Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Whats the size of the smallest boa female that you have bred.

I have a small female, her age is about 3/12 years, she is in perfect health and albino, she's about 4 feet or so.

the male is older but smaller.

they have they have been breeding for a month or so.

I think the female is putting on some weight.

I would like to know about your similar size boas and if you know of any problems that may occur because of the size of the female, in the wil there would be no choice if a breeding happened this way but still not sure if its a bad thing or not.

thanks

steve

to breed. If she does actually ovulate it may actually kill her in the end. Be very careful when breeding smaller females like that. Males can breed at 3 foot or so if they wanted to. But Colombian females really should be at least 5 foot, her age is right on the limit to be old enough though. Chances are your boas wont produce anything because the female is a little small but she is at the age where you should be careful. I would seperate them if I were you just to be sure especially since shes an albino no since in risking her this year at all.
Pythons.Net

Thanks Stuart

I have no hurry in breeding her, I think she has also grown quite slowly anyway, all the clutch grew slower than most boas, my friend in Holland has the same thing with his siblings from the same parents.

I was just wondering if this type of breeding happened in the wild would it be a norm or not, and would the male try and breed a female who is not producing the hormonal scent.

thanks

steve

Im not sure they have done any studies to see what age or size females in the wild breed. However I think that males start producing sperm at a year to a little over a year old. That doesnt mean they are sexually mature yet just that they are getting there. Im not sure if anyone has done studies on females. But I would think that your female may just be starting to get sexually mature. At her age and size it seems possible. But Im not sure in the wild if a male would be with the female for the length of time a caged male would be with a female in captivity. So it usually takes a while for a females follicles to mature to the point of letting the male breed her. So Would she breed in the wild? Would a male court her? Maybe but dont really know. I dont think I have heard of a 4 foot female producing babies unless it was a Central American, however I have heard of females that were too young and small trying to produce and then dying in the end. On the up side it sounds like your male is going to be a fantastic breeder in the years to come! So you'll definately be set for next year. Just be careful this year.

Thanks Stuart

I think you are right, the female doesn't really seem to be letting him breed properly but he has been trying for such a long time now. poor little snake.

have a nice weekend

steve

Hi, years back, I used to keep boas in 2 groups- the males in one big cage, and the females in the other (now they are separated). Anyhow, I would put them all together during breeding season, and on 2 occasions I had females become gravid at 4 ft (or close too). The 1st boa this size ended up having 12 slugs, and 1 stillborn. She produced 20 babies the following year. She only lived to be 5 yrs old. The second snake produced 7 slugs, and 4 babies - 2 died. She is still alive and doing good. I personally wouldn't do that again. It's more worrysome than anything else. I don't worry about the males at all. Best of luck.

Thanks for your input, I guess I should seperate them, I don't have a place for him though as Im away from my family studying in south east Finland, yeah im a 38 year old student, I should have studies when I was younger hey lol

have a nice day

steve