Yellow VS Green

[CallmeUmaster]

How would you compare keeping a female yellow to keeping a male green? Just curious.

[rockwithsunglasses]

I've seen this posted before somewhere and while I forget what was said exactly I remember that everyone agreed about how different it would be.

[rockwithsunglasses]

"Yellow anacondas are the smaller of the two anaconda species most common in captivity. Males average 6-8' in length, and females 10-12'. They are normally various shades of yellow with black spots down the back. The green anaconda is the kind you think of when someone says 'anaconda'. They are the heaviest snake species in the world. Males average 8-10' long, while females routinely pass the 20' mark, and easily can weigh over 200lbs. These have a background color ranging from brownish to olive green with black spots down the back."
This was in the boa FAQ.

[Flatheadhunter33]

The experience that I have with this species is extremely little. I do have a funny/not so funny story though regarding the green. A pet store local to me used to specialize in snakes years ago. I used to visit the store all the time just to look at and sometimes hold the animals. The owner is a cool guy but he tends to hire young teens who have very little knowledge about the job...(not bashing on working teens by any means).

Anyhow, at one point the guys gets a baby green in the store. It was already well over 2ft. and nasty as heck in temperament. One day Im in the store and in walks a young boy (maybe 10-12yrs) with his mom. The boy was looking to buy his first snake. The mom had no clue where to begin and started talking to one of the workers (who's knowledge began and ended with cats and dogs...litterally)...the boy walks over to enclosure where the anaconda was and immediately decided that he had to have it. The mom not knowing any better, said okay and asked the worker if she could purchase it (this snake was listed at $299 by the way). More alarming, the worker without question started getting things ready for the purchase...at this point, my mind is racing and I am trying to decide wether or not I should step in and ruin a sell for the store. I decided to ask the lady if she had ever seen the movie "Anaconda" and it was like a light whent on in her head and her eyes got big as heck!! I told her about how far fetched that movie was but at the same time she needed to know that this snake would potentially get very big and very heavy and that I would not recommend it for most adults let alone a young boy. The mom thanked me, the boy stared hot daggers into me and the worker...well she was back behind the counter as if nothing had almost occured...

Funny story but very true!!

[mainbutter]

I'm by no means an expert in anacondas, but have a bit of limited experience helping care for them a couple of times at a few places.

One thing to note is that from my experience, greens are more aquatic than not. Yellows tend to spend much more time on land than greens. This probably has to do with size, greens just get so hefty, they aren't as comfortable without being supported by dense water.

[sweety314]

I'm going to pipe up with my

For the last 18+ months we have been the home to two yellow females (who are still rather small..about 7-8' for one and 12-13' for the other). They are rescues from a COLLEGE-AGED guy who thought they'd be "cool to own, but he was tired of getting bitten, (after only having them 2-3 months) and they wouldn't eat." Uh, duuuuuuuh. They were in the back yard. Cage was LARGE enough, but no water tub, and only ONE heat lamp, and even for Western Oregon, it gets VERY cold and wet (and rainy) in Sept...which is when we got 'em. 50* during the day........

Did some research for confirmation, then put 'em on a heat gradient of 84* / 94* like the others, gave them a cat litter pan bathtub, and if Annie had her druthers, she'd LIVE in the tub. Andy (the smaller female) isn't as picky about being in the bath all the time.

Even after 18 months, I still use a hook to position the head. Annie is MORE likely to come after me, now that she gets a proper-sized meal and eats every week.....and I always grab behind the head, wearing gloves. Doesn't matter what, Annie ALWAYS sprays musk all over the place.

They're not 10s by any means...10 being Spawn of Satan, to quote another member here....but they're not "reliably" mellow...Annie is a 7+ and Andy has calmed down to a 6, but will still regularly try to take a piece out of you.

I take Andy in a tank, to educate others about the giants' care and the Florida issues. So far, that is working out really well, but I'd just as soon find them both a different, forever, EXPERIENCED, caring home. *sheesh*

Flathead...good for you!! in letting the mother with the young boy know what she would have been getting into had she purchased the baby green!
*Kudos*

[mumps]

I have owned both murinus and eunectes. I currently have a female yellow.

The green loved the water, and neighborhood kids used to bring me trout for her (and some other herps) so they could come see the collection. She was a WC baby (we're talking '93 here) and she took 5 months to take a meal. She never, ever bit me.

I currently have a female yellow, 3 yrs. old and around 10 feet. She bit me the first time I held her, before she had her first meal. No bites since.

Both of them were as tractable as any snake, but then I have learned how to establish trust with reptiles and I don't have anything with an attitude. If raised properly, there is nothing to worry about with either species.

Chris