First of all want to say Thank You! Thanks for taking the time and effort to research to proper way to care for a baby boa. Far too many times I see post asking how to fix problems that come from bad husbandry or lack of knowledge. Don't be afraid to ask questions and this forum can be a wealth of knowledge.
I don’t consider boas to be a "hard" snake to keep but, there are a few key requirements.
1. Heat- You want to offer the snake a temperature gradient. The cool side should be around 80 degrees and the hot spot around 90 degrees. This will vary a few degrees depending on who you ask but its close. Under tank heaters are a good choice because it offers "bell heat" which I consider to be more effective than radiant heat, i.e. heat lamp. They also don’t spread the heat very far, what I mean by that is if the heater is 4"X4" that’s pretty close to what the hot spot will be. You do have to be careful to regulate the heater with some type of thermostat or rheostat to achieve your desired temperature.
2. Hides- I read that you placed the hide over the hot spot, if possible try to also add one to the cool spot. Often times babies will be more worried about staying hidden that paying attention to thermoregulation (maintaining the right temps). Try not to place a baby in a huge tank, they easily become overwhelmed and focus on hiding.
3. Humidity- Try to maintain it around 60%. Buy a small hygrometer and place it in the tank, you can adjust it by misting with a water bottle and covering different amounts of the screen lid with a towel like you stated. This will take some time to dial in.
4. Substrate- Get rid of the pebbles, the problem with this is the possibility of ingestion and impaction. Paper towels, newspaper, these are both readily available and cheap! They are easy to clean and will work fine as a substrate. If you want something a little more aesthetic you can try shredded aspen or cypress bedding. Stay away from cedar due to the toxic oil it naturally has. If you do use bedding I would personally not feed on it until the snake is around 3 feet or so (again this is my opinion and will vary depending who you ask). I personally use paper towels for the babies and corrugated brown paper/newspaper for the adults.
5. Feeding- Feed him/her every 7-10 days with a meal that is roughly the size of the snake’s girth. If you can I would suggest frozen thawed rodents, they are easier, usually cheaper, and pose no threat to your snake. Each snake is different but I’ve noticed that most of mine poop about every 10 days, you’ll learn the routine after a while. It seems that mine always like to drop their loads right after I clean their cage...go figure lol!
6. Things to watch for- They should always shed in one nice long piece, if it gets patchy and starts to flake off in pieces something is not right.
Respiratory Infections- this is generally the result of low temperatures and will present itself with wheezing to bubbles coming from the nose/mouth of your snake.
Mites- pesky lil critters that are like fleas to dogs. They will look like tiny black bugs crawling on your snake. These are THE ENEMY! Bad for one snake BAAAAAD for big collections.
Wow that was longer thank I thought, sorry bout that! These are just things that have worked for me over the past years and I am by no means and expert or a big professional breeder. I hope this helps and please don’t hesitate to ask any questions you might have, your snake is depending on you.
Good luck and have fun!
