Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I'm considering a BRB in the future and am curious how you keep the humidity up for them - and what really is the optimal humidity (having a hard time finding a consistent answer on care sheets)?

Tigergenesis,
. Little BRBs need cage humidity of 80% or higher most of the time. Adult BRBs can do well with cage humidity of 65% or higher most of the time. Having the cage humidity as high as 100% with condensation forming on the inside of the cage some of the time is fine. The biggest problem that people have with these snakes is that they try to cage them like other Boas and Pythons. Most other boids do well with temeratures 10 to 15 degrees higher and humidity 25 percent lower than ideal for these snakes. The easiest way to keep the humidity high in a BRB cage is to keep the substrate damp and to not let the humidity escape. Set them up in a cage with limited ventilation and the humidity will stay in the cage and the temperature will also be easier to control. Most snakes need plenty of ventilation and dry substrate. BRBs are among the very few snakes which thrive in a cage with damp substrate and limited ventilation. The drawback to damp substrates with limited ventilation is that mold and mildew will grow unless the cage is cleaned often.
Jeff

>>I'm considering a BRB in the future and am curious how you keep the humidity up for them - and what really is the optimal humidity (having a hard time finding a consistent answer on care sheets)?

Thanks for the info! A couple of more questions if you don't mind. I've been looking at a Boaphile Plastics cage. Would this be good for a BRB or would some modifications be needed to help with humidity, etc? Also, what kind of substrates work well with BRBs in the effort to maintain a good humidity?

Thanks!

http://www.boaphileplastics.com/cages.html

Tigergenesis,
. Boaphile plastics are good cages. The ones I have seen have too much ventilation for BRBs. If ordering one I would ask for it to be made without any of the ventilation. If you get one that is already made with the ventilation you can cover all the ventilation with duct tape. I use Vision cages and have every inch of ventilation screen covered with duct tape. The only ventilation in my Visions is what can get through the small gap between the sliding glass doors. I like and use newspaper substrate. It is cheap and easy to replace often. Other suitable substrates, if they are changed often are moss and mulch and chipped coconuts husks. Some other people here use other ones and they will tell you which ones. I hope?
Jeff

>>Thanks for the info! A couple of more questions if you don't mind. I've been looking at a Boaphile Plastics cage. Would this be good for a BRB or would some modifications be needed to help with humidity, etc? Also, what kind of substrates work well with BRBs in the effort to maintain a good humidity?
>>
>>Thanks!
>>
>>http://www.boaphileplastics.com/cages.html

Cypress mulch is a natural looking substrate that seems to be quite nice for humidity loving snakes, and also allows burrowing. You probably wouldn't want to feed on it, is the only caveat. I was thinking about experimenting with a cypress/potting soil mix, I have another snake on that and was waiting to see how I liked it.
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Peter: It's OK, I'll handle it. I read a book about something like this.
Brian: Are you sure it was a book? Are you sure it wasn't NOTHING?

I use a vision display cage for my pair of BRB's- however it took me alot of experiementing to find the closest thing to a perfect substrate... I didn't like spaghnum too much because when you dampen it, the stuff just goes everywhere. I tried repti-bark, but that stuff really sucked- too much dust, gotta rinse the hell out of it... the best substrate I've found thus far is cyprus bark mulch (NOT cedar obviously). cyprus bark is cheap as hell, though on long island it was a bit tough to find, but worth it. it stays moist, stays clean, is cheap, and it makes for a nice looking presentation in my vision. I also have a waterfall with a mister for humidity- i have two timers, one for lights and waterfall pump, the other for misting- 15 minutes, 3 times daily- works like a champ.

Do you have any pics of your setup?

I keep mine in Cypress mulch changed every two weeks. I house her in a blanket box with vents on the side. Her Humidity stays around 80 to 85% she burrows alot and this seems to help reduce stress. SHe eats very heartily and seems quite content.
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1.1 Leos
1.1 Corn snakes (1 Lav & 1 Ghost)
0.0.1 Childrens python
0.1 Brazilian Rainbow boa
1.0 Rat (as pet not food)
1.0 Cat
"whats with you and all those dang reptiles?"

For what it's worth, I've been working on similar concerns. I construct my own cages & that gives me some option to modify as needed. What is working well now is the Tropic-Aire, widely available at most pet shops. The enclosure needs to be fairly tightly sealed up which limits your temp gradient but the benefit I see so far is that you can keep the air humidity near 100% without the adverse effect of having saturated substrate.
They cost about 20 bucks.