` If you're considering keeping them together to save the cost of another cage, don't.

` When you keep different species together, besides picking animals that have similar environmental requirements, you've got to pick the right individuals. If you don't know exactly where the individual snakes you're planning to keep together came from, you can bring in disease and parasites.

` In my opinion, wild caught animals would be unacceptable. Only captive bred animals from a known source, that you consider safe, would be right, as far as health. And then, only after a long quarrantine.

` In any species there are going to be some individuals that are behaviorally suited to a community, and some that are not. Some are going to be too aggressive, some are going to be stressed by the experience. Either way, these are not suitable. I keep one community of different species. The rest of my snakes are separate. The individuals in the community had been in my care for years before I mixed them. They have been stabile for five years, with no problems.

` Feeding and sanitation become much more critical in a community. I always separate them for feeding. Then when they start defecating, you've got two weeks of intense cleanup. You've got to be on top of sanitation, or you could have health problems, quickly!

` I monitor their individual health, and inspect their stools. I think you should have separate caging available, it's handy for feeding, anyway. If I found a questionable stool, or observed a sick snake, I would separate them all immediately.

` The advantages are that, with Boids, you can observe some unusual, and quite interesting behavior not usually attributed to Boid snakes. My community is all male. Three Yellow Anacondas, one big Ball Python, and one Boa constrictor imperator. They have lots of room, and two heated soaking containers. The usually sleep in a pile, and all get into one water container to soak, making it overflow, except the Ball, of course. He only gets his lips wet! They tend to climb into the branches, and get into a big knot. One Anaconda, and the Boa, have quite a romance going on. They spur each other, and mount each other every few months, when the females in nearby cages are giving off pheromones. As they are all adults, I feed them at 6 to 8 week intervals. When they smell their food thawing, they get excited, and often line up, waiting to be taken to their feeding cages.

` I'm not experienced with Carpet Pythons, so I'm not encouraging you to do this. But I do want to say that too much of the "common knowledge" about Boid husbandry is just dogma. People repeating what they have been told, and closing their minds to anything else. Also, it is usually right. Most snakes are not suited, and most snake keepers are not suited, to keeping critters in a community. You have to be aware of conditions in the community at all times! Keep in mind that they could easily kill and eat each other. That is why I feel it is advisable to know each individual very well, before mixing them.

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