My First Boa

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Originally Posted by Tpot

I am using a bulb for heating, and the air temperature remains about 88-90 on the warm side of the tank, measured about 4 inches off the substrate, and about an inch in from the glass.

Same setup on the cool side of the tank reads about 80 degrees. I’ve read to use a UTH to help radiate heat upwards on the basking spot, if this isn’t recommended, I will just worry about the air temperature inside the tank.

Any thoughts on how I should proceed?

Oh and as a reference, I’m currently using a 20 gallon long tank since she’s fairly small still.


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Ah I see. That's a good idea in a glass tank because they hold heat very poorly. Wooden (sealed) and plastic enclosures hold heat and humidity extremely well so a UTH would not be required in that scenario.

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Originally Posted by Valyrian

Ah I see. That's a good idea in a glass tank because they hold heat very poorly. Wooden (sealed) and plastic enclosures hold heat and humidity extremely well so a UTH would not be required in that scenario.

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Ah thanks for the information!

Feeding was almost a success. She followed it around the tank, but wouldn’t quite strike. She acted like she was going to a couple times and bailed.

I’m going to try and get the fuzzy a little bit warmer so she has an easier time pinpointing the location.

If she doesn’t take it warmed up a bit more, I’ll wait until next feeding day.


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@ OP- You could get away with just the heat bulb only and forego the uth. I do add a uth with my CHEs in the winter months though just for surface warmth. You may also have better luck feeding your critter after dark. If he doesn't strike at the prey just leave it for a few hours or overnight even.

@ Valyrian- The OP indicated they were using a uth so I was only commenting on uth probe placement. I do agree with you that probe placement for a CHE or RHP would be different. I try to avoid using terms like should or shouldn't because they're subjective. As with most things, including heating reptile enclosures, there are multiple ways to achieve a desired result. I keep mostly pythons and colubrids. Some are terrestrial and the others are semi-arboreal. I use UTHs and CHEs effectively but I still think RHPs are the most efficient heating source. My new enclosures will have RHPs but my tubs, tanks, and other pvc enclosures all have their temps and humidity dialed in fairly precisely. It doesn't matter how you heat them just that you give them the proper temps and humidity which you can do in a variety of ways.

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Originally Posted by EL-Ziggy

@ OP- You could get away with just the heat bulb only and forego the uth. I do add a uth with my CHEs in the winter months though just for surface warmth. You may also have better luck feeding your critter after dark. If he doesn't strike at the prey just leave it for a few hours or overnight even.

@ Valyrian- The OP indicated they were using a uth so I was only commenting on uth probe placement. I do agree with you that probe placement for a CHE or RHP would be different. I try to avoid using terms like should or shouldn't because they're subjective. As with most things, including heating reptile enclosures, there are multiple ways to achieve a desired result. I keep mostly pythons and colubrids. Some are terrestrial and the others are semi-arboreal. I use UTHs and CHEs effectively but I still think RHPs are the most efficient heating source. My new enclosures will have RHPs but my tubs, tanks, and other pvc enclosures all have their temps and humidity dialed in fairly precisely. It doesn't matter how you heat them just that you give them the proper temps and humidity which you can do in a variety of ways.

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Actually try number two worked pretty well! She was really slow to strike and had to have her mouth up against the fuzzy for 10-15 seconds before she went for it. But it’s all the way down and she seems pretty satisfied.

She’s almost looking around for more, but I’m not sure about how to go about that at her current size.

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Really glad she/he ate for you


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Originally Posted by richardhind1972

Really glad she/he ate for you


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Me too! I’m surprised she ate so soon, especially considering I’m now reading you should wait a bit longer, like a week or so. But she seemed ready to go and relatively comfortable since she was already out exploring .


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Congrats on the first successful feeding TP. Only 649 more to go. :)

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Originally Posted by EL-Ziggy

Congrats on the first successful feeding TP. Only 649 more to go. :)

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That's fine with me :D I'm just ecstatic that she took the first one today. She nice and curled up under the heat lamp snoozing away it seems. Hopefully she'll be fully digested and good to go in a couple days without spitting it back out. I'll be completely satisfied then :D

Congratulations! Boas are amazing :D :gj:

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Originally Posted by Tpot

Actually try number two worked pretty well! She was really slow to strike and had to have her mouth up against the fuzzy for 10-15 seconds before she went for it. But it’s all the way down and she seems pretty satisfied.

She’s almost looking around for more, but I’m not sure about how to go about that at her current size....

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Some snakes have had bad experiences with live food and maybe that's why she was hesitant to take the prey- "too much motion". Snakes have personal preferences.

Whatever you do, don't try to rush putting weight on her. Feeding too much or too soon will overwhelm her digestion & she might hurl it, which would make things
worse as you'd have to wait longer until her digestive enzymes get replaced (otherwise she'd hurl the next meal too, if fed too soon). Most snakes act like they want
more after eating...just learn to ignore that pathetic look. ;) I'd feed her about once a week for now & one item per meal, as long as she is digesting well etc.
(and pinks are the wrong food for her anyway, fuzzies are what's best att)

BTW, the substrate you're using looks great but it's better to use white paper towels at first with new snakes, while you make sure they don't have mites. Do watch for
that (tiny specks moving, on snake or often in water bowl)...especially since she's already skinny, a mite population explosion could kill her. (seriously)

But with your "TLC" she'll hopefully thrive...:gj: We look forward to seeing that almost as much as you do.