Reptile & Amphibian Forums

In my newest issue of Reptiles magazine there is an article about Madagascar Ground Boas and Dumerils Boas. The author said, "In more than a decade of encounters in the field in Madagascar, I have yet to find a boa that attempted to bite or defend itself in any way....must be among the planet's most mellow serpents." Has anyone found this to be true among captive bred specimens? Are they calm and do they tolerate handling well? Which of the two species have you found to make the best pets? Are they "friendlier" than some of the other large snakes? Well, thanks in advance to those of you who respond.
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~Brian and Kerri~

Well i'm not an expert, but i have three dumerils boas and i can tell you they have never shown any sign of aggression. But mine are still young. They are a joy to work with. I hope this continues as they grow. i have one 03 female and a pair of 04 babies.

.. the authors didn't mention how many encounters took place, only that he had been at it for ten years.. he should be in politics! We also don't know how many of which species he sees or if perhaps they are all encountered during certain periods of the day or night when they are normally less defensive..

But to answer your question.. very few people report any trouble with Dumerils boas and except for SFEs (stupid feeding errors) it is likely you can keep a Dumerili for a dozen years and never get nipped.. if you treat them right.

The other species, madagascarensis, or 'ground boa' (both are terrestrial) has an earned reputation for being cranky and some are simply savage.

Hope this helps..
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Gus
A. Rentfro
RioBravoReptiles.com
www.riobravoreptiles.com

"Quality is not an accident. Perfectly healthy animals are a minimum requirement.. everything else is just salesmanship" gus