A Boa of my own!

[JRLongton]

Last Sunday I went snake shopping at the New England Reptile Expo in Manchester, NH, along with my 10 year-old daughter. I wasn't looking for a Boa, as I just can't have an 7 + foot snake, but my daughter lead me over to a crowded display (in truth, they were all crowded) where they had an assortment of Hog Island Boas. One of the little guys looked up at me, his tongue flicking, and my heart started to swell. They pulled him out, sexed him then and there, confirmed that he was a male, explained that he's 2 months old and handed him over to me.

The little guy struck the most confident pose in my hands, made himself comfortable, and kept looking up at me flicking his tongue. I hadn't held a Boa in over 20 years, and decided then and there that I was never going to put this one down (metaphorically speaking of course).

I've named the little guy Raziel, but will call him Razy. He is beyond cute and is just the most adorable little guy.

Now, I keep several other snakes, a corn snake and a few ball pythons. So even though I wasn't planning to get a Boa, I feel that I have the experience to do so, plus an over abundance of enthusiasm and commitment.

But he is my first Boa, so I would like to pick some more experienced brains as I've noticed a few 'odd' things.

Questions:
First; Razy doesn't hide, at all. He is always lying on the hot side, out in the open. My temp gun measures his body between 90-91, and he just lays there all the time. Is this normal? Cause in a BP, I'd be concerned with that behavior.
Second: I've noticed his skin looks a bit loose in places and his tail seems more set off from his body than is typical for Boas. Is this just because he's so young and hasn't developed a mature musculature yet? Is it something else? Is he perhaps underfed? Dehydrated?
Third and final: Is it too soon to feed him his first hopper mouse with me? I'm quite anxious to get him eating.

My Husbandry: He's in a divided T8 from animal plastics (his enclosure is 2x2) heated with a RHP from pro-products which is regulated by a Herpstat 6. Ambient throughout is 83-82 F, floor temp is 90 F on the warm side and drops to 82 on the cool side. Humidity is 70%. He has several smallish hides spread around and a branch to climb on. Somehow I've resisted the urge to handle him since Sunday. I just want him to settle in and get comfy.

If there's something that an experienced Boa keeper wants to point out to me, please don't hesitate. I want nothing more than for Razy to grow into the most healthy and beautiful dwarf boa he can.

On Sunday morning on the way to the Reptile Expo, I had such grandiose plans about how many snakes I can fit in the snake room, now all I want is Razy. Oh, and the other snakes I already have, can't forget about them...

Thanks for any advice.

[dakski]

Congrats on the new addition. Boas absolutely rock.

A few quick tips on husbandry (I would double check for Hog Island Boas, but usually husbandry is pretty similar throughout Hogs Islands, BCI, BCC, etc).

90-91F is probably too hot for a hot spot. BP's like 88-90F, but Boas prefer 86-88F with 88F being the highest I would go. The warm side for my BCI is consistently 86-87F and she digests fine. I had tried keeping at 87-89F and she barely used it. She uses the hot spot to digest now that it's around 86F.

I would aim for ambient temps of about 80-82F, with a cool spot no hotter than 80F and not lower than 75-76F. I keep mine about 78F.

Humidity sounds good.

Boas are ferocious feeders, so use tongs for sure .

There are a bunch of Boa people on here and they will probably chime in as well.

Good luck and keep us in the loop. Also, PICTURES! No pictures it didn't happen.

[JRLongton]

Good luck and keep us in the loop. Also, PICTURES! No pictures it didn't happen.

Only one bad pic so far. I'm trying to leave him alone so that he can settle in. I don't want to go shining lights on him and such, not yet anyway. We'll get there with him though, I'm sure.

I used his pic as my avatar as I can't seem to get pics to post easily on this site.

Temps getting turned down a bit tonight when I get home.

You don't think its too soon to feed? With BPs I typically wait a week after arrival.

[ckuhn003]

Awesome pickup! I was pretty close to pulling the trigger on a Hog Island myself a couple months ago but instead purchased my 1st Boa (a male Super Ghost BCI). I'm really looking forward to seeing pictures of your little guy once he settles in.

You made a comment about him not using his hide and remaining on the hot side. I had the same thing happen with my guy the 1st couple of weeks and also was wondering if that was normal since my BP is 'always' hiding. I adjusted the temps a little and noticed he started moving a little bit more from hide to hide. I also think he needed some time to recognize what a 'hide' was. Now he's constantly in his hide. Usually with his head hanging out when it gets closer to feeding time. I waited a couple of days for him to get acclimated before my 1st feeding and definitely waited 3 feedings to start minor handling (5 minutes).

Congrats again! It's great to see more Boa owners on this site!

[richardhind1972]

Congratulations on your new little boa.
Think you will love him.
most of my boas only tend to use there hides when in shed or after a meal in the warm end but most like to chill in the open air .
He could be a bit baggy if he is dehydrated but normally he may be due a shed , probably be his second one if he's only that young, he will look great when he's shed,.

There's plenty of decent boa people on here to guide you along the way don't be afraid to ask any questions

Sent from my TA-1024 using Tapatalk

[EL-Ziggy]

Congrats on the new critter. I hope you really enjoy him. I'm new to boas also and I already love mine.

[Jakethesnake69]

I think you will really love having a Boa around I know I do. So much so that I bought a second one. Not sure how much different from my BCI but holy smokes the demeanor and alertness, crazy. Enjoy and hope you post up some pics. Congratulations on Razy.👍

[Sauzo]

Last Sunday I went snake shopping at the New England Reptile Expo in Manchester, NH, along with my 10 year-old daughter. I wasn't looking for a Boa, as I just can't have an 7 + foot snake, but my daughter lead me over to a crowded display (in truth, they were all crowded) where they had an assortment of Hog Island Boas. One of the little guys looked up at me, his tongue flicking, and my heart started to swell. They pulled him out, sexed him then and there, confirmed that he was a male, explained that he's 2 months old and handed him over to me.

The little guy struck the most confident pose in my hands, made himself comfortable, and kept looking up at me flicking his tongue. I hadn't held a Boa in over 20 years, and decided then and there that I was never going to put this one down (metaphorically speaking of course).

I've named the little guy Raziel, but will call him Razy. He is beyond cute and is just the most adorable little guy.

Now, I keep several other snakes, a corn snake and a few ball pythons. So even though I wasn't planning to get a Boa, I feel that I have the experience to do so, plus an over abundance of enthusiasm and commitment.

But he is my first Boa, so I would like to pick some more experienced brains as I've noticed a few 'odd' things.

Questions:
First; Razy doesn't hide, at all. He is always lying on the hot side, out in the open. My temp gun measures his body between 90-91, and he just lays there all the time. Is this normal? Cause in a BP, I'd be concerned with that behavior.
Second: I've noticed his skin looks a bit loose in places and his tail seems more set off from his body than is typical for Boas. Is this just because he's so young and hasn't developed a mature musculature yet? Is it something else? Is he perhaps underfed? Dehydrated?
Third and final: Is it too soon to feed him his first hopper mouse with me? I'm quite anxious to get him eating.

My Husbandry: He's in a divided T8 from animal plastics (his enclosure is 2x2) heated with a RHP from pro-products which is regulated by a Herpstat 6. Ambient throughout is 83-82 F, floor temp is 90 F on the warm side and drops to 82 on the cool side. Humidity is 70%. He has several smallish hides spread around and a branch to climb on. Somehow I've resisted the urge to handle him since Sunday. I just want him to settle in and get comfy.

If there's something that an experienced Boa keeper wants to point out to me, please don't hesitate. I want nothing more than for Razy to grow into the most healthy and beautiful dwarf boa he can.

On Sunday morning on the way to the Reptile Expo, I had such grandiose plans about how many snakes I can fit in the snake room, now all I want is Razy. Oh, and the other snakes I already have, can't forget about them...

Thanks for any advice.

Grats.

To start off, 90 hot spot is kind of hot. Cool/ambient is a little high too. I try and keep ambient in all my snakes around 77-80F. Hot spot is set to around 86-88F. Boas generally dont need it hot and usually dont like it hot. My boas spend 90% of the time on the cool side and my big 7' girl will pace and push if it gets too hot or too much humidity.

Humidity, i would shoot for around 70% letting it drop to around 60% and then spike it again. You dont want a wet floor or just wet cage. That will promote mold and fungus.

Do you have pictures of the snake? Loose skin generally is a sign of shedding. But then then there is loose skin from dehydration or starvation.

As for feeding, you can offer him food now if you want. Boas generally are not that shy and love to eat. I usually try to feed mine within a day or two of getting them. Heck my retic ate within 2 hours of being unboxed lol.

I personally would not handle the snake though for a week. Let it settle in and get 3 meals under its belt before you start messing with it.

[JRLongton]

Thanks for the advice. I turned down the temp on the thermostat and now the hot spot is 87-88, ambient is down to 79-80. The floor of the cool side is 79. I'll see how that goes and maybe knock the setting on the thermostat down another half a degree or so.

Last night I offered a thawed hopper mouse, but he showed no interest. A couple of tongue flicks as all. I even nudged his nose a bit with the mouse and still he dind't react. I'm going to wait until Sunday and offer again.

Also he seems really sluggish. He's only moved between two spots that are a couple of inches apart. Perhaps he's been a bit to warm. This normal for a boa?

Please keep the advice coming. Any and all suggestions are welcome!

I have a tendency to stress out over these things. My fist snake was a corn and I was so wrapped up in her well being that my bald-spot got bigger!

[Sauzo]

Normal for a boa to be sluggish? No. They arent a corn but they should be alert. If they are comfortable, they can sit in the same area for hours. But my boas always move within a few hours be it going inside a hide or coming outside a hide or just moving some. But they never seem 'sluggish'.

If you can get pics, i would post some pics. Sluggish with 'loose skin' with no hiding kind of makes me worried......