How long will my dumerils be okay in her 41qt?

I'm not sure if anyone keeps their dumerils in tubs, but I currently have mine in a 41 qt. she is roughly 3 feet and about 500grams. I know an adult ball can be housed forever in a 41 qt, but when should I move her into her permanent home? And what size should it be? She is a female so I'm estimating her being around 6'. So how large should her permanent home be?

When she seems cramped is when I would move her up. I'd estimate when she hits about 4 feet, maybe smaller as they are a medium bodies snake.

The forever home I have for my female Dumeril's is 4 x 2 x 18" but honestly I feel I could have went bigger. I know SHE isn't crammed, but I would have liked to be able to decorate. Little more :P

I keep my adult female in an iris ve 175 tub that's 54"x 20"w x 14"t and she seems fine. I moved my sub adults from the 41 qt to those at about 3.5 feet and 9-10 lbs

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Originally Posted by H.o.F.R

I keep my adult female in an iris ve 175 tub that's 54"x 20"w x 14"t and she seems fine. I moved my sub adults from the 41 qt to those at about 3.5 feet and 9-10 lbs

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Is hat tub in a rack? Or do they sell stand alone tubs with lids?

I'm thinking going with a 4'x2'x18" for my dumerils. Her being in a 41 qt now, will this last her until she is big enough to be in her permanent home?

Are you wanting to step her up or do you feel she needs to step up?
Or is the 4x2x18 going to be her permanent home?

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Originally Posted by Trackstrong83

I'm thinking going with a 4'x2'x18" for my dumerils. Her being in a 41 qt now, will this last her until she is big enough to be in her permanent home?

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Hey, just to save you a little $. I really doubt you'll need 18" high for a Dumeril. I'd bet she will get pretty thick, the females I've seen have been VERY thick once they hit the 6 foot mark, but they a far more terrestrial than even the larger BCC/BCI boas. She'll like the floor more than the ceiling.

I'm no expert, but is you are looking for some space, go longer. I'd say 12"-15" of height would be fine. I almost went for 18" for my BCI, but I'm happy I got a 14". Keeping heat, at least for me is more of a challenge with a taller cage.

What cages are you looking at? Check classifieds in your area too every now and then there is a total "steal" when you browse them.

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Originally Posted by 3skulls

Are you wanting to step her up or do you feel she needs to step up?
Or is the 4x2x18 going to be her permanent home?

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I'm just thinking ahead :) right now she's about 3.5 feet and 700 grams. Still has a long ways to go but I just want to know what size to get. I might go to repticon in July and if I can get a steal on a 4x2 cage I'll get it there, even though she won't be in it for another year or so, just to save some cash.

Ah ok.
I'm not one that buys into a cage being to large. I think if she has a few snug hides and some substrate to burrow into a bit. She would be fine to place her in her new home when you get it.

That's just my thoughts :p

Like said above, 18" will be harder to heat in a cool room or a room that's not heated. 12" and it starts to become hard to get in and clean.

Yeah the 12" height really sucks IMO. Hard to move a heavy bodied snake in and out. I have a 3x2x18" and I love the height and I have no issues with heating.

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Originally Posted by 3skulls

Ah ok.
I'm not one that buys into a cage being to large. I think if she has a few snug hides and some substrate to burrow into a bit. She would be fine to place her in her new home when you get it.

That's just my thoughts :p

Like said above, 18" will be harder to heat in a cool room or a room that's not heated. 12" and it starts to become hard to get in and clean.

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WOW, well said! I totally agree that "cage size syndrome" is somewhat of a myth. A huge cage with a baby, no hides and lots of open space with no top cover or other choices to hide = problem.

However, Mother Nature is bigger than any cage and if you buy a lifetime cage and fill it with top cover, multiple hides substrate deep enough to burrow in water on both sides, then all you have to do is change the environment for the snake and not the cage as it grows.

I'm certainly no expert, but snakes that roam the earth deal with a lot more space than a 4x2' cage. We provide the environment within, and I think success can be had with the setup we provide.

3skulls has got this right and I'm looking at it that way too.

As far as 18" height goes it is not bad don't get me wrong. One thing I noticed is as soon as I went to the 18's for height is the price went up a lot. 14" just worked for me and my heat panel cost a little less because I didn't require a step up to heat the bigger cage.

Dumerils may climb a bit, but are not known as climbers and those females do get thick. If you got the $ for 18" go for it.

Good luck to you.

Thanks a ton guys! Like I said she's fine now, I was just thinking ahead of time :D

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Originally Posted by Trackstrong83

Thanks a ton guys! Like I said she's fine now, I was just thinking ahead of time :D

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Yep, nothing wrong with that. It good that you are. You can fully explore the cages, and setup types.

Its a great question to ask and I hope you get her in a super nice cage and you are both happy!

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Originally Posted by Gio

Yep, nothing wrong with that. It good that you are. You can fully explore the cages, and setup types.

Its a great question to ask and I hope you get her in a super nice cage and you are both happy!

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Thanks guys! This is my first boa so I'm not sire how fast they grow, but how long do you reckon it will take her to become fully grown or around the 6' mark? I know you can't know for sure but what is a ballpark figure? Her being 3.5 feet and 700 grams now, I THINK maybe another year and a half?

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Originally Posted by Gio

Yep, nothing wrong with that. It good that you are. You can fully explore the cages, and setup types.

Its a great question to ask and I hope you get her in a super nice cage and you are both happy!

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Thanks guys! This is my first boa so I'm not sire how fast they grow, but how long do you reckon it will take her to become fully grown or around the 6' mark? I know you can't know for sure but what is a ballpark figure? Her being 3.5 feet and 700 grams now, I THINK maybe another year and a half?

Dumeril's are slow growers and don't reach their full adult size until they're about 5 years old. Just for reference, my male is about 4 years old, a little over 5 feet long, and weighs about 3700 grams. When I got him he was about 2 years old, 46" and 1500 grams.

Here she is for reference, I think she will be okay in her for at least another year.
http://i1338.photobucket.com/albums/...ps1b48a106.jpg

She should be OK in there for a bit longer. Nice looking dum btw.

My adult Dum's will both end up in 48x24x14 Proline cages. Easy to heat, plenty of room, and easy access.

Oh, and my little female dum is in a 32qt Ultra. She'll stay in there until she's 3 feet or so. Then she'll be in the Proline with lots of hides.

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Originally Posted by rocknhorse76

She should be OK in there for a bit longer. Nice looking dum btw.

My adult Dum's will both end up in 48x24x14 Proline cages. Easy to heat, plenty of room, and easy access.

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Thank ya :) she's my girl.

And I've never really looked into proline cages, how are they?

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Originally Posted by H.o.F.R

I keep my adult female in an iris ve 175 tub that's 54"x 20"w x 14"t and she seems fine. I moved my sub adults from the 41 qt to those at about 3.5 feet and 9-10 lbs

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I use the Christmas Tree Box for mine too. I had her in bigger when I first got her and she hated it (4'X2'X18"). She was very stressed out. I moved her down to this and have had her in it for three years. She has been a happy camper. She is 6' 3" and about 17lbs. I think she just likes being snug. I have a heavy large corner bowl and a cat litter box with the corner cut and sanded off for a hide. Its not the fancy set up I was first gong for but I'll take a happy snake over the alternative. I have the tub set up with 11" heat tape and on a VE-200.

Luck to you :)


PS: Mine was a rescue. Besides being a medical mess she was kept in a 15 gall fish tank (at 6 feet) and there was another in with her (he died). After being contained like that I think my 4 foot enclosure was hard to adjust too and could just be a quirk of hers. On the other hand I have met a few others that have had theirs like it snug too.

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Originally Posted by Cendalla

I use the Christmas Tree Box for mine too. I had her in bigger when I first got her and she hated it (4'X2'X18"). She was very stressed out. I moved her down to this and have had her in it for three years. She has been a happy camper. She is 6' 3" and about 17lbs. I think she just likes being snug. I have a heavy large corner bowl and a cat litter box with the corner cut and sanded off for a hide. Its not the fancy set up I was first gong for but I'll take a happy snake over the alternative. I have the tub set up with 11" heat tape and on a VE-200.

Luck to you :)


PS: Mine was a rescue. Besides being a medical mess she was kept in a 15 gall fish tank (at 6 feet) and there was another in with her (he died). After being contained like that I think my 4 foot enclosure was hard to adjust too and could just be a quirk of hers. On the other hand I have met a few others that have had theirs like it snug too.

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I forgot about a Christmas tree box! How big is the one you use?

I'm thinking about this for her permanent home.
http://www.amazon.com/Extra-Large-Pl.../dp/B000YUUOH0

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Originally Posted by Trackstrong83

I forgot about a Christmas tree box! How big is the one you use?

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I had to go measure it. 48"LX18"WX14"T Pretty much the same thing you posted with a green lid. I measured the practical space so its probably just a older model of that.

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Originally Posted by Cendalla

I had to go measure it. 48"LX18"WX14"T Pretty much the same thing you posted with a green lid. I measured the practical space so its probably just a older model of that.

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Awesome thank you :)