How to keep a boa around this size??

YouTube - 5_picante.avi

Any ideas on how i can keep a female boa around that size. Thanks.

And please don't tell me to get a cornsnake or a ball python like the other forums did...lol

My question is simply regarding size.

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And please don't tell me to get a cornsnake or a ball python like the other forums did...lol

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Honestly, that was sound advice that people gave. Your looking to stunt the snakes growth, which is achieved by starvation.

If you cant deal with the true size of the snake then dont that species. Maybe look into dwarf boas, but BCI females will not stay that size. There is no humane way to keep them that small.

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Originally Posted by Theartisticgemini

And please don't tell me to get a cornsnake or a ball python like the other forums did...lol

My question is simply regarding size.

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Keeping your Boa around that size is easy. Just starve it. If you don't feed it enough it will stop growing. Keeping things from growing is easy. Like lets say you are a pregnant woman and you want a small baby. Just smoke cigarettes during your pregnancy. Want small feet? Not a problem just bind your feet. Your bones and toes will get dis-formed but your feet will not grow. So don't let other people dissuade you. Just starve your boa and you will be all set. That or get a corn snake or ball python.

You can't stop a snake from growing unless you stunt their growth by starving...??? Oh my...

The only way I know of to keep a snake from reaching it's full size potential is to starve it to stunt it's growth. Which, IMO, is cruel and uneccessary...if you like a snake but don't like the size, get something else. I'm sorry, but yeah...if a Boa is too big, consider a smaller constrictor like a Ball.

I adore Reticulated Pythons. I am SO not capable of coping with a snake that big. So I sigh wistfully at the hatchlings and juveniles I see at the local expos, daydream a little, and move on.

buy a hog island

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You can't stop a snake from growing unless you stunt their growth by starving...??? Oh my...

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In a word: Yep.

I work in a pet store and we deal with this "we can control their size" mentality all the time. MAKES ME CRAZY. People think you can get a freaking KOI FISH and keep it in a ten-gallon and expect it to stay small...then they get shocked when their fish gets huge, stresses out from being cramped, gets sick and dies.

Or when people ask that about snakes ("Can I just keep it in a smaller cage? They only grow to the size of the cage, right?" or "If I don't feed them as much they won't grow as much, is that ok?") I used to sugar-coat it and try to politely educate them...to no avail.

Now I have a little pre-rehearsed speech: "I'm sorry, but if you wouldn't starve a Golden Retriever puppy to stunt it's growth, or if you think it's cruel to lock a Golden Retriever puppy in a small cat carrier 24/7, then why would you do that to ANY living being?"

There are SO many different types of snakes available from a small garter snake to a huge Burm or Retic. Why would anyone want to try and stunt the growth of a snake with so many options available?

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There are SO many different types of snakes available from small garter snake to a huge Burm or Retic. Why would anyone want to try and stunt the growth of a snake with so many options available?

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Gonna say it now: I COULD NOT AGREE MORE. :gj:

Why don't you look into something like a Nicaraguan Boa? They don't get as big as Colombians.

Or a Hog Island or something?

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Originally Posted by Theartisticgemini

And please don't tell me to get a cornsnake or a ball python like the other forums did...lol

My question is simply regarding size.

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lol. Are you serious or trying to stir up trouble by posting an OBVIOUSLY flame-able question?

The best way to stop a female boa like that from getting any bigger is to shoot her and stuff her.

When you have a pet, it is irresponsible to purposefully harm its health (starving it) for your own purposes. Even starving a boa won't restrict its growth completely, so instead of a big healthy boa, you'll have a long, skinny, sickly boa that will die or cost your lots of greenbacks at the vet.

There are small locale boas out there as already mentioned, look into those, and feed and care for them appropriately please.

I am not going to starve my snake, I do not even have a boa so no need to get crazy.

This was just a question is friggin hate it when you guys blow off on people.

I am looking into Nic boas which get 5-6 Feet.

This was just a simple question out of Curiosity, nothing more.

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I am not going to starve my snake, I do not even have a boa so no need to get crazy.

This was just a question is friggin hate it when you guys blow off on people.

I am looking into Nic boas which get 5-6 Feet.

This was just a simple question out of Curiosity, nothing more

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Dont come to the forums if you hate what we say. Or better yet don't ask questions like you did, even after you recieved the same responses from other forums.

As for the boa in the video. That is probably an 08 and is only around the 4 foot mark, maybe less. Even a 6 foot female boa can be large because of their bulk and shear muscle mass.

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Originally Posted by Theartisticgemini

I am not going to starve my snake, I do not even have a boa so no need to get crazy.

This was just a question is friggin hate it when you guys blow off on people.

I am looking into Nic boas which get 5-6 Feet.

This was just a simple question out of Curiosity, nothing more.

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I hate flaming poeple, however you are on a forum with a bunch of people who truly love animals and you asking if you can starve a snake to control its size
Come on what did you think would happen??????????

I am going to hope that the questions you have asked lately are due to inexperience and young age.

I have an idea, let me edit your post and lets all pretend this was the original question. Maybe we could get a mod to change the title.

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Originally Posted by Theartisticgemini

I am looking into nice boas which get 5-6 Feet.

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This is a great community and you can get some great help here. There are a few topics that tend to stir people up. Trying to control the size of your snake, really one way or the other, is one of them. The best you can do is research the species. Learn what the upper and lower limits of the animal are. Then decide can you handle this animal if it turns out to be an especially large or small specimen.

Don't know much about boas, but i did see this video the other day....

YouTube - Central American Boa Constrictors

I was at a reptile show at a local pet store not long ago and a guy approached me and commented on how he liked my RTB. He said that he has an 8 year old female. I came back with something like "wow, she must be pretty big!". He goes, "no, about the same size as yours."

Eve is only about two years old and nearing 5'. I tell him that and told him his snake is probably male.

He then asked me what I fed her. I said an adult rat every 10 or so days. He had a box in his hand which I then deducted was his snakes next meal. He raised the box up and said "mine eats one medium rat a month". He stated that power feeding is a bad practice and I'm killing my snake.

I said something sarcastic in reply in addition to, "I bet she has a good feeding response!", and then we parted ways.

So apparently it is possible, but I felt bad for his snake and I never even saw it.

The man in the video explained pretty well how to keep the snake small(er). Feed it appropriate sized rats every couple of weeks instead of gorging it. Though that snake is going to get bigger, it is just going to grow at a more appropriate rate.

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Originally Posted by Theartisticgemini

I am not going to starve my snake, I do not even have a boa so no need to get crazy.

This was just a question is friggin hate it when you guys blow off on people.

I am looking into Nic boas which get 5-6 Feet.

This was just a simple question out of Curiosity, nothing more.

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I think that a part of our reaction to your "simple question out of curiosity" is that you state you've asked this question elsewhere and, since you now ask it HERE, we presume you've already rejected other people's sound advice.

That and the notion of starving an animal to keep them stunted and small is REALLY offensive.

Okay thank you guys.

I am not going to starve ANY animals so you all can calm down. I was just wondering how that guy did it. I nowhere said i want to do this to my RTB ( which i do not have )

I didn't mean any offence to my post. But if you listen to Ernest, he states that it's an '06 and it still has a couple years until it reaches breeding size. From everything I have read, a female RTB should be ready to breed at around 3 years of age. IMO, it was underfed, that's how it stayed so small.

I by no means believe I power-feed my boa. She's an '08 and nearing 5'. I was giving her 2 medium rats and now she's on 1 large rat because after she would eat the two mediums, you couldn't even tell.

Good pick with the Nics, also be sure to check out the hogg isls. They were on my list before an RTB.

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Originally Posted by Theartisticgemini

Okay thank you guys.

I am not going to starve ANY animals so you all can calm down. I was just wondering how that guy did it. I nowhere said i want to do this to my RTB ( which i do not have )

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Did you not watch the video you posted? The man CLEARLY states why the snake was that small, and that it will continue to grow.

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Originally Posted by sarahlovesmiike

Did you not watch the video you posted? The man CLEARLY states why the snake was that small, and that it will continue to grow.

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Yepp and i in no way was going to starve my animal.

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Originally Posted by jfreels

I didn't mean any offence to my post. But if you listen to Ernest, he states that it's an '06 and it still has a couple years until it reaches breeding size. From everything I have read, a female RTB should be ready to breed at around 3 years of age. IMO, it was underfed, that's how it stayed so small.

I by no means believe I power-feed my boa. She's an '08 and nearing 5'. I was giving her 2 medium rats and now she's on 1 large rat because after she would eat the two mediums, you couldn't even tell.

Good pick with the Nics, also be sure to check out the hogg isls. They were on my list before an RTB.

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Thanks i should be picking up my nic at an expo next month :banana:

Cant wait :D

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Originally Posted by Theartisticgemini

I was just wondering how that guy did it.

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You asked how the guy did when he clearly stated how. He wasn't starving the snake. It is healthier for any animal to grow without growth spurts, that animal just isn't fully grown yet. It WILL get up to size, just at a healthier pace.

There is not much I can add here that hasnt been said. I can say that my RTB is my favorite snake out of all that I own. As size goes, you can still safely handle an adult on your own with out much issue. Large snakes, unlike large lizzards do not need much space. You can construct a a reptile safe crate cage or get a snazzy plastic cage from the many makers talked about on this site. IMO a snake is not a creature that you enjoy observing like you would many others. You will enjoy it most when you handle it and hold it. I think you made a good choice by asking questions and thinking before jumping on a type of snake that seemed good in the moment. I see so many snakes and lizzards surrendured to rescues becase people didnt realize how big they would get. Keep us updated on your snake when you pick him/her out and briing it home!

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Originally Posted by xdeus

There are SO many different types of snakes available from a small garter snake to a huge Burm or Retic. Why would anyone want to try and stunt the growth of a snake with so many options available?

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I agree