Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I tried this in the Leopard Gecko forum and no one responded (yes, I'm sure you all think leos are "wussy" LOL!)

Does anyone have experience with Boaphile,Animal Plastics or ShowCase caging?
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Too many Leos
1.0 feline "Spot"
0.1 canine "Tika"

I have 5 Boaphile cages and 2 stands...with more on the way. I love them and recommend them. No experience with the others, but one person I talked to that got a Showcase cage said he had to make adjustments to create more light openings because as is it's dark inside the cage and he was unable to achieve the temps he needed (for a Uromastyx).

What species are you looking to house?
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1.0 Ball Python "Aragorn"
1.0 Bredl's Carpet Python "Strider"
1.0 Kenyan Sand Boa "Gimli"
1.0 Saharan Sand Boa "Frodo"
0.1 California Kingsnake "Gentoo"
1.0 Mexican Black Kingsnake "Indigo"
1.0 Snow Corn snake "Chile"
0.1 Okeetee Corn snake "Amazon"
1.0 Crested Gecko "Willow"
0.1 Irian Jaya BlueTongued Skink "Phoebe"
0.1 Indonesian BlueTongued Skink "Piper"
0.1 Australian Cattle Dog/Pointer "Kira"

I have several gecko species, many leopard geckos, and I'd actually love to get into snakes -- I think they're fascinating creatures. This means I'd need different heat gradients and mechanisms for the different species...not to mention different sized cages.

I'm glad you said what you did -- darkness inside the cage is a problem for me. I'm looking for stackable viewing cages so racks are out for this endeavor. I have to admit, both the Boaphiles and the Showcases looked a bit dark. I'm sure the animals would like it but its not what I'm looking for. Plus, the Showcases are pretty hideous in my opinion.

Only problem is that the Boaphiles are most expensive. Still, I've heard the best things about them. Animal Plastics' heat mechanisms are a bit vague. Boaphile makes everything easier.
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Too many Leos
1.0 feline "Spot"
0.1 canine "Tika"

In my boaphiles I do use the flourescent fixtures that they sell, and it provides a good deal of light and makes viewing very easy. They also sell a larger flourescent fixture (3 feet I believe) that allows for UV bulbs (you have to request these as they are not on the site).
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1.0 Ball Python "Aragorn"
1.0 Bredl's Carpet Python "Strider"
1.0 Kenyan Sand Boa "Gimli"
1.0 Saharan Sand Boa "Frodo"
0.1 California Kingsnake "Gentoo"
1.0 Mexican Black Kingsnake "Indigo"
1.0 Snow Corn snake "Chile"
0.1 Okeetee Corn snake "Amazon"
1.0 Crested Gecko "Willow"
0.1 Irian Jaya BlueTongued Skink "Phoebe"
0.1 Indonesian BlueTongued Skink "Piper"
0.1 Australian Cattle Dog/Pointer "Kira"

I live in California right now, so humidity is generally lower. One of my little guys needs humidity and its a constant battle to keep it up. However, most of my herps are desert critters and excess humidity would be a problem.

Do your Boaphiles hold too much humidity? I didn't see an air flow or vent option but I'm assuming they'd put them in for me if I paid them.
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Too many Leos
1.0 feline "Spot"
0.1 canine "Tika"

All but one of my herps that is in my boaphile require low humidity and the boaphile does a good job of keeping it low. My highest humidity species is my ball python and his boaphile should be here shortly. I've heard people say they don't have problems mainting whatever humidity they need in these cages.

The ventilation is a small gap that goes around the window. However, for my Blue Tongued Skinks I had them install vents on one end. The vents are found in the arboreal caging part of their site.

They are great at working with you on what you need and helping you figure out what would work best. If there's something you want, but don't see they might be able to do it for you. I bombarded them with emails trying to figure out what I wanted and if they could do different things for me.
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1.0 Ball Python "Aragorn"
1.0 Bredl's Carpet Python "Strider"
1.0 Kenyan Sand Boa "Gimli"
1.0 Saharan Sand Boa "Frodo"
0.1 California Kingsnake "Gentoo"
1.0 Mexican Black Kingsnake "Indigo"
1.0 Snow Corn snake "Chile"
0.1 Okeetee Corn snake "Amazon"
1.0 Crested Gecko "Willow"
0.1 Irian Jaya BlueTongued Skink "Phoebe"
0.1 Indonesian BlueTongued Skink "Piper"
0.1 Australian Cattle Dog/Pointer "Kira"