Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i want to get a solomon island ground boa and i need to know as much as I can about them. what cage requirements do they have? size? light? heat? hides? decorations? etc. thanks.
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Heidi Kagarise
purpledragon777@hotmail.com

1.0.0 MALI UROMASTYX (Spike)
1.0.0 BEARDED DRAGON (Dexter)
0.1.1 LEOPARD GECKO (Bitsy & Itsy)
0.0.1 BALL PYTHON (Slick)
1.0.0 BUDGIE ('G')
2.2.0 BARN CATS
0.0.3 FISH
0.1.0 MINI REX RABBIT (Tu)

>>i want to get a solomon island ground boa and i need to know as much as I can about them. what cage requirements do they have? size? light? heat? hides? decorations? etc. thanks.

Here's a link to Jerry Conway's site...he's pretty much THE expert on these beautiful little snakes and all you could want to know about these snakes is pretty much on his site. As for cage requirements, these snakes don't get very large. I currently have 5 SIGB's - one 9 inch yearling kept in a plastic shoebox with vent holes drilled in, the same size/type box for my newest baby who's about 6-7 inches long, two slightly bigger Rubbermaid/Sterlite tubs for my two males (one who's about 18 inches, the other about 12-14 inches) and a Sterlite sweater box for my 2 foot female. I like giving my guys plenty of space to move around in, so when they're adults I'll probably keep them in some Barr's 36" cages...at least, that's the game plan but I have a while before they'll be grown. With Solomon Island ground boas, females tend to max out around 4-5 feet, males around 2-3 feet and they're slow growers. They do need hides and I also provide branches because most of them will climb and all of the little ones I've had prefer to be on a branch above the ground. You can also use silk vines or real plants for them to hide in and around. Ambient temperatures need to be around 80-82 - temperatures too low can cause respiratory infections and temperatures too high can kill them (babies are especially prone to this, though the adults don't have a tolerance for high temperatures either). Plenty of fresh water (large enough bowl to soak in) and a relatively high humidity are also important requirements. If you're looking at getting one of these, I highly recommend getting an older animal. Babies can be difficult and delicate, as well as problem feeders (naturally prefering small lizards or frogs for their prey). Jerry Conway and Central Florida Reptile Breeders both sell babies already feeding on pinkies if you really want to start with a baby though. Just keep in mind that they may not always accept pinkies once you get them and you need to have the backup prey items available. Babies should be fed roughly every 10-14 days and adults every 3 weeks or so. Their metabolism is pretty slow, so any heavier feeding schedule tends to make them obese rather than grow quicker like many of the other boas or pythons.

Hope this covers the basics. As I mentioned, Jerry Conway's site has the best detailed overview for these beautiful little boas.

Good luck!
Raven
Jerry Conway's site

Raven;

I couldn't have answered that any better! Great response.

Joe

I've read up a lot on these guys and needless to say I love them. It's my unofficial "mission" to spread the word about these great little boas....so there'll be more captive bred ones for me to chose from! LOL

Raven

Raven;
I myself try to spread the word also, promoting the captive breeding of these awesome little boas myself. Although Candoia will never gain the popularity status of other snakes such as ball pythons and common boas, largely because of the unfortunate circumstances under which a lot of people keep snakes (simply for the novelty and the shock value of having something that could be used to boost one's ego), they will always have a dedicated "cult following" of keepers who wish to keep something different, something prehistoric-looking, and most importantly, something a bit more challenging than your average boid. A lot of people only want what's hot on the market. I remember in the early 90s when spotted and Children's pythons were hot. not only were they popular because of thier small size and relative ease of breeding, but because they were easy to keep in general. Ball pythons blew up a little later, and they are still hot. Soon, carpets and bloods took off. All of these species are easy to manage in captivity not only by experts but by beginners. That's the one thing that will keep Candoia boas "underground" snakes. I doubt they will ever be bred on a huge scale, because of the fact they are harder to breed, harder to get feeding as neonates, grow slower, and are cheap enough to be acqired as wild-caught individuals. However, I think that is an advantage, seeing as most of the people who keep the more common boids couldn't keep, let alone breed, Candoia.

Joe

i agree with everything said here. and although it is unfortunate that they wont be captive bred on a large scale, i think that it is kinda cool that way. i've worked at a pet store for awhile now and have seen the kinda hell that people put their animals through and i'm glad that i wont have to see one of these beauties in that kinda condition