. Puffs have a higher metabolism and are not "Couch Potatos" and actively move around. They are not as much as an ambush predator as the others, they will actively hunt down food. They are notorious for entering native huts in Africa in search of prey.
Hope this is useful. Many of the postures can be seen in photos on my Hot Herp website: http://groups.msn.com/SomeLikeThemHot/
Good Luck,
Al
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