Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey all-

Well, after much though and deliberation, I decided to get an albino boa!! I am so excited! I have wanted one of these for years, as I am obsessed with anything albino, but the price kept me away. I looked at many lines, but the Kahl Stripe line was what I decided to get. I purchased a albino female, 100% het stripe. I will be receiving the boa next month due to a move I am making, but I had a few questions. I have heard from several people that the Stripe Line boas can be more feisty, and more agressive that normal albino boas. Is there any truth to this? I know that some of the original Stripe Line boas are nasty, but did not know if this applied to the line in general. I assumed that it would be somewhat genetic, but that handling would play a large part in the temperment. If anyone has albino het stripe boas, please share your experiences. I can't wait to get her, but hope she is as calm as all the other BCI I have worked with!

thanks,
Brian

My experience is limited but has been fifty/fifty. I have a pair of these that were born in 2000. The female has been a real sweet snake. She's an aggressive feeder but I wouldn't hesitate to let someone new to snakes hold her.
The male on the other hand is a real piece of work. He has never liked to be touched, let alone held. I have tried all the tricks I've seen posted here in the forums and nothing has seemed to calm him down to the point that I'd call him trustworthy. He's a nasty bugger, but good looking.

Here's a pic from a year and half ago on one of his mellow days.

Hi-

Thanks for the info! Yeah, that's more or less what I heard. They can go either way. I wonder what the deal is with the line? Handling is a necessity for me, since my animals are all pets rather than breeders. However, I hope luck is with me. I have owned some of the most ornery species(amethystine pythons, white lip pythons, emerald tree boa, anacondas, retics, blood pytons) and they have all proven that any snake can be calm. All of these, I was told, would try to rip me a new one, yet each was as calm as snakes get, with no issues being handled. We'll see. Anyone else with opinions?

Brian

We have bought and produced many Albino's from the stripe line to include Striped Albino's, Albino's het Stripe, Stripe line Albino's and het's and double het's for all, And our experience is that the Albino's are generally ok and the het's are the aggressive one's this year we produced baby's that are all docile though. Hope you get a nice one good luck Scott Mid Atlantic Morphs

This is an 03 female het Stripe

and this is an 03 male stripe line Albino

Thats funny. You say the hets are the aggressive ones. I have a 100%
het for albino male and he is so mellow. I guess its the individual boa and not the morph.

My albino poss het stripe is VICIOUS!!!!!!!!!
He will try to tag me every chance he gets!
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Greg Holland
G&M HERPS
www.gmherps.com
gmherps@sbcglobal.net

I have an 03 albino female 100% het stripe that is just beautiful! I think she looks almost like a sunglow, ( and ive got several sunglows and produced more so i know what im saying here) She looks like a sunglow! However, If i want to get her out of her cage, i might as well just figure im gonna get bit. This girl has a temperament like no other! I also have a male stripe 100% het albino from the same stripe lineage but not directly related. He is much calmer but still, much more likely to strike or bite me than any other of my boas, even my wild caught suris! I dont know or wish to speculate why, but I know they are much more fiesty boas naturally then many other bloodlines. Would i get rid of them , not on your life! I love them and cant wait to see what their offspring look like and hope that i can raise calmer ones down the road

Good luck! and congrats on your new albino!

Mark
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Mark Miller
LocoLizards
www.locolizards.com

Thanks for all the info. I wish someone had some more encouraging experiences. LOL!!

Hi Brian,
After reading your message and the subsequent responses I went in to my snake room to test this theory. I have a male and female that are het for albino and stripe. I hadn't handled them for a while. They were both born in July '04 and are already over 42" long. I just handled them both without any sign of aggression as well as my albino pair that are het for stripe. I guess some het have touchy tempers, but all four of mine are angels(but great feeders). If you feed in cage let the snake know your not feeding before just reaching for it(nudge with a snake hook or something). Hope this helps.
SnakeMike

Hey man-

That's good to hear! Yeah, I spoke to the breeder, and he has quite a few albino het stripes, and all of his are docile except for one. That one was nasty since birth. He assured me that the animal I purchased is real tame, and has been handled by quite a few people without any sign of aggression. So, I am sure she will be fine. He told me that his previous buyers have had nothing but good things to say about the temperments of their het stripe snakes. So, I suppose like any snake, it is an individual thing. Thanks for everyone's help, and when I get her, I will post pics!! Can't wait, she's a beauty from the pics I have seen!

Brian

My experience is mixed also, I do not own an albino from that line but I have owned 3 hets, all produced by Pete. The first female I bought from Pete directly and was the most viscious animal that I have ever owned. She would never tire of striking at you, wierd enough she never hissed. The other two I bought from other people and are among my tamest snakes, neither of them ever striking or hissing.

Chris Canada-Smith

CCS Constrictors