I thought I'd share a story with you fellow Candoia lovers.
My first exposure to Candoia occured years ago in some run-down hole in the wall pet shop. I was glancing at the various snakes, seeing if the store had gotten anything new in. A small plastic cage, decorated with fake aquarium plants, and labeled, "Solomen Island ground boas" caught my eye. One look at the tiny babies was all it took for me to purchase one of them for the price of $17.99. The owner of the store told me they had been eating guppies. I thought that was strange, seeing as that the only snakes I had ever had that ate guppies were garters, ribbons, and water snakes. I had never heard of a boa that ate guppies. The snake was placed in a fish bag, handed to me, and I was a happy camper o my way home with my first Candoia, at age 9.
I set up a small plastic cage for my new boa, with the correct temperatures and humidity. The boa sat in his water dish constantly. I remember that it never showed any signs of aggression. As a matter of fact, after several days, it seemed too inactive- it would barely move when I handled it. It didn't eat the guppies I gave it, so I tried feeding it the smallest thawed pinky mice I could find. Nothing.
He wouldn't eat guppy-scented pinkies, anole-scented pinkies, redworms, house gecko tails, anything. This ground boa produced the first headaches I ever had with snakes. I called the shop to see what thier ground boas were eating. They assured me the snakes were thriving on guppies. Later that day, I went there. They had none left. I assumed they had died.
Eventually, my ground boa died. He had gotten skinnier than a pencil during his last days. I felt horrible, and told myself I'd never ever attempt to keep another one of these things again.
Some years later, I came across a batch of captive-bred, sub-adult ground boas for sale. Memories were conjured, and I tried telling myself no as I was admiring these. These were different. They were bigger, fatter, and the owner told me that were eating rodents. I ended up buying all four of them that day.
I still have those four Solomen Island ground boas. They have proven to be some of the best eaters I have ever had. The feeding responses they show are phenominal. They are also some of the most docile snakes ever. I never once regretted the aquisition of these guys.
The moral of the story is this- BUY CAPTIVE BRED ONLY. Wild-caughts are only going to be a pain. These boas are extremely underrated. If people bred Candoia as frequently as sand boas or rosy boas, they'd skyrocket in popularity. They aren't that hard to keep once you understand how to provide them with a few extras. They will always be favorites in my collection.
Joe
