How do you convince your parents into getting you a boa?

I have been wanting a boa for the longest time but my parents have a rule no boas or pythons. Personally I think it is the stupidest rule ever but they are persistant and won't budge. My birthday is coming up so I think that it would be the best time to get one. The boa I want is the Hog Island Boa which is short and docile. If anyone has any tips I would be very happy.

If they are that against owning a boa/python or fear them, then I suggest not to get it. You live under their roof, their money, and their rules. Say one day your boa does tag you- your parents may overreact and force you to rehome it. Or even more importantly, say that your snake gets sick and needs a few hundred dollars of vet bills... (exotic vet bills are much more expensive than dogs/cats) If you don't have the money earned yourself, your parents may not be willing to pay that amount for an animal they didn't want.

It's more fair to the snake to go to a home where there's an assurance that it will be cared for financially and likely won't be rehomed for sudden reasons.

You can still try to convince them with all the reasons you know... That you'll be the one to take care of it, bites are treated like a puncture wound and aren't venomous (lol), boas just hide all day and don't move much, they're very low maintenance animals, etc. Assuming you don't have a job and are a minor, if you can have your parents accept the new pet and they are willing to financially care for the animal, that's the only proper way to get it.

Well I would do all the cleaning, feeding, and would pay for everything.

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Originally Posted by Ajzboss12

Well I would do all the cleaning, feeding, and would pay for everything.

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You're not trying to convince me, you need to convince your parents. :P

Lol :rofl: true

Are they opposed to you having any reptiles. If not you may try to get some other reptile that you like. However you need to be very responsible with it. There by proving that you can care for something like a boa. However all animals are very important, and deserve the best care and environment we can provide. So if this works for you. Remember that there are no throw away animals. As far as your parents go, you must respect their rules. Once you are grown, with your own house you can have all the boa's you want.:)

Honestly, and it sucks, but if your parents are against the idea, and you live with them and/or a minor, there is nothing you can do. Save up, learn, maybe find a place to volunteer where you can be around reptiles, then eventually get your boa when you have your own place.

I have had reptiles before, but my most successful reptile was a uromastic lizard I had him for around 5 years but sadly he died of old age. The would let me get a snake but I just like boas the most. are there any snakes you recommend that are similar to boas and pythons?

Try corn snakes or Kingsnakes.

The only way to convince your parents to willingly let you do something they are against, is to prove to them that you're responsible and mature enough to take care if it.

Make sure you're putting a ton of effort into school and staying out of trouble. Don't do things to piss them off, or act overly immature when they say no to things. If there is a local breeder, or pet store in your area, maybe talk to your parents about the possibility of part time work or volunteering a few hours a week with them so you can gain experience on working with the animals.


They may not agree to it in the end, but there is a chance they might reward your efforts. Either way, it will benefit you.

Good luck! :peace:

I would suggest you and your parents go to a local reptile show together. That would provide an opportunity for your parents to talk with people knowledgeable about snakes - their requirements, sizes, temperaments, etc. You definitely want them on board if you get one.


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Originally Posted by Ajzboss12

I have had reptiles before, but my most successful reptile was a uromastic lizard I had him for around 5 years but sadly he died of old age. The would let me get a snake but I just like boas the most. are there any snakes you recommend that are similar to boas and pythons?

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For these pet snakes in captivity, there's only boas, pythons, and colubrids... You can suggest a smaller type of python/boa, show them pictures, see if they're okay with it. What about ball python, children's python, woma python, kenyan sand boa, rosy boa?

ETA: Bringing them to a local reptile show/convention is a great idea!

I have had a black Mexican king once but it wasn't the most interesting snake.

There is a reptile show on my birthday this weekend so I am probobly going to that

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Personally I think it is the stupidest rule ever but they are persistant and won't budge.

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And who pay the bills, put a rule over your head and food in your plate??? :rolleyes:

It's not the end of the world you will SURVIVE, I know I have and there was a no reptile allowed in my house as well, now it's hard to find a room without reptiles in it.

You probably see it as the worse thing right now but really it's not that bad one day you will settle have your own place and will be able to do what YOU want in the mean time enjoy a life free of responsibility (the snakes you are talking about are a 30 years commitment), enjoy college, enjoy travelling abroad all the thing that when you have animals are a lot more difficult to do.

If you are passionate now you will still be in 5, 10 or 20 years from now.

Your parents home their rule and you SHOULD respect that, and if you don't get your own place.

Here's the thing, they need to want a boa too b/c it's gong to be theirs in a few yeas. Check craigslist; dozens of boas listed, "going to college, need to rehome my boa". Listen, if you can convince them and they are cool with basically owning it for 4 years, awesome, or if you plan to go to school locally and live at home, that works too, but otherwise don't kid yourself.
But for talking points I always compare my boa to my cat: it is silent, it has no claws to ruin carpet/furniture, it only poops twice a month, and it gets all of its shedding done in one nice neat package.

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Originally Posted by Tigerhawk

Once you are grown, with your own house you can have all the boa's you want.:)

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Lol, tell that to my wife!

Once you move out and pay all your own bills you can get a snake or three - assuming your landlord is ok with it.

personally I don't keep boa's anymore because they require so much space. you need to realize that. I know they are super cool and I have had quite a number of them myself... but they get very large and require a large enclosure. I had to use the spare room in my apartment to house my last two adult boa's, and it's likely that if you are still living with your parents that you do not have this type of extra space.

Just wait it out until you are settled on your own, it will happen soon enough

I thought this looked familiar.

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...hog-island-boa

Mum and Dad will have the ultimate say.

And,,, when you are old enough and possibly have a spouse, sometimes the spouse will have the ultimate say, but that's another story LOL!

Wants of a younger person often change, we all have changes in our interests for that matter, but as adults, or young adults, we can usually make well thought out decisions.

In your case, I'm betting your parents are looking long term and are wondering who will be responsible for the animal when you maybe go to college, get a boy/girlfriend or have other interests that put the pet on the back burner.

Or,,,,,,,, maybe they just don't like snakes at all.

Your best bet is to have them go to the reptile show with you and check things out. See if they change their stance and go from there.

I WOULD NOT do anything underhanded like secretly buying something and hiding it from them.

Come at it with some maturity and see what happens.

Boas don't require that much room. I have all my snakes in AP T10s except the carpet who will be getting a T12. And they all seem happy. Boas aren't really that active so they don't need huge caging. You want something that needs a lot of room, get a monitor. My Nile Monitor needed a 8x4 cage and my Savannah needed a 6x3 and those were a bit on the small side. But back to the subject, like others have said, unfortunately its your parents house so its their rules. Now maybe you can sweet talk them later down the road or switch pet types. I wanted snakes so bad as a kid but my mom was scared of them. I ended up getting into monitors instead. Then later I switched to big snakes. The monitors were the gateway for me with my mom. Once she was used to my 5' nile, she wasn't so scared of snakes. I then started with ball pythons as they were small and hid a lot. Once she got used to those, I got boas lol. Thing to remember is regardless what you get, it is going to be with you a long time and is going to need caring for. If you cant commit to 20 years+, then my advice is don't get it. Rehoming a larger snake is not an easy task and also imo, its not much fun for the snake either.