Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have kept Corns and Pines and was going to get into a small Boa. I was looking for a Hog Island because all the reading I did about them seemed like they got to be 4' to 6', and all the reading I did about Dumeril Boas seemed like they were the larger of the two, 5' to 7'. But when I went into a Reptile store yesterday the guy said it was just the opposite. The Dumeril would be the smaller of the two. He said that his Hog Island at home was close to 10'. So which one is usually the larger of the two???

first be sure you are getting a hog that is not mixed with mainland blood. second on either species feed conservatively, and small meals. grow them slowly which is more natural and better for their health. i own several of each species and do not have one over 6ft. my hogs and my dumeril females are between 4-5.5ft. the males are smaller at around 4ft. some of these are 10 yrs old. i have also had healthy litters from these 5 foot females. i love both species, great colors,interesting patterns, and great dispositions. john yocum

Can you give me an example of how you grow your hogs slowly?

I feed mine 2 to 3 weanlings a week. These weanlings are a little smaller around then the thickest part of the snake.

Do you feed yours mice or rats that are as thick as the snake at its thickest point?

I've written the weight of my snake down. It is about 4 months old* that is unclear" since I got him from someone that traded for him/

i feed very randomly as opposed to a schedule. this is not some grand plan but more due to my busy schedule. i will feed prey animals that do not "bulge" the snake. sometimes they dont eat for two weeks, and some times i feed 2 or 3 prey small prey animals, if i have extras (i raise my own rodents). if you are feeding 3 prey animals a week, i would think depending on the size of the prey animal that you are going to be pushing for maximum growth. my older animals are fed once every 2 weeks or so. i was watching a reptile show on National Geographic awhile back. they were in Central America catching boas, and to me they all looked very underweight and thin compared to what you see in the hobby.

It depends.

I've got both, my Dumerils is 5 years and only about 5 feet. He is a male, but I have seen some huge dumerils.

My Hog female is between 5 & 6 feet, she is very healthy. I've also seen larger Hogs.

The one thing that is definite is that Dumerils are thicker bodied boas, & they are MUCH stronger. Mine is like flexible
steel. His body is solid, pure muscle. Hogs are more arboreal
snakes.

I would recommend a Hog over a Dumerils. Dumerils are slow,
they have a slower metabolism and eat less frequently. They
like to burrow sometimes especially when young. Hogs like to
climb and be perched out in the open. They seem to like being
handled more to, I know that is subjective.....tc

My experience is that the Hog Island Boas are much smaller. I have seen several Dumeril's over 6 feet, and they are much stronger. I think it is true that the Hog's like to perch and be out in the open more often. I would go with a Hog if you're looking for a SMALL boid that is simply stunning to look at.
P.S. 99% of all pet store employees are wrong about reptiles, in my experience. Even the best ones I have met have a minimal understanding of herps...except one guy, who moved away.
I had the pet room manager at one of our local stores telling me that Savannah monitors (V. exanthematicus) grew to over 6 feet, inside of a year! I confronted her about it, and she wouldn't budge...she doesn't work there anymore, but she was running the show!

HOG HOG HOG HOG HOG HOG HOG HOG HOG HOG HOG!
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Jeremy J. Anderson
Gem State Reptiles
HAPPY! HAPPY! JOY! JOY! HAPPY! HAPPY! JOY! JOY! HAPPY! HAPPY! JOY! JOY! HAPPY! HAPPY! JOY! JOY! HAPPY! HAPPY! JOY! JOY!

I Used to have an 8" Dumerils and have known people with some very large Dums but I have yet to see a Hogg over 6ft.

n/p

If you get a LEGIT pure Hog, and don't overfeed it it SHOULD stay under 6ft. (as a LARGE female).