Feliz - Venezuelan "Dwarf" BCC

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Originally Posted by richardhind1972

So glad he arrived all safe and sound, looks stunning,love the pinks on his side ,look forward to his progression pics

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Thanks Rich.

The pictures and my description cannot adequately display or describe the depth of his color and sharpness of his pattern, or the intense contrast between it all.

I am in awe.

Looks great, very beautiful Boa. Congratulations on the new family member.

Congratulations on the beautiful new addition! In this case, ignore your Mom...you can’t have too many boas. :D

Just don't let Yafe tell him how to "get more attention"...:colbert:

I didn't even know dwarf BCCs were a thing, I love him! His markings are so pretty :O Congrats!!

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Originally Posted by caravaggiooo

I didn't even know dwarf BCCs were a thing, I love him! His markings are so pretty :O Congrats!!

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Thank you! As you can probably see if you watch my unboxing video, I was shocked at how amazing he looks! When I spoke to the breeder today to let him know he got here okay, etc, he said he thinks he's going into shed soon and seems dull to him! I can't wait to see him after shed, whenever that is.

I had no idea they existed either! There are some smaller Boas out there. I think the Peruvian Long Tails stay noticeably smaller than most locale BCC's, but don't quote me on it.

There is one other breeder in the country, Mike something, who apparently produced a clutch last year as well. They are the only two actively breeding these guys that I am aware of anyway. Very rare line and locale. Amazingly gorgeous, amazingly calm and docile, and also curious and brave. He was in his hide for 2 minutes and then out exploring for two hours. Then he left me a butt bomb and has been in a hide since. Katie just got home and the bomb is too big to ignore. She can meet him quick while I clean his tank. Then he will be left alone for a bit.

I digressed. I recently ordered Vin Russo's "Complete Boa Constrictor," The Bible on Boas, or at least one of them. It's out of print now, but I found a used copy on amazon. Anyway, he has a total of 4 pages in the book on Venezuelan Boas. 2+ pages on the Paraguana Venezuelan Boa and about 1 1/2 pages (with pictures - so two paragraphs) on the Venezulean BCC (that Feliz is) he refers to as a true red tail. He says they are very hardy, but rare. Also thicker bodied than most Boas.

He was produced last year and was a holdback. Tommy (from TC Reptile where I got him) had two male holdbacks. One had a more interesting pattern (pictured at the beginning of this thread with the dog bone on his tail) and Feliz, who had the best coloring. He decided to hold back the odd patterned one and sell me Feliz. I can't argue on the coloration at all.

^ You're welcome! Honestly, if I'd known about these boas beforehand (and if they're even attainable in my country), I would've had a hard time settling on another snake. BCCs are so cool but they're way out of my size range, so I would've jumped at a dwarf variety! It's a pity they're so uncommon, but that makes them all the more special too.

The Complete Boa Constrictor is on my wishlist but I haven't been able to find one for a decent price here, I don't know if I ever will! If I owned it I would've known about Venezuelan BCCs already :D

Anyways I can't wait to see more progress pics of Feliz! If he's supposed to be looking dull now... :O

Feliz looks GREAT Dave! Nice unboxing video too sir. Looking forward to lots of pictures of this guy.

Katie met Feliz today while I cleaned the mess he made. She was shocked how much poop came out of such a little guy (she almost never sees snake poop as I always clean it and usually when she's either holding the culprit or at work).

In any event, they totally hit it off! She thinks he's beautiful and a sweetie. No argument on either from me.

He back settled in his tank and will be left alone for a bit. I plan to offer food Sunday when I feed everyone else. If he really starts looking, I might offer Friday, but we will see.

We are both relieved he arrived on time and he seems like an awesome guy!

[IMG]https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/dvEldZz.jpg[/IMG]

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Congrats on the new addition! He is absolutely beautiful! Can't wait to see how he grows.

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Originally Posted by caravaggiooo

^ You're welcome! Honestly, if I'd known about these boas beforehand (and if they're even attainable in my country), I would've had a hard time settling on another snake. BCCs are so cool but they're way out of my size range, so I would've jumped at a dwarf variety! It's a pity they're so uncommon, but that makes them all the more special too.

The Complete Boa Constrictor is on my wishlist but I haven't been able to find one for a decent price here, I don't know if I ever will! If I owned it I would've known about Venezuelan BCCs already :D

Anyways I can't wait to see more progress pics of Feliz! If he's supposed to be looking dull now... :O

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Yeah, dull? Well, we will see as time goes on. If he stay anything close to this, I will be ecstatic. As mentioned, he was a hold back for coloration, so he should continue to look pretty good through adulthood.

The Complete Boa Constrictor is a great book. I saw it for $60 when it went out of print, but paid $100 shipped for it 2 weeks ago. I think prices keep going up. I actually talked to Vin Russo, the author, and he said it will probably only come back into print if he does a major update. It wasn't clear if there were plans for that.

Great book for breeding and for info on virtually every species out there.

I cannot give the book credit for finding Feliz. My buddy and fellow BP.net member, Phillydubs, had done a lot of research on Dwarf Boas and sent me Tommy and TC Reptile's info. Tommy brought up the Venezuelan True Red Tail BCC's to me and said he had two on holdback but was willing to sell one. He recommended Feliz and the Line/Locale to me when I said I wanted puppy dog tame and a personality similar to Behira, my BCI. He said this was the snake for me. When I saw how beautiful Feliz was and how rare, I couldn't resist. The book did back up what Tommy said about being hardy, thicker bodied, etc. Vin specifically mentions that like BCI's, these BCC's tend not to have regurgitation issues like many locale BCC's can. Tommy said humidity is also less of an issue for them. They are not as sensitive to having issues if humidity is a little low for a bit (if I am away for a few days in the winter and cannot spray to get it over 50-55% in tank). He said they shed great as well.

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Originally Posted by EL-Ziggy

Feliz looks GREAT Dave! Nice unboxing video too sir. Looking forward to lots of pictures of this guy.

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Thank you EL-Ziggy. As stated earlier, pictures and descriptions do not do him justice.

Cool customer and handsome guy. What more could I want?

Thank you on the unboxing video. It was my first one. Glad it came out okay! Thank you for watching!

Dude, seriously? You need to encourage me to post pictures of him? Have you seen any of my other threads? :)

Love red tail boas. They are awesome and yours is not exception. In general they seam easy to work with. I think easier to care for than a BP. Just MO. Keep up the good work.

Really loved the unboxing video,only just had chance to watch it, he is nice and toned , the bcc are a nice deep bodied boat, and his colour is great, like how chilled he was saying you just unboxed him
Glad the Mrs to be liked him.
Pure locality boas are pretty cool and have there own natural beauty, some like a bcc are better than a lot of morphs available

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Originally Posted by richardhind1972

Really loved the unboxing video,only just had chance to watch it, he is nice and toned , the bcc are a nice deep bodied boat, and his colour is great, like how chilled he was saying you just unboxed him
Glad the Mrs to be liked him.
Pure locality boas are pretty cool and have there own natural beauty, some like a bcc are better than a lot of morphs available

Sent from my TA-1024 using Tapatalk

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Rich,

Thank you for watching the video. Relieved, but not surprised, Katie digs the little guy. She was surprised how small he is. Behira was a similar age but was over 400G and eating weaned rats, not mouse hoppers!

I still cannot get over the contrast and color! I lifted the warm hide to check temps today and hew as in there. Took a quick reading and covered him again and left him alone. Had to say, "WOW!" though when I saw him again.

He's incredibly chill - more on that in a post coming in a few minutes. However, he was more active later when Katie held him. Chill and docile, especially since he has not been handled much (comparatively, Behira had been handled often as that breeder spent a lot of time with each animal and she was a holdback as well, so he spent even more time with her).

Okay, so I think I did something stupid, twice, and was reluctant to share, especially since I had an inkling and ignored it. However, in thinking about it, and being dedicated to documenting important things with my animals here, and for the benefit of others' to learn from my mistakes, I feel compelled to share.

Last night, when Katie got home, she wanted to meet Feliz, and he had unloaded a big dump that needed cleaning. Since I had to clean his tank, I said she could hold him while I cleaned and should could meet him.

We open the tank (a small vision tank - V111 - 24"X12"X16") and pick up the warm hide. No Feliz. Okay, we pick up the cool hide. No Feliz. Okay, he must be under the paper. NO FELIZ! We both panic! Now, I know, there is no way he got out of that tank. It's not quite Boaphile escape proof, but it's 99% of the way there - conceivably a very strong animal could mess up the sliding glass doors or somehow dislodge the small screen vent in the back, etc.

There is small ledge on the top front of the tank, above the sliding doors, so I figure he climbed up on that. I was sort of right. I feel up there, but NO FELIZ.

I stick my head in the tank and look back at the front and I see him, barely, on that ledge, behind the darn RHP! He's got the front of his body over the back and he as in there as tight as can be. DARNIT!

I use the hook to try to gently persuade him to come out. What do I get? Hisses! Lots of hisses!

I realized quickly I had no choice but to remove the RHP. The RHP I had, and was a small unit that fit, seemingly perfectly in this tank. I thought there was no way he could get on the ledge on the side of it. I had drilled holes in the top of the tank and secured it with screws and nuts. I took out the screws, dropped the RHP gently, and gently got Feliz down. He's all bluff by the way. Once I had the RHP down he was more curious than angry. He let me get him off the ledge, although he did grab onto it a few times in the process with various parts of his body.

Before I put the RHP back, I stuffed the ledge with printless newspaper. I stuffed the hole between the ledge and RHP really tight as well as the entire ledge itself. No way he's getting in there now.

Okay, problem solved. I put the RHP back, clean his tank, he's no worse for the wear, Katie got to meet him and liked him a lot, and he goes back in to get some rest and stop causing trouble.

Flash forward to an hour later. I peek over to the tank to see if he's exploring as the light has gone out, and I see his head in the middle of the tank, coming down from the top of the tank! WHAT! Are you kidding me! WHAT ARE YOU EVEN HOLDING ONTO DUDE? I walk over to the tank, and the little munchkin has now managed to get behind the RHP on the other side! ARE YOU KIDDING ME! There was enough room on the other side for the power cable to squeeze out and the little red light that shows if the RHP is getting power! That's it!

It's so tight there, that if I try to take off the RHP, I am afraid I could crush him and hurt him or worse! Literally a centimeter or so of movement could be really bad.

So, I spend the next 20 minutes, gently, with my fingers, and the snake hook, coaxing him out (thank G-D he came out). No hissing this time. I think he was too proud of himself :). Little PITA! Got him out and he's looking at me like, "Hey, new Dad! How do you like my climbing abilities? This tank is cool! I've lived in a tub my whole life! Boy, adventures are fun!"

So, I stuffed the back of the RHP with printless newspaper as well. LONG NIGHT! I of course stayed up for another hour (it was late by now) and watched him try to get up to those two spots. The best he could do was get his neck on the very corner of the ledge, pull himself up, and try to squeeze in, but to no avail. I was watching him and was thinking, "Dude, you have no leverage, and are barely hanging on, you are going to fall." 10 seconds later, THUMP! It only took one thump and he decided it wasn't worth it.

I was thrilled this morning when I checked temps and he was happily in his warm hide!

Now, I tried to be a little tongue and cheek when I wrote this. However, this could have been a bad situation. I've had molded tanks before and stuffed them with printless newspaper as well on virtually the same ledge. However, those tanks were much bigger, and the snake much smaller relative to the tank at the time. I was able to stay calm and put Feliz's safety first, and my anxiety, and displeasure with myself, second.

VERY IMPORTANT: IF YOU HAVE A MOLDED TANK, AND ARE PUTTING A SNAKE IN IT, EVEN IF IT LOOKS LIKE THEY CANNOT FIT INTO A TIGHT SPACE - BLOCK IT!

I knew this and thought I knew better. Nope, Feliz knew better. I was a fool in this situation. Do not make the mistake I made and put your snake at risk. Or, for that matter, yourself. I had a cool and calm customer, despite just arriving and being young. Have fun with a nippy sucker.

Again, if you have a molded tank, fill in the gaps and open spaces, even if they seem too tight!

Alternatively, get a better tank to start with (this is just a temporary quarantine tank I borrowed from a breeder friend). Luckily, his 4'X2'X1' Boaphile is on order and will be here soon. The RHP is flush with the side and back walls and there is literally nowhere to hide or squeeze in those tanks. Jeff Ronne is smarter than I am, or, at least, has more experience, if not both!

​Feliz Behind the RHP! Do you see much room?

[IMG]https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/uUjd0kD.jpg[/IMG]

The gaps filled tight with crumbled up printless newspaper.



Back, as in previous picture.

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Front, where the ledge is.

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Felicidades :gj: (You see what I did there? :D )

I feel your pain, Dave. Belle (lemon blast), Piper (pied), and Button (BEL) did essentially the same thing to me. I have Monster Cages, nice and square, no ledges. There is roughly an inch of space between my rhp and the back wall of the cage, which was left intentionally when I installed the rhp. The cord for the rhp goes straight out the back of the cage about 1/4 inch from the ceiling. In three years, none of my other snakes ever explored that gap or tried to get between the cord and the ceiling....including my corns which are known for being nosy. These three little monkeys have wedged themselves between the cord and the ceiling in each of their cages. My solution was to push more of the cord into the cage, creating a loop. Since there’s nothing to wedge against now, they don’t bother it as much, though all three occasionally take a turn climbing through the loop. There is nothing quite like the panic a keeper feels when you can’t find your snake in the enclosure where it ‘should’ be. :rolleyes:

"Good morning world! I spent the past 24 hours in my warm hide. The lights came on this morning and I decided it's time to be brave and learn how to Boa. I stuck my head out of the hide to see what the world has to offer me today. Dad came over to look and I put my head back in my hide a little bit, but I stood my ground. He's not too scary. Besides, I am a Boa after all!"

[IMG]https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/OwXWijI.jpg[/IMG]

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Originally Posted by dakski

"Good morning world! I spent the past 24 hours in my warm hide. The lights came on this morning and I decided it's time to be brave and learn how to Boa. I stuck my head out of the hide to see what the world has to offer me today. Dad came over to look and I put my head back in my hide a little bit, but I stood my ground. He's not too scary. Besides, I am a Boa after all!"

[IMG]https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/OwXWijI.jpg[/IMG]

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What a beautiful pickup Dave!!! I never knew dwarf BCCs existed. I guess I skipped over that chapter in Russo's book ;)

Your picture above is so 'BOA'..... my guy loves to just hang his head out of his hide unlike my BP who's rarely ever seen. I'm curious if BOAs need a tight fit hide like BPs or if I can get away with a combination of small and large hides. Congrats!! You have quite the collection my friend!

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Originally Posted by ckuhn003

What a beautiful pickup Dave!!! I never knew dwarf BCCs existed. I guess I skipped over that chapter in Russo's book ;)

Your picture above is so 'BOA'..... my guy loves to just hang his head out of his hide unlike my BP who's rarely ever seen. I'm curious if BOAs need a tight fit hide like BPs or if I can get away with a combination of small and large hides. Congrats!! You have quite the collection my friend!

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Thanks ckuhn003. Yeah, he's gorgeous. I didn't know about dwarf BCC's until Tommy at TC Reptile told me. Then I looked in Vin's book, and sure enough, no chapter, but about 1 page on them. Page 263 in The Complete Boa Constrictor.

I have 3 good fit hides and one larger hide for Behira. She uses all of them. However, as you said, usually with her head, or more of her body, sticking out. Her bigger hide is not filled with paper towels as Shayna's (my BP) bigger hide is. She does not seem to mind. I'd hardly call that definitive scientific evidence, but it's at least one observation.

Great photo Dave, looks so great,love his pink cheeks

Was so glad you managed to get that little guy from behind the rhp no problems, boas are just mad for exploring, I've had my sunglow round the LED light stripe so many times when she was little , she was a nightmare, thankfully she's grown out of it


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Originally Posted by richardhind1972

Great photo Dave, looks so great,love his pink cheeks

Was so glad you managed to get that little guy from behind the rhp no problems, boas are just mad for exploring, I've had my sunglow round the LED light stripe so many times when she was little , she was a nightmare, thankfully she's grown out of it


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Rich, he's freaking adorable!

I was very relieved as well. However, I've had a kidney transplant, I race cars and I have had a transmission failure and hit the wall at almost 100mph (started spinning at 100mph), I have a high stress job in finance, etc. I have learned to stay calm in high stress and risky situations. He was also surprisingly cooperative. It worked out. It will also NOT happen again :). Not in this tank, and definitely not is his new Boaphile.

Young boas can be sneaky and annoying little suckers!

Thank you, as always, for the comments.

A few more photos and a video I uploaded today. He's really so chill and calm, especially for a yearling, who hasn't been handled much. He's going to be a total sweetheart, just like Behira, if not even more chill (if that's possible), once he has a year plus of gentle handling and building trust under his belt.

I can't wait to see his food response though. I bet it's pretty epic, just like his sister, Behira, who is also a total sweetie. We will see on Tuesday. Give him time to settle in and that's when everyone else is getting fed in the next week (usually Sunday, but work messed things up this week).

Video Link of the calm boy. I love how he keeps checking out the phone - "Oh, What's This? I've never seen this before! Can I taste it? I'm gonna taste it!"

https://streamable.com/41c7n


BOA-BALL!

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Dad, how do you like my Rad, I mean Red Tail?

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Feliz tonight: "Hides? Hides? We don't need no stinking hides!

Brave boy! True Boa!

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I might have to quit following this thread...you're making me want one of these! Shame on you! Bad dakski, BAD!

Why is the John Lennon song Beautiful Boy playing in my head right now? I haven't thought of that song in bleems. :)

Perfect theme song for Feliz! :gj:

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

I might have to quit following this thread...you're making me want one of these! Shame on you! Bad dakski, BAD!

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I believe we recently had another member who advised that we were terrible enablers. :D

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Originally Posted by EL-Ziggy

Why is the John Lennon song Beautiful Boy playing in my head right now? I haven't thought of that song in bleems. :)

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Yep, he sure is a purdy Boa! His skin does look a little loose when he curls up a bit and his belly looks like it might be starting to get a little pink. Barely, but he might be shedding in the near-term. I am scared. How much more striking looking and more vibrant can he be? The contrast has got to be incredible after shed! I cannot wait!

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

I might have to quit following this thread...you're making me want one of these! Shame on you! Bad dakski, BAD!

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What? Me? Making you want a Venezuelan True Red Tail/BCC like Feliz? Why? It's not like he's beautiful, or adorable, or totally sweet, or anything like that. Nope, just your typical little noodle. Nothing to see here. I know not what you speak of Bogertophis. Strange, normally we are on the same page.

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Originally Posted by Dianne

I believe we recently had another member who advised that we were terrible enablers. :D

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Again, no idea what you or Bogertophis are talking about Dianne. Maybe you can PM, or post in more detail here, and explain it better?

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Originally Posted by dakski

What? Me? Making you want a Venezuelan True Red Tail/BCC like Feliz? Why? It's not like he's beautiful, or adorable, or totally sweet, or anything like that. Nope, just your typical little noodle. Nothing to see here. I know not what you speak of Bogertophis. Strange, normally we are on the same page.

Again, no idea what you or Bogertophis are talking about Dianne. Maybe you can PM, or post in more detail here, and explain it better?

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I think it comes down to he’s such a pretty boa, and a Bcc, and will stay a more moderate size, and and and....we want one! :D

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Originally Posted by Dianne

I think it comes down to he’s such a pretty boa, and a Bcc, and will stay a more moderate size, and and and....we want one! :D

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Oh, now I get it!

Those reasons, and his incredibly calm nature, is why I bought him!

:rofl::sarcasm:

Katie already adores him too. She even took him out on her own. Last time he was out, she said, "I love him." He loves her too, as do I. Made me very happy. He's really a cute, beautiful, outgoing, but calm and sweet, little noodle!

Well, if you guys are really interested, I'll get you in touch with Tommy at TC Reptile and you can get on the wait list for the next litter. He's really unbelievable, I cannot argue that.

I am lucky Tommy had him has a holdback and was willing to sell him. I am also lucky Tommy and I hit it off and got to talking reptiles and Boas even though I had gotten Yafe. He just happened to mention Venezuelan BCC's in passing, since I had said I wasn't really looking. However, when I heard "Dwarf," "BCC," and "calm and docile as can be," all in the same sentence........well, I wasn't missing that. NO WAY, NO HOW! Tommy, you said what? Dwarf BCC with a calm demeanor and you have one left? Check, please! Box that bad boy up!

Great little video Dave, he seems so confident and relaxed saying you just got him.love it when they they inquisative like that.
Really Glady Katy likes him too.
what's not too hey, he's just so nice

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Getting dry in the basement, but I have been misting Feliz's tank 1X a day to keep humidity over 60%. His water bowl is evaporating pretty quick too. This will not be an issue when his Boaphile comes, but I have to do what I have to do now.

I went in tonight to change his water bowl and mist. I took him out for a minute, sprayed the tank, took a quick video and a few pictures, and back he went. I still say, "WOW," every time I see him! Only been a couple of times now though; been leaving him alone to settle in.

I am attempting to feed on Tuesday night. I'll report.

He's really calm. A tiny bit hesitant when first picked up. Not defensive or anything, but you can tell from his body language, he's thinking, "I think I am okay, but, not 100% sure." 1 minute later, he's exploring and seemingly happy, calm, and curious. Cool little guy. With time, and continued gentle handling, I am sure he will become more like Behira. Once out of food mode, she's like, "oh, okay, play time!" No minute delay for her anymore. She's ready to rock and roll right away.

I still cannot believe, given his limited handling, and his size and age, how incredibly calm, AND, curious he is. He's going to rock as a bigger boa.

​Here's a little video if me and Feliz having a quick bonding time (he loves the iphone - always want to check it out): https://streamable.com/k2s2f

[IMG]https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/IUJZuP9.jpg[/IMG]

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I know I "said" I wasn't gonna look any more, but I lied...:D he's adorable!

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

I know I "said" I wasn't gonna look any more, but I lied...:D he's adorable!

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LOL! Beyond adorable.

If it makes you feel any better, I never believed you when you said that you, "wasn't gonna look any more."

He’s such a good looking Boa! Those colors are just so vibrant and he seems so docile in the video. I think you struck gold with him.

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Originally Posted by ckuhn003

He’s such a good looking Boa! Those colors are just so vibrant and he seems so docile in the video. I think you struck gold with him.

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I totally agree. I looker and a lover! What more could I ask?

I offered Feliz food tonight (he arrived one week ago and it was feeding night for everyone else except Figment and Yafe, who is not quite ready to eat yet). He had been eating stunned mice with the breeder and never frozen/thawed (F/T). However, he's a boa, and I've easily switched young BP's from live (running around the tank live), so I really wasn't worried at all.

Well, he happily ate a F/T mouse hopper. No issues going to F/T whatsoever.

Kind of funny actually. I shook the mouse in front of his hide for a bit, but he prefers the spot on the hide further from the door. After shaking for a minute, I decided to put the hopper down with its head in the doorway and see if he came to investigate. I figured, if he did, I could pick it up and shake and get him to strike.

Well, that was not necessary. 2 minutes later, he stuck his head out sniffing, nudging, and tasting the mouse. One minute later, it was in his mouth. Goofball grabbed it by the middle though and after about 5 minutes of gnawing on it, he bent the head under on the floor of the tank and swallowed the head with the midsection! Good thing it was a rather small meal for him (10G - I think he could eat a 12-14G weaned mouse pretty easy, but I'll keep it hoppers for at least the first few feedings). Once the head and neck/midsection area was down, the rest was smooth sailing.

I should add that he looks like he might be starting to go into "blue" as well. Difficult to tell with limited light (I feed with tank lights out and minimal room light - just enough to see the snakes and not get bit :)). I think he's going to be a great eater.

Picture below of last bit of hopper going down.

[IMG]https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/JNWBQVr.jpg[/IMG]

So glad he had switched fine,as you say he's a boa and normally are pigs

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Originally Posted by richardhind1972

So glad he had switched fine,as you say he's a boa and normally are pigs

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When it comes to snakes and eating, I'll take a pig any day of the week and twice on Sunday!

In all seriousness, I had zero worries. However, I wasn't sure it would be that easy. :)

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Originally Posted by dakski

I offered Feliz food tonight (he arrived one week ago...)

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Congrats on his first feeding. Is always a relief when they first eat under our care.
You know, I just realized that you got Feliz the same day I got Kenny. :D I will always remember that dakski. So don't be surprised when you get a PM from me on his first year anniversary with you; and you'll be like "how did Ricky remembered the day?" :rofl:

Very nice!! Congrats!

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Originally Posted by RickyNY

Congrats on his first feeding. Is always a relief when they first eat under our care.
You know, I just realized that you got Feliz the same day I got Kenny. :D I will always remember that dakski. So don't be surprised when you get a PM from me on his first year anniversary with you; and you'll be like "how did Ricky remembered the day?" :rofl:

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I wasn't too worried. He's a boa after all. However, he had never eaten F/T, only stunned, and he's new, etc, so I'd be lying if I didn't say I was happy as a pig in crap when he ate that F/T mouse without even striking!

I posted on Kenny's thread that we got them the same day. Pretty cool man. They are practically brothers now :).

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Originally Posted by cletus

Very nice!! Congrats!

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Thank you cletus. He rocks. Amazing animal. Couldn't be happier.

Took Feliz out for a couple of minutes today and he's fully digested (not surprised as the meal was small for him and he's been in the warm hide). Two pictures below of me holding him that Katie took. He's such a sweet guy, but also, getting brave and showing that Boa curiosity.

When I put him back, I showed him his water bowl and he started drinking. I shut the tank doors and got a good video of him drinking, well, until I slipped and banged the phone against the glass doors and scared him. For what's worth, after I put the phone down he finished drinking and seemed no worse for the wear. I love watching snakes drink; so cute.

Video Link of Feliz Drinking (play without audio - I had the hiccup/burbs): https://streamable.com/74xti

[IMG]https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/w8Hx8Ff.jpg[/IMG]


[IMG]https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/DFL41J6.jpg[/IMG]

loved the video! when you spooked him, sOo cute!!! lol

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Originally Posted by tttaylorrr

loved the video! when you spooked him, sOo cute!!! lol

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I felt really bad! However, it didn't bother him for long and he went right back to drinking!

He looked so indignant, lol...:snake:

Great looking boa.

I love watching them drink too, it's mad how much they drink in one go sometimes.

He looks so great, loved the video he just stared you out when you spooked him ,lol

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Originally Posted by richardhind1972

I love watching them drink too, it's mad how much they drink in one go sometimes.

He looks so great, loved the video he just stared you out when you spooked him ,lol

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I had showed him before, but this time, when I showed him the bowl, he was like, "Oasis!"

He drank half the bowl over 4 minutes or so!

I've seen Behira do something similar; act like she's never seen water before. They can really go to town when they are thirsty.

When I "startled him" he was more like, "This is my house, and I am drinking, what do you want?" than scared I think. The fact that he went right back to drinking seconds later tells me he's feeling pretty good in his (quarantine) tank.

Speaking of that. I sent the breeder the picture I posted here of him eating. He said he really like the setup and wished all his animals had setups so nice. I laughed and told him that was his quarantine tank! Wait until he sees the Boaphile he will live in for life.

Honestly, it won't look that much different. Bigger bowl, more hides for now, and ultimately bigger hides, etc. I told him I go for cleanliness and function over aesthetics. The snakes don't care as long as their needs are met. My bragging rights are not on how cool my tanks look, but rather how clean they are, and how happy and adjusted my reptiles are.

That's what I thought,he just stared at you as if "Excuse me I'm having a drink now be on your way ,while one finishes" really is so cute,

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