Who Here Has Rainbow Boas?

So I have been thinking about getting a Brazilian Rainbow Boa. I have been reading and researching as far as care goes but would like to get some info. on your personal experiences with this snake. Good or bad... :) Any information will be a great deal of help. Pictures are also welcome!:)

I had one but I traded it a while ago.
Pretty snakes. Keeping humidity high can be tricky.

http://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h1.../brbmouth2.jpg
http://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h1.../brbmouth1.jpg

She was only snappy the first day I got her lol!

Sam

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Originally Posted by PrettyInInk87

So I have been thinking about getting a Brazilian Rainbow Boa. I have been reading and researching as far as care goes but would like to get some info. on your personal experiences with this snake. Good or bad... :) Any information will be a great deal of help. Pictures are also welcome!:)

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I really like my BRBs. They're a bit more active when you're holding them relative to common boas. They seem to be more sensitive to humidity so you need to be sure your cage is set up properly. They're quite simple to care for really. Just a few basic things for their set up and you're good to go.

Mine are much more tolerant of handling than the one pictured above. My girl was supposed to be nippy when she got here but she's never even attempted to bite. Perhaps it is because her cage is next to my amethystine pythons. Next to them any snake looks calm.

Both of the Males i have are very good snakes. One of them is in a 12 quart container and the other is in a completely setup vivarium with plants, bamboo, a humid hide, and cypress mulch. They both do great and as long as you have a hide with some nice moist sphagnum moss in it, almost any terrarium will work for them.

Both of my males are also very sweet, but i do know how some babies can be nippy when younger. It's just a size difference issue. When their babies, they are tiny and humans are large, so instinctively they are supposed to defend themselves by striking a biting.

Then again this is pretty common knowledge with ANY SNAKE, so it doesn't really mean much.

Case in point, BRB's are beautiful, easy to care for snakes that DO NOT get the respect they deserve and are a great pet to own. Also they are perfect size getting between 4-7 feet in length.

The humidity thing is the biggest!! 70% or better!!!! havent had any problems at all! oh and I use a reptifogger to keep the humidity up, and BRBs are a type of tree boa so they like to climb on things

Thank you guys SO much, I am really considering on getting one. I don't care if I get a baby or adult. I live in San Diego so it's not too dry. Can't wait!:) (still looking for one)

As of friday I have one! We got a girl, and we are thinking her name will be Dorothy, lol! When we opened her cup in her enclosure she sprang out and climbed up my arm to look at me! She did not want to get back into her home! A crazy little worm! She didn't bite or anything. We didn't want to handle on the first day(week of letting her settle in) but she was more interested in my arm than her enclosure, lol. Eventually we led her back into her home by getting her to crawl into her brand new hide and she's been nice and comfortable ever since!

I got mine from Bryan Hummel who has some AMAZING animals..this girl is darker, you will see from the picture I will post later in my own thread, but she has some gorgeous iridescence and cool bright orange crescents! Can't wait to watch her grow!

If you don't have something like an aquarium humidity shouldn't be TOO much of an issue.. We've never had problem keeping humidity up in front opening enclosures, it just means you'll spray a little more or add in a bigger water bowl under the heat lamp!

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Originally Posted by purplemuffin

As of friday I have one! We got a girl, and we are thinking her name will be Dorothy, lol! When we opened her cup in her enclosure she sprang out and climbed up my arm to look at me! She did not want to get back into her home! A crazy little worm! She didn't bite or anything. We didn't want to handle on the first day(week of letting her settle in) but she was more interested in my arm than her enclosure, lol. Eventually we led her back into her home by getting her to crawl into her brand new hide and she's been nice and comfortable ever since!

I got mine from Bryan Hummel who has some AMAZING animals..this girl is darker, you will see from the picture I will post later in my own thread, but she has some gorgeous iridescence and cool bright orange crescents! Can't wait to watch her grow!

If you don't have something like an aquarium humidity shouldn't be TOO much of an issue.. We've never had problem keeping humidity up in front opening enclosures, it just means you'll spray a little more or add in a bigger water bowl under the heat lamp!

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I have a 40 gallonish tank with slide on screen top... I'm sure with the things you mentioned like extra water source near the heat and misting, it will work. I have 2 Chameleons and a few Geckos so i'm use to LOTS of mistings. :D I WANT ONE SO BAD! I'm looking around at Reptile Rescues and craigslist first to see if there are any in need of homes. I have gotten all of my snakes from people who no longer wanted them most being for free. If I don't get lucky i'll definitely get a good looking one from a breeder. :)

The great thing about rainbow boas..even the 'ugly' ones are just gorgeous. They have cool patterns already and already have the rainbow shine going for them. If someone isn't wowed by your snake, take them outside to show him off in the sunlight!!! lol! :D

Jumping in a little late but... my little guy is well mannered and was never nippy; but as mentioned above, they're very active when being held. I've never had trouble with humidity keeping my guy in a glass aquarium and a screen top. I covered the top in foil, use coconut fiber as substrate, and have a big water bowl. I'll be picking up a new girl this weekend {hopefully} while I'm at the All Ohio Reptile Show.

They're pretty easy to take care of and very rewarding. I hope you find one. They're a great addition.

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Originally Posted by PrettyInInk87

I have a 40 gallonish tank with slide on screen top...

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You're going to want to cover at least 80% of that top with saran wrap or similar in order to limit air exchange; screen tops are great for letting humidity out, which is the exact opposite of what you want with BRBs. One thing I didn't see anyone else mention about them is that they are not balls or red tailed boas; they need lower temperatures. Low eighties is their maximum. Basically think of them as crested geckos in terms of temperature and humidity. Too hot and/or too dry and they suffer. Keep them a bit cooler and moist and they'll thrive.

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Originally Posted by olstyn

You're going to want to cover at least 80% of that top with saran wrap or similar in order to limit air exchange; screen tops are great for letting humidity out, which is the exact opposite of what you want with BRBs. One thing I didn't see anyone else mention about them is that they are not balls or red tailed boas; they need lower temperatures. Low eighties is their maximum. Basically think of them as crested geckos in terms of temperature and humidity. Too hot and/or too dry and they suffer. Keep them a bit cooler and moist and they'll thrive.

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Oh awesome, so all I would need is a small heat pad? It stays pretty warm here in SD and seems like we just skipped winter this year. :rolleyes:

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Originally Posted by PrettyInInk87

Oh awesome, so all I would need is a small heat pad? It stays pretty warm here in SD and seems like we just skipped winter this year. :rolleyes:

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Yeah, shouldn't need much heat at all; just enough to get one end of the enclosure up to around 82 degrees F so they can thermoregulate. It would, of course, be beneficial to look into getting a proper cage in the future; something like a boaphile or animal plastics cage would make holding humidity easier, and of course they also tend to be more secure than an aquarium style tank.

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Originally Posted by olstyn

Yeah, shouldn't need much heat at all; just enough to get one end of the enclosure up to around 82 degrees F so they can thermoregulate. It would, of course, be beneficial to look into getting a proper cage in the future; something like a boaphile or animal plastics cage would make holding humidity easier, and of course they also tend to be more secure than an aquarium style tank.

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Awesome, thank you! Good thing is that I don't have the snake yet so I can still think about it and look around at some other species of snakes. But they are just so darn beautiful!:)

I've had my two for 2.5 years and I love them. My male was pretty nippy as a baby and even now gets VERY excited on feeding day. I have gotten a lot of enjoyment out of mine, but I would not consider them "easy." I think that NERD categorizes them as an intermediate species...they are harder to keep than a ball python: high humidity, larger size, more active snake The biggest issue that I've had to deal with is figuring out is how to get the right humidity w/o mold growth. Having a humid hide def helps!! Also, this might sound odd, but I think they are smarter than my ball pythons. haha I'm not sure how to describe it, but they just seem...more aware? Anyway, keep us posted if you get one!

I have had my BRB since he was a baby, and he is now 2.5 years old. Difficulty level would depend on personal experience, but he was my first snake , and I didn't find it to be a real chore to maintain humidity. As someone else said, they are sensitive to higher temperatures, and I have mine set at 82. As far as humidity goes, I found the whole cage doesn't have to be extremely humid, but a large water bowl and a humid hide definitely helps. Using a tub helps, especially when their babies, and not drilling holes in the lid to prevent moisture escape. And finally, best of all, they eat like pigs.:) Handling is no big issue either, they calm down pretty quickly.
http://ball-pythons.net/gallery/file..._022_thumb.jpg

Brazilian Rainbow Boas are one of my favorite types of snakes. People tend to make too big a deal about humidity. With a properly set up cage, it's easy to maintain the high humidity that this species requires. The essential components for maintaining high humidity for BRBs are using a cage with limited ventilation, a large water bowl, and a damp hide box. Glass cages aren't ideal, but it's easy enough to cover the majority of the top of the cage to prevent moisture loss. For a water bowl, I try to use one that covers about 1/3 of the floor space in the cage. Additionally, I use a damp hide box filled with moist peat moss. When you have a cage that's set up properly, you never need to spray. Aside from being a little nippy when they're babies, Brazilian Rainbow Boas have a great temperament. Also, they have a great feeding response, and it's rare to have one that refuses a meal.


http://www.moonlightboas.com/images/...-20100820c.jpg

Wow Moonlight! That is one beautiful snake. :D Thank you all for your responses, I still haven't fully decided yet. I was going to get a Colombian Boa for free from a Reptile Rescue but the person never got back to me. Ultimately I want a Brazilian so i'm going to save up and buy one if i'm not able to adopt. :)

Thanks :)

Ambrosia is one of my favorite Brazilian Rainbow Boas. It's always great when people can get a snake from a rescue and give it a good home, but it doesn't seem like you see BRBs at rescues very often. If you ever have questions about Brazilian Rainbow Boas, I'd be happy to answer them for you.

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Originally Posted by MoonlightBoas

Thanks :)

Ambrosia is one of my favorite Brazilian Rainbow Boas. It's always great when people can get a snake from a rescue and give it a good home, but it doesn't seem like you see BRBs at rescues very often. If you ever have questions about Brazilian Rainbow Boas, I'd be happy to answer them for you.

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Yes, I know a guy who runs one and the one he has is the only snake he has had to pay for just because he never gets them.

Thank you! :)

Id also love to pick one up this spring! Their color is amazing!!

I've got a breeding trio.
The male is very high white/silver side.
And I have hypo and silver side females.

My SS female was a complete sweetheart until she hit about 5 ft.
Not for some some reason, she tries to bite me every single time I go into her cage!

The other two are "moody" but fairly easy to read.
Neither are "casually" handle-able, but both can be handled.:D