Boa Behavior

[nca1979]

Whats up all....

Just recently picked up a red-tail boa about a month ago, wicked cool snake!!!!

Got all my temps, humidity, and other husbandry necessities in order and he seems to be settling in nicely. He's fed perfectly every time as well.

Just wanted to ask sort of a general behavior question about red tails.......are they generally a more active snake, say compared to a ball python? He likes to climb on the vines, sleep on the vines, and find all sorts of ways to sleep in the terrarium. At night, he likes to move around a bit more than the day.

I keep checking the temps/humidity and everything is ideal. I guess I just wanted to make sure its normal to see red tails roaming around more.....

I've had my ball python for a little longer than him, and he is usually quite comfortable in either one of his hides, so i generally don't see him moving too much.

Any one out there have any stories about their red tail's behaviour?

Thanks all!!!!

[frankykeno]

Hi Nate and congrats on the purchase of your first boa. They really are a fun snake! A bit more of a challenge than a ball python due to their larger size and busier nature but on the upside they tend to deal with handling without as many stress issues.

I know our son's Colombian Boa is a fantastic climber and really appreciates when he's out and allowed to climb (we supervise of course). I've seen wildlife shows on TV showing these snakes hunting both on the ground and in the trees, with equal ease. At lot of boa's as they mature won't even bother to use hides. Some like their hides, others don't bother. Most like to burrow though so a nice deep substrate is a good thing with them.

Other than that, boa's are generally good natured if they are handled well (of course, that's unique to every snake and every situation). They do have quite long strike ranges and a hard hitting feeding strike so be careful of that on feeding night. Don't mess with a hungry boa LOL.

At maturity, some of them, especially the females are pretty darn big snakes. Not giants, but big enough and strong enough that you need to acknowledge and respect that kind of strength and handle accordingly. All in all, as much as our family is into ball pythons, the house would seem empty without a boa in it.

[edie]

I have 3 RTBs now, but have had one for long enough to talk about her behavior. I acquired her when she was an adult (shes a smaller boa, about 6' and 15lbs, but recovering from an RI and a couple years of bad husbandry so she could maybe get bigger!). She usually just sits around and does a whole bunch of nothing, until I take her out of the cage. Then shes WAY more active than any of my 3 BPs, I've noticed my BPs can be nervous when I take them out, and my boa takes full advantage and moves around while shes out, I've never seen her get nervous or defensive either. I take her out 1-2 times a week, depending on if she ate that week and what not.

I think that a younger snake will be way more active than it will be at adult size, when in the cage that is. When out of the cage my boa really seems to open up and enjoy herself!

As for hides, all of my RTBs are too large for any hides I've ever found, and since they're in RBI cages I just place newspaper over one of the cage doors so they can have some privacy.. 2 of my RTBs will crawl under the newspaper and poke their heads out, which kind of works as a hide for them.