Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I think I've decided to get a male green. I've already started building a cage to house it in for a while. I'm building it to be 4 x 2 x 2. How fast do they grow and how long will this last? (I know it won't last forever, but I can use for other herps once he outgrows it).

Any tips on building your own enclosure? I've built a few before but never one for a snake (mostly for chameleons...completely different!) Any info would be appreciated.

Also, how do I get in touch with Kelly Haller? I have heard such good things about him.

Congrats on deciding you would like to get an anaconda. A male green will make a rewarding captive. As mentioned before, IT CANNOT BE STRESSED ENOUGH HOW IMPORTANT IT IS THAT YOU DO A LITTLE RESEARCH ON CAPTIVE GREEN ANACONDA CARE BEFORE YOU PURCHASE AN ANIMAL. A simple search here on the internet for "green anaconda care" will provide you loads of information, including numerous care sheets, to ensure the well being of the animal. I can only assume you have not done this since any elementary care sheet is going to discuss growth rate and proper housing.

On that note, while the idea of building a nice big cage to start off sounds good in theory, it actually is a bad idea for a baby anaconda (or any baby snake really). The young can stress easily and a big cage will give them no sense of security. They should be started out in a smaller enclosure, say the size of a 15 gallon aquarium or small sweater box tub. It should have a place to hide as well. Once the animal gets some size to it, then you can switch it to a bigger cage. The 4x2 cage mentioned would last it until it's about eight feet long. With a male green, that's about three to four years under normal feeding.

Please take the time to look up the care sheets and follow them. Your potential new animal deserves the proper care and there are many specifics needs to be met with anacondas. You can contact Kelly right here through kingsnake.com by clicking his name in a prior post and typing a message to him.

I've been doing my research. I've got a lot of experience with large snakes and all of my other herps are special needs and/or difficult keepers, so I'm not new to this. But there isn't a lot of info out there on the care of green anacondas and half of the care sheets contradict one another. Just trying to find some personal experience.

I've already got a rubbermaid container set up for him as a first habitat, but I know that won't last long. I wanted to go ahead and get started on his larger cage now so I don't have to worry about it later when he settles in and outgrows his small one.

Also, I tried to send a message to Kelly through this forum but I didn't get a response (or I did it wrong...) So I was wondering if anyone had his email address.

But thanks anyway.

Glad to hear you're checking things out before you buy, as a lot of people don't. Didn't mean to seem like I was hollering at ya'. After I re-read the post, I can see me tryng to stress a point might be taken the wrong way. For some reason you can't edit a post here once it's up, so sorry about that.

The anacondas don't grow quite as fast as most pythons and such so the starter set up will probably last you longer than you think (always good news). It's always smart to think ahead, so kudos to you for that. If you haven't checked it out yet, Ben Renick has a good care sheet on his site and the information is trustworthy. Here is a link... http://benrenick.com/care_green_anaconda.pdf

Kelly Haller is a busy guy and sometimes can take a little while to get back to you, so be patient. If you clicked on his name in one of the prior posts and the message box came up, then he should receive your message. I have his email but it's really not my place to post it publically here. He's a good guy, he'll get back to you eventually.

I received your e-mail and tried to e-mail you back last night but got an error message saying that it could not be delivered. Feel free to contact me directly at: kelhal56@hotmail.com

You are correct in that there is a lot of mis-information about green anacondas on the internet. Most people handing out care info on the net are just passing on what they have heard and have no direct experience with keeping greens for any length of time. It will help you to follow this Forum as there are many people posting here that can give you more valuable captive care advice on anacondas than you can get just about anywhere else.

Well documented growth data on captive raised greens past one year of age is almost non-existent. Jud and I have however, kept records on several adults for quite a few years that we have raised from newborns and kept on consistent, but controlled food intake. We have found that greens grow fairly steadily for the first 3 years, usually putting on 2 to 3 feet per year the first two years. Both sexes usually grow at the same rate the first year after birth, but during the second year, the females begin to pull away from the males. Growth starts to slow just slightly the 3rd year, and around 4 years of age they start really slowing down, with the male growth rate dropping more dramatically than the females. Between 5 and 10 years of age, females are down to around 6 inches per year, the males even less. After 10 years growth is very slow, even in females. A pregnancy would also slow the growth of a female for that year. Jud's large male, and my large females at 10 years and older are growing at around an inch to three inches per year. Additionally, Jud’s male is unusually large at about 13 feet. I have a younger male that is his son that is 7 years old and a little over 10 feet. These are just general growth rates which will vary by individual and feeding regimen. Our greens are well fed, but definitely not overfed, and none of them are anywhere near overweight. Captive males are generally a little larger than their wild counterparts, and male greens in the wild over 10 feet are extremely rare. Females over 15 or 20 years of age are probably down to a growth rate of around an inch per year. This would give you some indication on the extreme age of a 20 to 25 foot female in the wild.

Just as an example, the photo below was taken of one of my females when she was 4 years of age. Her body mass is about right on for a female of this age and length.

Kelly

On the topic of internet web sites, there is one that has a really good anaconda care sheet. Just go to Ben Renick's site at benrenick.com It has some good captive care information and really nice photos of his collection. From these photos and the ones I have seen in the past, I believe he has probably the nicest collection of greens in the country. Definitely worth taking a look at.

Kelly

that is a really pretty snake, i like the dark green with the black spots. i have seen pictures with the dark green and still a high orange ocular stripe, is that a rare occurence?

Just a question I'd like to add to that answer...

I have a 2.5 foot pair of yellows, what's the proper size cage at this size? I am going to separate them, I was told I should keep the male/female separate until ready for mating (after they grow up to 8' or so)

I have them in a 55 gallon aquirium right now...

Thanks,

MS