WC or not?

[cinderbird]

I've recently gotten into a species i've fallen head over heals for. I have one captive bred specimen (one of very few) and am looking to work heavily with them in the future if i can figure out all their husbandry aspects perfectly and have them breed for me. (considering these are boas, its a bit more difficult than pythons).

Due to several things, wild caught specimens are uncommon, and captive bred are rare in the hobby. Out of 5 animals i've seen available since i started looking, one was captive bred and the other 4 were considered LTC (long term captive of 2ish years or more). Imports from the country are apparently unpredictable, and to top it off there are a few species of boa in the family that look almost identical, the only difference i have found being their eventual adult size and a very slight pattern difference.

I'm just looking to weigh opinions on this. Do you think it would be good for this future project for me to even think about using LTC or WC animals?

Here are the pros and cons i've come up with:

Cons:
- Animals are being taken out of the wild in their native country.
- New imports coming in will be stressed and may not readily take rodents --their main food is lizards and frogs, (but they are usually easily switched to rodents. )
- Animals coming in may have sicknesses that importers won't treat for (ticks, etc).
- Animals may not have an ideal personality and adapt well to life in captivity

Pros:
- Imported animals are documented and known to be the correct species i am looking to work with
- Imported animals are sources for new bloodlines
- array of color / pattern mutations (there are no real "morphs" that i am aware of with this species, breeding them is hit or miss because the animals will select compatibility, and you breed them in groups to get males that will like females, vise versa)
- Importing Wc or using LTC will give this uncommon species more of a foothold in captivity, and hopefully help start a captive bred population that is larger than what is currently being worked with.

You can see my problem. I'm perfectly willing to never handle WC's except for routine maintenance to keep stress to a minimum. I'm willing to get them treated for any parasites (internal or external) they may have. Im also aware that not a lot of wc's make it, but these guys do seem to have a good track record in captivity.

Thoughts, opinions, tidbits?

[OzarkMountainBalls]

you were very carfeull not to mention what you are working with. I would say get the wc and raise your own breeding stock. breed the wc and start your own CB collection. That way you KNOW what you have is the correct species!!!

Good luck,
Bill

PS what type of boa is this????

[Russ Lawson]

All captive bred colonies have to start somewhere. If you really want to work with them, I would say to definitely consider LTC or WC individuals to start a captive breeding colony. I would say to preferentially choose and LTC individual over WC, as they have usually been treated for parasites, and have a better chance to be in good health. You just have to realize the expenses involved in the care and husbandry of WC animals would be a bit higher than with most captive bred animals, as it would be a good idea to fairly regularly take them to a reliable herp vet until you're sure they are clean of parasites and other possible infections. I would say you should go for it if you are pretty interested in the species.

Out of curiosity, what is the species are you referring to?

[cinderbird]

you were very carfeull not to mention what you are working with. I would say get the wc and raise your own breeding stock. breed the wc and start your own CB collection. That way you KNOW what you have is the correct species!!!

Good luck,
Bill

PS what type of boa is this????

All captive bred colonies have to start somewhere. If you really want to work with them, I would say to definitely consider LTC or WC individuals to start a captive breeding colony. I would say to preferentially choose and LTC individual over WC, as they have usually been treated for parasites, and have a better chance to be in good health. You just have to realize the expenses involved in the care and husbandry of WC animals would be a bit higher than with most captive bred animals, as it would be a good idea to fairly regularly take them to a reliable herp vet until you're sure they are clean of parasites and other possible infections. I would say you should go for it if you are pretty interested in the species.

Out of curiosity, what is the species are you referring to?

silly me i thought i mentioned it. They are Solomon Island TREE boas (the ground boas seem more common).

Thanks so much for your replies. Its not like i want to "cash in" on the next new morph in BPs by getting a few WC gravids. Im trying to make this decision in the most responsible way possible.

[j_h_smith]

As for WC or LTC, that's the nature of the beast. If they're not available any other way, you must go this route. It's not a bad thing either. All breeds started with WC snakes. Some are still done this way today. Mostly lizards, but a few snakes too.

One of my questions to you would be, why are there so few available in today's market? Are they difficult breeders or is there no market for them?


Good Luck!
Jim Smith

[AdamM]

They are a little known species and not much is known about them yet. There are a few breeders out there that have been successful but not many. Being into tree boas myself, I only know of one keeper.