Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have plenty of ball pythons for breeding purposes and now I would love to purchase a female pet boa. I have no intentions of breeding her. I just want her as a pet. It should be noted that she will be handled at least once a week and sometimes even twice a week. But I do want something that remains calm. I do not want an insane african rock python. What kind of boa would you recommend for someone with snake experience, but does not want an insane overly large snake. I want a pretty 8 to 10 foot female boa. I am kinda turned off by red tails because they are so common. I was planning on purchasing something eye catching since it will be my only large snake. Thanks and any info is greatly appreciated. Manny

Who you kidding -- not going to breed. Once you get a boa or two, you won't be able to keep yourself from breeding them.
You'll see.
Read this forum and see what you like. Go back aways. Plenty of good pictures posted. Check out the Boas photo gallery, too.
Something catches your eye contact that person. I'm sure they'll be glad to help.
Welcome.
jsc
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"As hard as I've tried, just can't NOT do this"
John Crickmer

Addiction sucks huh. I know I keep telling myself that I will not breed my boa, but I think you know how this hobby affects people. What I mean by picking one is not neccesarily color, but more the origin of the snake. I heard that Guyanans are calmer than columbians. Is this true? I have no idea.

I'm sure others will give you their opinions on things like that.
IMHO it's a matter of meeting the animal's requirements. If the snake is healthy and comfortable within it's environment, it should be pretty mellow. Never seen a healthy secure captive born adult boa that wasn't easily managed by it's keeper. Of course, you've got to be able to read your snake, just as you would a dog, or a horse, or any domestic animal. I'm NOT saying a snake is a domestic animal, of course. However, misunderstandings do occur from time to time. So, pay attention and always use the same tactile cues/routine with your snake every time. No problem -- future boa wisperer.
jsc
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"As hard as I've tried, just can't NOT do this"
John Crickmer

Captive-bred will most likely be calmer than imported, baby or adult.

That said, Nicaraguans and Central American boas have a reputation for being little "spitfires". I've never had one, so don't know. I have a hog island (BCI), "common" BCIs (hypo morph) and BCCs (suriname).

I've had two hog island boas - the female would be hissier than any other boa I had, but was fine to handle once you got her out of her cage. The male went through a period where he'd hiss at you if you crossed in front of his cage after feeding him. Never had any problems with handling him, and he doesn't hiss for any reason any more.

I've heard some people say that BCC can be nippier than BCI. I really don't see how that can be true, unless you take into account that captive bred BCC are harder to find, since they seem to have fewer babies and take longer to reach sexual maturity. Some people also say BCC can be more prone to regurgitation.

In any case - as long as you raise a boa from a baby and handle it consistently, it shouldn't become a monster. Each snake can have its own attitude... always keep that in mind. One of my hypo BCI doesn't really like being handled (she seems scared of falling and clamps hard onto me, and I've had her since she was a baby), but the male hypo BCI is great to hold.

Similarly, one of my BCC, the female, is great to hold, very calm, but the male, her brother and littermate, is skittish. He gets stiff and always tries to "run" when being handled... but I didn't have either of the BCC while they were babies, they were obtained as adults. So, it could be that the female was handled more by her previous owner than the male, I just don't know. I plan on handling the male more to see if he will eventually become more trusting and easy to hold, but he's never struck at me.

My point is that sex or locale will not guarantee tameness or attitude. Consistent handling can help. If you find a morph or locality you like the looks of, try to get a young boa, so that you can make sure it is tame. Otherwise, if you want an adult, make sure to ask the seller about the temperment, and that you want a VERY TAME snake. Most people will be honest with you about that. Stay away from imports, especially adult imports. Aside from bad attitudes, they often have parasites.

I started off with a ball python. Boas really aren't that different, they just get a bit bigger.

Sizewise, my BCC female is my largest at 8.5 feet. She's very tame, so not hard to handle. Her brother is 7.5 feet, but since his attitude is skittish, he's very hard to handle, that bulk of muscle can be hard to fight if he doesn't want to go where I want him to. The female is about as big around as the calf of my leg, or a little bigger.

My hog island female was about 5.5 feet when she died, and may have had a little bit more growing to do. My hog island male is about 5 feet or less, but he's not very girthy... he's a little thicker than my male ball python.

The two hypo BCIs have a lot of growing to do yet, the female is 2 years old but slow-grown, so not above 4 feet yet, and the male is only a little more than a year old, so still just one handful, so I can't attest as to normal BCI growth or size.

Good luck... and if you can help it, try to see your snake in person before you buy to see if you can get a feel for its attitude.

Oh yeah.. don't overfeed! Some boas can be "garbage cans" and will eat as much as you will give them, which can make them grow too fast (can cause shorter lifespan) and have health problems or get obese. They're usually not hard to feed, like ball pythons can be... so their feeding response may come to a bit of a surprise to you if you're used to balls.
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Lauren Madar - OphidiaGems.com | CageMakers
1.1 Ball Python, 1.0 Hog Island Boa, 1.1 Hypo BCI, 1.1 Surinam BCC, 1.1 Saharan Sand Boa

8-10 feet is on the large size for a boa. Males rarely reach 8 feet and the 9 and 10 footers are usually older females often and BCCs too. Guyanans and Surinames are generally nippier/not as calm/etc than Colombians, but remember every animal is an individual. I have heard from numerous people that Hogg Islands usually have some 'tude too, they stay a little smaller, but have gorgeous subtle colors. That said, if you want something like a "lap dog" that you can sit with I'd recommend a Dumerils boa. Many of the Colombian morphs are great too and if you're willing to spend some money you can certainly get something not everyone has.

Highly under rated animals in the Boa ranks,
BCL(Boa Constrictor Longicauda)

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TnK

One of my all time favorites. Hoping to aquire some within the next year. Let me know if you'll have some.
jsc

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"As hard as I've tried, just can't NOT do this"
John Crickmer

We lost our breeder female last year,so were raiseing acouple anery girls to go with that last pictured male,or maybe one of our anery males ? LOL!!
There are a few(06'rs) thru private sources right now,give a holla and I'll point ya that direction.
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TnK

The calmest and easiest to care for are colombian BCIs. You say you don't want one because they are common, but have you considered all the morphs? Some of the most beautiful boas are morphs of the common colombian bci. The other subspecies are less mellow, notably bccs. They also grow larger than colombians and they are touchier to culture mistakes. I don't recommend bccs for a first boa. I am lucky that the bccs I have now are all nice and mellow. I had a wild caught guyana that was a handful earlier this year, wow, you don't want anything like that. Don't get anything wild caught.

Babies tend to be nippy sometimes, don't let that dissuade you, they calm down with handling and get used to you. There are lots of insular boas that are plenty small, maybe you'll like the look off one of them? Hoggs were mentioned, but there are lots of dwarf boas. My favorites are the Sonorans and the Isla de Maise (Corn Island), I'd recommend Gus Rentfro of Rio Bravo Reptiles if you're interested in Corn Island boas or other insular boas. His site has a lot of photo eye candy to look at, maybe it would help you pic. Most insular boas are bcis, but they are very much unlike a colombian.

a 10 foot colombian is a giant. Most colombian girls are 6 to 8 feet. Colombians are the size you say you want. They get pretty big around though, some of them. BTW the real true 'red tails' are bcc not common colombians, they ARE the Guyanas and Surinames. Pet store colombian bcis are frequently misnamed in pet stores because pet store owners think the word constrictor is too scary : )

My best advice is for you to buy or rescue an older boa, one that is known to be mellow and sweet. Maybe you can rescue a nice morph? You can sometimes buy people's pets, that have had a lot of handling.

Next best advice is to buy a nice looking morph, because colombians are easier to keep and better for novice boa keepers. If you buy a baby you MAY get a little hellfire, you just might. SO be prepared to handle the little darling everyday it's not in a shed or hasn't eaten recently, if you insist on a baby. You also might luck out and get a naturally mellow baby too. Most are. I bought 6 colombian babies this year, and 2 were little grumps, one has mellowed out in 6 months, and the other is now sweet most of the time, has occasional hissy fits, that's a lot of progress in 6 months.

OK you just don't want a colombian, stay in the bci family. Try an insular boa. They stay smaller. Look at photos of all the boas you can. Maybe something will grab you. Have you seen a sonoran leopard yet? : )

Good luck
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Caden Chapman
slithering.serpents@gmail.com
http://slitheringserpents.com