Going to check out two Red Tails...

[xFenrir]

My boyfriend recently heard of a humane society shelter that has a Red Tail Boa up for adoption, and he's very interested in it. The plan is to go check him/her out tomorrow and make sure they're healthy and in good shape before we make any serious plans, but he's expressed a good interest in it already.

I already own a Ball, so I'm familiar with general herping, and I checked out the caresheet for them (they have very similar needs as Balls), but I was wondering if there were some tips or tricks of the trade you people would have about caring for Red Tails. I've already told the bf that if he gets one it would be going into a tub/rack system (I have my Ball in a tank and while it's nice to look at it's such a hassle to care for, and I don't want more tanks to clean since it'll be housed in my house, lol). I called the shelter and they say that it's a 3 year old female (although the girl seemed a little hesitant about it so I think we'd be good to get her re-sexed) eating F/T rats, and has a very calm temperament to being handled and such. I know they're a lot more heavy-bodied than Balls too, does that make handling any different?


EDIT: I know the title says two, but I called the shelter in the middle of writing this, found out there's only one there, and forgot to fix that part.

[dragonboy4578]

My red tail is a lot more outgoing. It come out of its hide towards me. This behavior made me a touch nervous at first, but once I realized it wasn't aggression I was ok with it. They are also a lot stronger than an equally sized bp....I have really fell in love with my boa and am really happy that I bought one....

[Alexandra V]

As was said, they're a lot more active and inquisitive than ball pythons, and I find they're a lot "grippier" when you're handling them, they tend to hang on a lot lol. Another thing is they're always on the move when they're being handled, they don't like to just find a comfy position and chill like many bps will.

They're really awesome snakes, I don't think you'll regret adding one into your life

[Kinra]

They are very curious and sometimes a pain to put back, mine tries to get out while I'm putting the lid back on. Also as was stated they tend to hand on really well. Mine will wrap her tail around my thumb and then explore as far as she can get without letting go.

My experience with feeding has also been very different. I feed f/t and for my BPs I need to do the zombie rat dance, but that actually freaks my boa out. She'd rather I just throw it in and let her do her thing.

My boa is still a baby and I bought her from a breeder so you might want to take my info with a grain of salt, every snake is different.

Another thing is they're always on the move when they're being handled, they don't like to just find a comfy position and chill like many bps will.

That's not always true, my boa will just chill. I usually take her out while I mist her cage and she'll just sit still in my hand while I do it. On the other hand I have BPs that never settle down when I hold them.

[MikeV]

They are AWESOME. I love my red tail to pieces! I keep my cool side anywhere from 74 - 80 and hot side is always between 89 - 91 sometimes 92

As has been said, they are very active. Powder will periscope right up to your face multiple times while handling her. and that takes a lot of energy

And they are curious! My little girl in particular is a very curious little snake. She will not stop moving until shes smelled or encountered anything around her. Its great fun watching her explore around the house.

They are great snakes, and I love them.

Perhaps you should think a lot more about size before you buy one. Just think of it this way.. do you want a possible 7 - 10 (maybe more!) foot boa? or do you want a 5 - 7 foot boa. maybe smaller maybe a little larger?

if you dont want a possible giant, then avoid females.

Good luck, and be sure to post pics if you get the boa!

[xFenrir]

My red tail is a lot more outgoing. It come out of its hide towards me. This behavior made me a touch nervous at first, but once I realized it wasn't aggression I was ok with it. They are also a lot stronger than an equally sized bp....I have really fell in love with my boa and am really happy that I bought one....

That's good to know, I'm used to the "omg hide!!" behavior of my BP.

As was said, they're a lot more active and inquisitive than ball pythons, and I find they're a lot "grippier" when you're handling them, they tend to hang on a lot lol. Another thing is they're always on the move when they're being handled, they don't like to just find a comfy position and chill like many bps will.

They're really awesome snakes, I don't think you'll regret adding one into your life

My Ball's the same way, she's never still!

My experience with feeding has also been very different. I feed f/t and for my BPs I need to do the zombie rat dance, but that actually freaks my boa out. She'd rather I just throw it in and let her do her thing.

The "zombie rat dance" made me laugh! I have to do that too and if it happens to touch her she scares herself and runs into something. xD

Perhaps you should think a lot more about size before you buy one. Just think of it this way.. do you want a possible 7 - 10 (maybe more!) foot boa? or do you want a 5 - 7 foot boa. maybe smaller maybe a little larger?

if you dont want a possible giant, then avoid females.

Good luck, and be sure to post pics if you get the boa!

My bf and I LOVE the larger snakes, we want to work our way up to the larger boids like Burms and Retics, but we don't have the room for a 20+ foot snake at the moment. I think this will be a nice compromise of size, although the girl I spoke to said she was 3 years old but "small/not full grown" which makes me feel like it MIGHT be a male they've got. The poor thing was apparently abandoned in front of a pet store so I'm hoping we can give her a good home.

[Plissken]

You're gonna love the Red Tail...got two. Little guy likes to bite, but my big girl is very sweet and strong. Love my Ball too, but you will appreciate the differences.
Good luck and congrats on rescuing a snake...don't think they get adopted out as much as dogs and cats.

[Evenstar]

I hope it works out for you! You will love a boa. Mine is just a baby but she is wonderfully curious. She'll wrap her little tail around my finger like an anchor and off she goes. And she also does the periscoping. You'll find they are much more 'in your face' than BPs. Peaches locates my face immediately when I take her out and it's like she's really trying to figure out who I am and what I'm doing with her.

They are smart too. She may be a baby, but she sure knows how to eat. My adult BP, Ella, will take a mouse from the head, butt, whatever, and try to swallow it from the way she grabbed it. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't, lol. The first time my boa nabbed her rat pink from the butt I watched her constrict it then she let go of it with her mouth but kept it in her coil. She looked it up and down and took it by the head and down it went easy as pie! Clever girl....

Good luck! Let us know if you do get it - we'll want pics....

[xFenrir]

We're going tomorrow morning to check her out, wish us luck! I hope she'll fit in with our growing little herp family.

[Foschi Exotic Serpents]

They are active and curious like the others have said. Have a great feeding response so you'll need to either hook train it to take it out or distract it's head. You don't want to accidentally get bitten.

Just handle it often and you will love it. Yes they get quite large compared to BPs but they are so rewarding.