Leonidas Rosy Boa Progression Thread

Just priced everything on EBay, to have the most natural habitat I can create (minus using care fresh) it will only cost me about $40 to add a backdrop, fake desert plants and a couple natural looking wood and rock hides. I want to get rid of all the plastic eventually.


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He’s out and about right now, my son is absolutely fascinated with Leo and I’m doing my best to not handle him as hard as it is lol


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What's with the "high beam ceilings"? I'd probably push those hides down into the substrate so they aren't so "open" & tall. Likewise, with the cardboard rolls,
flatten them first, so they end up with an elliptical cave that has more "back pressure". He's a cutie! But just look for now...:colbert: No touchy! hahaha!

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

What's with the "high beam ceilings"? I'd probably push those hides down into the substrate so they aren't so "open" & tall. Likewise, with the cardboard rolls,
flatten them first, so they end up with an elliptical cave that has more "back pressure". He's a cutie! But just look for now...:colbert: No touchy! hahaha!

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I’ll give that a try for sure :) the plastic hide I bought was the smallest one they had. I plan on replacing them all to look more natural sometime in the next few months but I promise I won’t touch for a while lol


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Originally Posted by NewmanLovesSnakes

I’ll give that a try for sure :) the plastic hide I bought was the smallest one they had. I plan on replacing them all to look more natural sometime in the next few months but I promise I won’t touch for a while lol


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Baby snakes are growing...you don't have to buy plastic hides unless you like spending $...many things work, like small clean boxes w/ doorways cut in, plus then you
can toss & replace them when they get soiled. I know "natural-looking" is cool, don't get me wrong. Young rosy boas enjoy tunneling & hiding in Carefresh or paper
shreds, & you can add low branches they'll check out & climb on (to develop their abs, lol). Baby snakes of all kinds like crumpled paper towels loosely shoved into
those bigger hides too. Just suggestions, it's your snake. ;)

If you're looking for cheap, small hides, terracotta pots and saucers are really cheap. I flipped the saucers upside down and half-buried them for my japanese rat snake, and they make perfect tight-fitting hides.

Fyi, becareful with using Care Fresh for reptiles. I use them for my bunny's litterbox and hamster (when he was around). While it does a good job keeping things dry and soaks up the urine well, it can dry up the enclosure more than you want to, especially when it needs some humidity for shedding (That can be remedied with a humid hide but that is another thing that takes up space). Most importantly, if it accidentally swallows a little bit of it during feeding, this stuff swells up 2-3 times its size and that can be troublesome if it gets stuck in its guts. You can also remedy that by feeding it in a tub or on a plate. It is a little more work and troublesome than aspen.

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Originally Posted by Cheesenugget

Fyi, becareful with using Care Fresh for reptiles. I use them for my bunny's litterbox and hamster (when he was around). While it does a good job keeping things dry and soaks up the urine well, it can dry up the enclosure more than you want to, especially when it needs some humidity for shedding (That can be remedied with a humid hide but that is another thing that takes up space). Most importantly, if it accidentally swallows a little bit of it during feeding, this stuff swells up 2-3 times its size and that can be troublesome if it gets stuck in its guts. You can also remedy that by feeding it in a tub or on a plate. It is a little more work and troublesome than aspen.

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Rosy boas are primarily a desert species & I've not had any shed-difficulties with any rosy boas I've raised or kept on it. I usually do mix it with clean paper shreds from my own shredder, just to lighten it up some, & I agree, it's always best to feed on a "plate" & avoid letting a snake swallow substrate of any kind. I've never cared for aspen...& I concur that Carefresh is hygroscopic (lowers humidity by absorbing moisture from the air)...I currently reside in a state with plenty of humidity, so that's a plus, but it's something to be aware of, depending on what kind of snakes you're keeping. It's a good product, IMO, when used the right way. I've been using it for many years.

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Originally Posted by Cheesenugget

Fyi, becareful with using Care Fresh for reptiles. I use them for my bunny's litterbox and hamster (when he was around). While it does a good job keeping things dry and soaks up the urine well, it can dry up the enclosure more than you want to, especially when it needs some humidity for shedding (That can be remedied with a humid hide but that is another thing that takes up space). Most importantly, if it accidentally swallows a little bit of it during feeding, this stuff swells up 2-3 times its size and that can be troublesome if it gets stuck in its guts. You can also remedy that by feeding it in a tub or on a plate. It is a little more work and troublesome than aspen.

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I appreciate the advise, I might change it in the future if I want to do a more naturalistic look since I only own one snake, but for now with the high humidity here it’s been a perfect fit for me. I’ll make sure and use a feeding dish. I had no idea it swells like that.


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Just and update, Leo did not eat last night even with the bowl trick, I offered him some water and in a few more days I’ll try again. I found a live alternative as well, I can drive an hour one way and pick up live mice if I need too but obviously that’s not ideal. He pooped when I let him out of the bowl so maybe he needed to make that BM first lol


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