Enclosure for Boa

[svtvenom]

I was wondering if you guys could tell me if my boa's enclosure looks good? I was having problems with the humidity but after I put a towel on half of the screen top it seems to be helping to keep its around 60-70. The cool side is like 70 and the middle is like 75ish and the warm side is like 80. but depending on if the substrate it moved (so part of the glass is exposed) its like 90 next to the water bowl. (upper left hand corner). It is a 20 gallon long tank. I wanted to put a branch in there for him but I haven't found any good ones at the pet stores. Thanks in advance

[Dutti]

60 to 70% humidity is ok. Even if it drops below 60% won’t harm the snake. When shedding the humidity should be no less than 70%. You said the warm side is 80 and then you said well it’s like 90. Well, if he has a warm side of 90 would be fine. The warm side should be no less than 86-88. And be prepared to upgrade your enclosure to a bigger one once the snake gets bigger

[dakski]

[QUOTE=svtvenom;2589750]I was wondering if you guys could tell me if my boa's enclosure looks good? I was having problems with the humidity but after I put a towel on half of the screen top it seems to be helping to keep its around 60-70. The cool side is like 70 and the middle is like 75ish and the warm side is like 80. but depending on if the substrate it moved (so part of the glass is exposed) its like 90 next to the water bowl. (upper left hand corner). It is a 20 gallon long tank. I wanted to put a branch in there for him but I haven't found any good ones at the pet stores. Thanks in advance



A few things.

1. 70F is way too low. Cool spot should be 77-80F. Ambient temps should be in that range as well. Hot spot should be 87-89F or so, but where the snake is. Not clear to me where you are measuring the temp in your description.

2. Glass tanks suck for humidity. You will want to consider, for many reasons, a larger, more enclosed tank for your Boa.

Now some questions.

What kind of Boa? I imagine it's a BCI as these are more common, especially with morphs, but I am no expert just by looking.

Male of female?

I ask because that will help you determine the adult size and what size tank you will ultimately need.

Many people say that you should keep them in small/appropriate sized enclosures until they need a bigger one. This can be costly and annoying. From me experience speaking with breeders, and working with different species (corns, BP's, BCI's), they all do fine as long as they feel secure. My 1 1/2 year old female BCI, Behira, is thriving in her adult/life enclosure - a 6X2X1' Boaphile. I am able to maintain proper humidity well, temps and gradients are excellent, and she is calm and eats like a champ. However, I have many hides in there for her. So she has a hide no matter what temp she wants to be at.

Anyway, I digressed.

Get your temps up. 60-70% humidity is fine, but you will be working at it in a glass tank for a while. Definitely consider upgrading to a bigger enclosure that is better suited for a BCI when possible.

Again:

Hot spot/side: 87-89F (average - a few degrees cooler or hotter in a given "spot" is ok - heat pads, flexwatt/heat tape, etc, can have a small gradient) where the snake is - at his/her body. And that area needs to be large enough for the whole snake to be at that temp.

Cool Spot: 77-80F.

Ambient temp: 78-82F.

I've seen you posting before and know you want the best for your Boa.

Keep asking questions and working at it. You should get there and have a happy Boa for a long time.

There are some other Boa guys on here that can chime in as well. Please point anything I missed.

Good luck!

[svtvenom]

I am using a Flukers 11x11 UTH. I am using a temp gun, I just double checked the temps and the cold side seems to be 74 and the warm side is about 79-85. It goes up to 90-95 if he moves the substrate around and there isn't much covering the glass.

I will be getting a bigger and better enclosure within this year. I'm pretty sure he is a BI, he's male and a year old right now. He is 37 inches. I've only had him a week and I fed him a small rat, the seller told me to feed him once a week but then people on this forum told me to feed every 2 weeks, so I will be doing that from now. What is the best enclosure to buy for when he an adult? I don't want to build anything myself haha.

I'm just worried that I'm going to wake up one morning and he will be dead. (Happened to my Ball Python I had when I was young)

[Dutti]

I am using a Flukers 11x11 UTH. I am using a temp gun, I just double checked the temps and the cold side seems to be 74 and the warm side is about 79-85. It goes up to 90-95 if he moves the substrate around and there isn't much covering the glass.

I will be getting a bigger and better enclosure within this year. I'm pretty sure he is a BI, he's male and a year old right now. He is 37 inches. I've only had him a week and I fed him a small rat, the seller told me to feed him once a week but then people on this forum told me to feed every 2 weeks, so I will be doing that from now. What is the best enclosure to buy for when he an adult? I don't want to build anything myself haha.

I'm just worried that I'm going to wake up one morning and he will be dead. (Happened to my Ball Python I had when I was young)

If you are feeding him small rats, you can feed him every week or 10 days at this young age. If you are feeding him medium rats then every two weeks.

[bcr229]

I am using a Flukers 11x11 UTH. I am using a temp gun, I just double checked the temps and the cold side seems to be 74 and the warm side is about 79-85. It goes up to 90-95 if he moves the substrate around and there isn't much covering the glass.

Do you have a thermostat regulating your UTH? A UTH will get hot enough to burn your snake if it runs unregulated.

Also those log hides mold quickly in high humidity environments. Get some plastic ones from somewhere like Reptile Basics.

[Sauzo]

I was wondering if you guys could tell me if my boa's enclosure looks good? I was having problems with the humidity but after I put a towel on half of the screen top it seems to be helping to keep its around 60-70. The cool side is like 70 and the middle is like 75ish and the warm side is like 80. but depending on if the substrate it moved (so part of the glass is exposed) its like 90 next to the water bowl. (upper left hand corner). It is a 20 gallon long tank. I wanted to put a branch in there for him but I haven't found any good ones at the pet stores. Thanks in advance

First off, 70F on the cool side is too cool. The coldest it should be is 75F and preferably 77-79F. Hot side should be 86-88F tops. I keep all my boas with a full cage temp of 77-79F and a hot spot with flexwatt of 86-88F. You can do 90F but dont expect to see your boa on the heat source much if ever. If you are using heat tape, you dont want anything deeper than 1/2 at most and you want to take the reading from the glass, not the top of the substrate. As for hides. I would stick to simple black plastic hides. They are easy to clean and cheap. I use these in various sizes. http://www.reptilebasics.com/hide-boxes

60 to 70% humidity is ok. Even if it drops below 60% won’t harm the snake. When shedding the humidity should be no less than 70%. You said the warm side is 80 and then you said well it’s like 90. Well, if he has a warm side of 90 would be fine. The warm side should be no less than 86-88. And be prepared to upgrade your enclosure to a bigger one once the snake gets bigger

60% humidity wont harm the snake for a while but long term, yes it will. Boas come from a place with 70-100% humidity. You are doing the snake a disservice by subjecting it to lower than recommended humidity. As for shedding, you dont need to spike squat. I never spike during shedding and never had a bad shed. I keep my humidity on average of 70%. It does drop to 65% sometimes and i spike it to 85-90%. The boas LOVE when i use my pump mister in their cages. They all come out and are active for hours.

Again, temps should be 86-88F tops, not no less. Contrary to what some people think, snakes dont need to be kept cooking hot 24/7. Most snakes actually like it a little cooler and cooler is less dangerous to them than too hot. Overheating is a very common problem and a lot of people think IBD when in fact, they kept their snake too hot.

If you are feeding him small rats, you can feed him every week or 10 days at this young age. If you are feeding him medium rats then every two weeks.

If he is on small rats, no way in heck should he be fed every week. The only time a boa should be fed every week is when they are under a year old and even there, some people disagree and say every 10 days. A boa on small rats should be fed every 2 weeks. Mediums every 3 weeks and larges every 4 weeks. Once on jumbos or rabbits, then you go to every 4-6 weeks. Rabbits are a lean dense meat so they pack more punch so you go longer inbetween feedings.

[dakski]

I am using a Flukers 11x11 UTH. I am using a temp gun, I just double checked the temps and the cold side seems to be 74 and the warm side is about 79-85. It goes up to 90-95 if he moves the substrate around and there isn't much covering the glass.

I will be getting a bigger and better enclosure within this year. I'm pretty sure he is a BI, he's male and a year old right now. He is 37 inches. I've only had him a week and I fed him a small rat, the seller told me to feed him once a week but then people on this forum told me to feed every 2 weeks, so I will be doing that from now. What is the best enclosure to buy for when he an adult? I don't want to build anything myself haha.

I'm just worried that I'm going to wake up one morning and he will be dead. (Happened to my Ball Python I had when I was young)

A male BI likely won't get over 6FT in length. You can probably get away with a 4X2' enclosure. My female will likely get 6-8FT and I have a 6X2' for her. You could also do a 5X2' or 6X2' etc. All depends on space and cost requirements.

A lot of people here like Animal Plastics, and a few other companies (there are a lot of cage forums here). I have Boaphile Plastics cages, made by Jeff Ronne, and I love them.

The main objective should be something that holds humidity well (doesn't have a open top), holds heat well, and has heating elements built in, or easy to install.

ALL YOU HEATING DEVICES SHOULD BE RUN BY THERMOSTAT - especially in these bigger tanks that are well enclosed. As Sauzo said, too hot is not good either.

Regarding waking up one morning and finding a dead snake. Not likely, IF you follow proper husbandry and feeding requirements.

Again, keep asking questions, reading the forum, and reading what you can on Boa's. Vin Russo has a great book on Boa's. It's pretty much a must read.

ALSO - watch your guy. See how he looks, is growing, eating, pooping, interacts with you and his environment, etc. You seem very aware of him and want to meet his needs. That's a great. Use your head and acquire knowledge and everything should be okay.

Good luck!

[Dutti]

A male BI likely won't get over 6FT in length. You can probably get away with a 4X2' enclosure. My female will likely get 6-8FT and I have a 6X2' for her. You could also do a 5X2' or 6X2' etc. All depends on space and cost requirements.

I would say this, a captive male BCI that is being fed mice for the first two years of his life won,t likely get over 6FT. For a wild male BCI that has the freedom to eat what he wants, its very likely that he will reach 8 or 9, even 10 feet

[Sauzo]

I would say this, a captive male BCI that is being fed mice for the first two years of his life won,t likely get over 6FT. For a wild male BCI that has the freedom to eat what he wants, its very likely that he will reach 8 or 9, even 10 feet

Actually, its opposite. Snakes usually grow larger in captivity because they are fed like clockwork more food than needed and live in optimal conditions with no need to exercise or actually 'hunt' for food. In the wild, boas can and do go months without food. They need to first find it and then actually catch it. Not to mention in the winter there, they go 3+ months with no food at all. This is why boas are opportunistic feeders and dont pass up meals unless they have been stuffed. They also arent fed the optimum size food either. In the wild, they cant be picky. So they might get lucky and get a nice big dinner or they might end up only catching a snack.

And i have never seen a 10 foot BCi ever. i have seen 8 foot ones but those are usually about 10-15 years old if properly fed. If over fed, they are usually dead within 5 years. Now BCC do get large, especially Peruvians which are the largest BCC and do get to 10 feet. But those snakes are very old. Rule of thumb i was told was that if you properly feed your boa, you can expect about 12 inches per year of growth for the first 3-4 years. Then it slows down dramatically.