Adult Dumerils Boa - Size reference?

Good morning, everyone,

Recently I've been considering adding a larger snake to my collection. After getting involved moreso with the local reptile society (board member now, woo), I'm realizing that public events/speaking and educational presentations are one of my favorite things to do as far as positive experiences go. However, I'm also realizing some of my limitations for these presentations, such as the safety of my smaller pets, as well as their patience.

Already I'm adding two ball pythons to my crew to balance things out and allow me to cycle through animals I'm talking about without overhandling them.

However, I am feeling more comfortable now with the idea of adding a larger snake to my collection. Larger being... larger than my corn snake, haha. Dumerils have always made me completely smitten. Moreso than any other boa, to be honest. However, finding realistic representations of their adult size is posing difficult. I hear people saying sizes as far as length goes, but it can be hard to visualize the length/weight based off of stats, due to my lack of experience handling large snakes.

A friend of mine has an '08 Dumerils male I am considering. He went off food as a hatchling for nearly a year, and now he's a f/t rabbit eater. But, he's only 3.5ft. I spoke with the owner and she told me to be prepared for him to get larger as the years go on. If he is over 4 years old now, does he still possess the ability to 'catch up' and become a monster, or are the chances of him getting to a larger size reduced due to his picky eating early in life?

And, does anyone happen to have a photo or two of adult male Dumerils? I seem to find a lot of photos of the females and their nice girth, but they're a bit too much snake. I am hoping to hear from you guys about the males, and perhaps get feedback about their size as adults.

Obviously each snake is different, and each has the potential to get to a different size. Hence me wanting to research this and get direct feedback.

My local reptile shop has a pair of adult dumeril's that are nearly full grown. They are significantly smaller than the females are. I would say that the size difference between male and female dumeril's is similar to the difference you see in BP's.

Dums grow very slowly sometimes taking 5 + years to reach their adult/breeding size.

I would expect This dum to get larger but I would't expect a monster by any means. (though it is always possible)

To put it perspective my female Dum that is about a year old is nearly 3 feet long already. I expect her to be fairly large in a few years but since they grow so slowly I'm not too worried.

*tagged*
in hopes to see some photos posted. I'm liking these guys more and more.

Me too! I'd love to see a photo of a male next to something for a size reference (yard stick, xbox controller, cereal box, something I can compare to at home :P)

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Originally Posted by The Serpent Merchant

My local reptile shop has a pair of adult dumeril's that are nearly full grown. They are significantly smaller than the females are. I would say that the size difference between male and female dumeril's is similar to the difference you see in BP's.

Dums grow very slowly sometimes taking 5 + years to reach their adult/breeding size.

I would expect This dum to get larger but I would't expect a monster by any means. (though it is always possible)

To put it perspective my female Dum that is about a year old is nearly 3 feet long already. I expect her to be fairly large in a few years but since they grow so slowly I'm not too worried.

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Interesting to know. I figure this guy will likely pack on a few more pounds at least, and possibly get to 4ft or a little more by the time he's 'full size'.

I would have a large snake without any hesitation. However, living with my other half, I have to factor in his comfort level. He does not like big snakes. Not a fear. Just doesn't 'understand what the point is'. Hence why I was considering a Dumerils male instead of, say, a Redtail. But it seems like everyone who posts photos of their Dums has young guys still :) So it's hard to guage what I can manage further down the road.

My alternative consideration is a BRB, but I absolutely love the calm, gentle nature of the Dums. I've held several now and almost didn't give a few of them back, haha.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Valentine Pirate

Me too! I'd love to see a photo of a male next to something for a size reference (yard stick, xbox controller, cereal box, something I can compare to at home :P)

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I agree. A photo of a Dum is always awesome. But a photo with a size reference... Well that's just super helpful

Here is a picture of my girl with an xbox controller lol. She is in a 28 qt Sterilite for further reference (not her cage but made it easier to get the picture)

http://i1186.photobucket.com/albums/...ps447db4e4.jpg

She is between 8-12 months old (not sure on her exact hatch date)

I just measured her at:

• 38" long
• 1.5" in diameter (widest point)
• 620 grams

I feed her a small rat every 12 days.

I'll see if I can get some pictures of the adults at my local reptile shop next time I'm there.

I think that the length to girth ratio is what you should look at to try to determine final size. The males at my local shop are at most twice as long as my girl but maybe 4-6 times my girls girth. (they are related by the way same pairing just a few years older)

Check out this page for a few pictures: http://www.mccarthyboas.com/Dumeril.html

Tom lives up in NW Indiana and does a lot of community outreach in the area. I regret I never got to meet him in person while I lived up there, but I've seen him around other forums and he does know his stuff. I don't recall seeing him on this forum, but he might be here under a different screen name. He might be able to help you in terms of guidance for the public events and such.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Sita

Check out this page for a few pictures: http://www.mccarthyboas.com/Dumeril.html

Tom lives up in NW Indiana and does a lot of community outreach in the area. I regret I never got to meet him in person while I lived up there, but I've seen him around other forums and he does know his stuff. I don't recall seeing him on this forum, but he might be here under a different screen name. He might be able to help you in terms of guidance for the public events and such.

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Thanks very much for the link. Those are some gorgeous boas.

Luckily, the public thing has been running for quite a while with our society, so we're pretty established in the community. Kind of neat, really! Lots of public support for the most part. It's great to hear that there are others out there that are working with public events still and raising educations and awareness. I remember being a kid and absolutely loving these kinds of events. It really fueled the passion for reptiles, as well as other animals too. So I really want to pass that along, now that I'm technically a 'responsible adult' :cool:

We did two school events last year, our Spring and Fall show, two weekend demos at one of the worlds largest mall, the pet expo, a family expo and something else (I wasn't able to go). Not to mention attending reptile-specific shows to promote the non-profit society. Super fun.

All the more reason I really want to start working with some of the more 'impressive' animals. Dumerils really fit the bill. They're big, hefty, but not unmanagable for young adults and some children (with direct supervision, of course), they're beautiful, calm and generally great snakes to work with. Kids really react to the big snakes, and I find even people who are nervous about snakes are calmer around the slower-moving giants than the quick, heady little corns.

Those Dums in those photos look totally managable. This is actually pretty encouraging.

Dumerils are known to have great temperaments. I think that '08 male you're looking at would make a fine addition. He most likely will get a bit larger, but if he's only 3.5ft at just over 4 years of age, I doubt he'll max out over 5ft in the next couple of years. And with their mellow personalities, you'll find that dispite a larger size, he'll be a great pet and easy to handle. :gj:

ok dont know if my crap cell pics will help but i'll post them for ya'll. I was cleaning so figured why not snap a few shots since i had read this thread last night. my dumerils seem to pee daily :)

up first is my 6'7" 35 lbs rescue girl. from what i can gather is she's approx 7 years old give or take a year or two. She is the one that rekindled my boa addiction. shes in a 41 quart sterelite next to a 20 oz water bottle for comparison.

http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/...psa2d1f505.jpg

next is my 2009 male. He is a slow eater. he only eats like every 25 days or so. I offer food every 10 but he only seems to eat after he leaves me a present lol. so the day after he drops a load and i clean it up i always offer food and he takes it every time. he is 33" long and 1842 grams.

http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/...psc90eb878.jpg

and my last dumerils.... my 2010 girl shes 43" long and weighs in at 2817 grams. she will eat everytime i walk in the room if i'd let her but she is on a 12 day feed schedule. tried 14 but for a dum she gets pretty testy waiting those extra 2 days lol.

http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/...psa85760f0.jpg

thanks for looking!