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For those who feel that you have actually seen enough eastern indigos and other subspecies to answer this question: Does the eastern subspecies consistently become larger than the others?

Also, I've heard that indigos are more challenging to maintain in captivity due to a higher frequency of defecation, and watery and exceptionally foul smelling feces? True or false?

For those who feel that you have actually seen enough eastern indigos and other subspecies to answer this question: Does the eastern subspecies consistently become larger than the others?

Not true. Easterns do get large, but other subspecies such as Yellowtails get larger. A large Eastern is about 8 feet. That's not the record, but it is a large one. A large Yellowtail is 10 feet. A large Texan is probably 7 1/2 feet or so..not much smaller than an Eastern. Once again, not a record but a large one.

Also, I've heard that indigos are more challenging to maintain in captivity due to a higher frequency of defecation, and watery and exceptionally foul smelling feces? True or false?

Somewhat true, depending on what you feed them. They are messy, make no mistake about that. Much messier than other species, but that doesn't mean they are harder to keep. It really doesn't become all that terribly unpleasant until you start feeding them fish. They love it, but man do they make a mess a day or two later. As long as you stick to rats it's not that bad.

Eastern indigos and other Drymarchon have an undeserved rep as far as making a mess. They need to be kept in fairly large cages with adequate ventilation. They are not tupperware/sweater box animals. Clean cages at least twice each week and feed rodents. Feces from any snake species fed amphibians or fish is going to reek. I highly recommend larger Vision cages for ease of cleaning with newspaper substrate.

As I have not yet worked with the other sub- species, I can't answer the size question,. But I can tell you a little somthing about the keeping of eastern indies. They are a mess! They are poop machines! My male likes to paint pictures with his all over the cage. So far it has been a bit of a challenge, alot of work, and a lot of study. But,...these are still the coolest snakes I've ever seen, and it has been worth every second, and evey penny! All the while I was growing up I wanted one. Then I found out I actualy could. So I got two, and I will get more. These are not snakes for beginers, or "dablers", or those people who go to the pet shop and make an impulse buy. These are snakes for people who truly love snakes, and have a few years of experience under their belts. So if you meet the above criteria, by all means get a pair and join the club of those of us who have fallen in love with this animal. But if you are a beginer, or you are only a half hearted herper, don't bother, because you won't enjoy it, and the animals will suffer. Hope this helped.
Tony.

My Texas Indigo female was bigger than any of the handfull of Eastern Indigo Females I've seen or kept. It's kind of a stretch to make a rule about size with such a small group, but it leads me to think that Easterns are "normal" sized drymarchon.

Smelly feces is a good thing. They don't roll in it unless their cage is too small and the smell makes you clean it up right away, leaving you with no smell. They also don't really defecate MORE than other snakes, just much faster. If you feed them 1 rat, you get 1 rat worth of poop.

I have other snakes that have feces that isn't as pungent. As such I may miss it for a couple days because I don't smell it right away. I don't think that's a positive thing. It would be better if it smelled horrible to let me know to clean.

Once you've got an indigos needs dialed in, you find they aren't really tough to keep.

Good LUck

Doug T