Is a Dumeril's Boa too big?

Hello everyone,

I would like some advice regarding my situation. I wanted to get a snake bigger than a ball python but I want it to have some girth to it. I already have some experience regarding snakes, since my job involves me dealing with them(but I've never worked with anything bigger than a ball python. I have worked with a woma python once but that's not enough to gain any experience from it, in my opinion.).
So I decided to get a Dumeril's boa, since I really like these snakes. The problem is, I'm not sure if I should get a female, which will probably be too big and strong for me.
I am 5 ft tall and weight only about 85 pounds... I searched a lot for these boas general size but everything is so murky. There are a lot of different opinions and statements and I just can't seem to understand what is and what isn't!
In some places, it's said that they are slow growers, while in others says they grow really fast. In some places it's written that they grow to only about 6.5 ft and in other places it says they can and do grow to 8.6 ft long!
Now, I only care about the size they'll reach as adults. It doesn't matter if they are slow or fast growers, but I'm just saying this to exemplify the confusion regarding info about these guys.

What are your experiences with these boas and what would you advise me to do?
I don't want a morelia, at least not yet.

These are quite bulky snakes... I'm afraid of getting one and later when it grows up, not being able to handle it by myself. Getting rid of it if it gets "too big" is not an option for me either.

Thank you in advance :)

Like all boas they should be slowly grown. Remember they run cooler than BCI - 75-85*F - so they need plenty of time to digest their meals. My adults get fed every four weeks and my juveniles get fed every three weeks.

Females can get darned big but it takes many years. My five year old is about 6.5 feet, deceptively strong, and thick. She's not fat either, she's nicely square. My adult male is about 5 feet.

There is also a line of "dwarf" dumerils on the market produced by Tom Prato in Winchester, VA. I have a 2014 pair from one of his litters and they are definitely staying smaller than their counterparts of the same age.

Just experience from owning one female dumeril's boa and talking with other dum owners, their size range "maxes" (since technically they continue growing very slowly for life) at a pretty wide range for either gender. But it's a bell curve, and the average amongst owners I've asked seems to be 6~7.5 feet.

I doubt they'll be too big to handle for you, even at 7~8 feet. I'm 5'5" and my dum right now is already about 5'3" stretched out, and 3 years old. But when she's curled up, she's still small enough to carry in my arms like a baby, and really not half as big as you'd imagine (at least what I feel personally, being a scrawny girl). Snakes can condense a lot when curled up compared to their "stretched out length". She still has growing to do, but I'm not worried at all.

I think hearing the "length" of certain snakes can be deceiving as well. Different species have different proportions. A healthy weight dum's proportions are longer and more narrow than a ball python. So imagining a ball python at 7 feet would be much heavier than a dum at 7 feet, for example.

Personality-wise for mine, she will just sit there and chill when I take her out. Mine moves very little.

Especially if you get a juvenile dum to begin with and handle her as she grows, you'll be used to handling her even if she eventually gets to 8 feet, so it won't be a sudden feeling of "I can't handle this snake".

If size is a concern why not go for a male instead? Or the dwarf line. I prefer smaller snakes, smaller caging, smaller food needs so almost always buy males. My dumerils boa is only about a year old and like others have said, they grow slowly if properly kept, he's about 4x as heavy as when I got him last year but hasn't put on much length at all yet, very docile and a really nice species in my opinion. I'm 5'2" and 120# so size does factor into my thinking as well but I don't feel you would have a problem. I have seen only a couple 8-9 foot dumerils but much more common to see 4-6' and probably depends a lot on feeding practices too.

This discussion comes up from time to time with a lot of different types of snakes.

You have to remember AVERAGES and the type of snake you are dealing with. With about any type of boa constrictor or boa in general you won't often find the exception to the rule, but rather the rule.

Granted there are 8-12 foot boas out there that weigh a fair amount, more often than not they come in right where you'd expect them to wind up in regard to size.

Unless you are dealing with snakes that are considered "true giants" the concern of size is usually more of a worry than its worth.

When you grow with the animal, it is rather surprising how SMALL a 6 foot snake can be. Of course weight factors in eventually but really, proper feeding will not result in anything crazy with boas.

Your confidence will grow with the animal and you'll be used to it by the time it is grown.

Here is a 6.5 foot carpet python. I handle her with one hand most of the time.
http://i772.photobucket.com/albums/y...a/IMG_3204.jpg

It is not huge and I hope she thickens up and adds 2 more feet. Obviously lighter than the Dumeril but even still.

I think male or female you'll be fine with a Dums and really, I find myself wanting my snakes to be larger, but ever at the expense of health.

Don't overthink it as you will probably never see anything over 8 feet long with the series you are looking at.

Thank you so much everyone for your opinion and input. I have decided to go with a male Dumeril and have already chosen the one I'll buy.
He's still a baby so hopefully I'll grow more confident as he grows and maybe someday I'll feel comfortable enough to get him a girlfriend! :)

Thank you everyone.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Nin

He's still a baby so hopefully I'll grow more confident as he grows and maybe someday I'll feel comfortable enough to get him a girlfriend! :)

Thank you everyone.

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Handling a snake as it grows up makes it a lot less intimidating, IMO. Especially when the growth sneaks up on you, and you realize you're holding a six-footer. [emoji4]

My carpet python is about the same size as Gio's, and probably would have made me really nervous if she'd been that big when I'd gotten her. Now I mainly just have to remember that she can reach a lot farther than she used to!


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