Reptile & Amphibian Forums

How on earth do I convince my mom to let me get a boa??lol

I work at a pet shop, and a guy called and said he had a 6 foot red tail boa that he wanted to give away. So of course I said bring it down here. I was stunned, and captivated by how awesome such a creature is. He/She was very tame and very easy to handle considering it was 6 ft. I had the great pleasure of keeping it at my house for a few hours until a friend of mine came and got it to use in educational programs. Now i really and truly want a red tail.

Convincing a non Herp Mom to let you have such a large snake is going to be a difficult thing. I would start by first showing/explaining to her that you are ready to take on this kind of responsibility. Explain to her that it does not bark, make noise, does not need walking, does not get fleas and is generally an easy pet.
Next you have to show her that you are serious about it by getting all the supplies you need for it ahead of time. A 55 gallon fish tank is not going to house a 6’-8’ Boa. You will need a specialty cage which is going to cost you about $250.00 with heat and light. I would recommend that you look into the Ronne (Boaphile Plastic) cages, mainly because they are escape proof (as long as you remember to close them LOL). Nothing will freak Mom out more then coming home to see you Boa in the kitchen or even worse wrapped around her favorite cat!.
If you show her that you can be responsible for it and use your own money to get the supplies then you may just convince her to let you get one.
Good Luck
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Jim Hopkins "Hoppy"
Hopkins Holesale Herps
Hopfam1@aol.com

Great answer Jim,.. my add on this is that you need to also convince her, and yourself, that this is not just the latest cool thing to captivate you. I have seen many kids become truely fascinated with reptiles, but they eventually fall a distant second, third or fourth when rock music, girls, cars and college become distractions. Boas will live over 25 years, so it isn't something the should be taken lightly.