finally got a bci...

hey all i purchased a bci from a local guy who couldnt take care of the boa b/c he is leaving for the military and his mom wont take care of it. this guy really babied his snake and i think from the looks of it, its a female. i know that the only way to tell for sure is to have it probed but this ones got a longer tail, and no anal spurs. so im guessing female. i will have him/her probed soon. its only about 3.5 ft in length and in a 40br tank right now. ok so here is the thing. how long before i have to move her to a new cage? and is a 4ft better or 6ft? females get bigger so i was wondering what cage size is recommended. also, are tubs ideal for these guys as long as it has a tight lid on it? i will post pics soon. thanks.

6'x2'x18'' minimum for the enclosure. guess by the tail, if it is longer, it would be a male. males tails are longer to hold the hemipenes

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males tails are longer to hold the hemipenes

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Yup, Hope your ready for a biggun. Bci's are a good start for the monster snakes. Next you need a Guyuna Red Tail. :) BCIs grow pretty slow, so you should be alright for awhile.

Since she's only 3.5' you'd be fine with a 3' cage. 6' cage when she's full grown though.

Jason is right, females typically have a shorter, stubbier tail than males. You really need to have it probed to tell for sure though.

For big boas, I love boaphile cages. http://www.boaphileplastics.com/ The 421D (4' x 2') is $200 shipped. You can also use tubs from reptiletubs.com if you have a tight budget. They have a great 4.5' tub for $35.. not sure about shipping, I bought mine at a reptile show.

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Originally Posted by Shelby

Jason is right

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darn right i am! ;)

yeah i was thinking that a 6 foot would be better. rex i was looking at your photobucket and your bci are nice man. how big are they? and what size rat do you feed?

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darn right i am!

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Down boy...LOL :)

I have a 5.5' hogg island BCI that eats large rats, and a 7'+ dumerils boa that can eat small rabbits/jumbo monster rats. :)

shelby, you said for a big boa, 4 ft tanks are good. i thought 6 ft tanks are the minimum?

No, I said 6' when she's full grown.

A 6' boa is fine in a 4' cage, but an 8' boa would appreciate a 6' one.