I Want a Big Snake!

[SnakeKB]

I keep my boas in 4'x2'x18" cages. Probably go to a 6' cage if the female reaches 8ft. My male eats a medium rat every other week. The female eats a large rat every other week. When red tails get into adulthood they can get obese fairly easy so you have to space out feedings. When she gets bigger I'd like to switch her to a small rabbit every other week to a month.

[mainbutter]

One thing you'll want to really consider:

Do you want a BIG snake, or do you want a GIANT snake? The answer is very important. I don't think I ever want a giant snake, I just don't have fun handling them. However, a 50lb snake? Yeah that'd be cool.

[pamby13]

I have to admit a yellow anaconda is something that I've definitely been considering, are they difficult to keep with humidity levels and that sort of stuff?

I have a custom enclosure built for her... They def need high humidity and the repto vision cages made of PVC i find work best... the ONLY downside to owning a yellow Conda is they are ALOT of work when it comes to husbandry... they are smelly. i change out her enclosure completely at least every other day. She is totally worth it though like i said though... DEF SEPERATE FEEDING times between handling and cleaning. i have her hook trained and i tap on her enclosure softly before i introduce a rat so she knows

[CoolioTiffany]

Burms and Retics may be a little too big for a starter,

BUT, you could go with a BCI (boa constrictor), Dumeril's boa, or a smaller species of Anaconda? There are two other smaller species besides Greens and Yellows that I forget the names of.

[Jadonh]

Do your research, There are a lot of snakes out there that will fit what you are looking for. I have retics and burms. But if you want large, but not giant then go with something else, as stated above there are dwarf forms of both and super dwarf retics that look and act like a retic yet they are still a manageable size some never get bigger thatn 6 to 8 foot.

[The-Jame]

I definitely want a large snake, my previous post where I said a retic or burm was probably a bit silly of me but it's nice to have dreams, I think I'm definitely set on having an RTB at the moment, a snake with the potential to grow to 14 feet is definitely enough for me (atleast for now). Thanks to everyone who's posted and given me an insight into their experiences, more posts will follow when I eventually find the one for me.

[llovelace]

Well what sizes are they? and what do you currently feed them on? and how big are the cages that you keep them in? I just want to make sure I have the money to keep them and feed them if I'm honest, Thanks

Oscar, male, is in a vivarium (30gal I think), was 3 yrs old, less than 500g and a picky eater when I acquired him in July '09, he now sits at around 1200g and approx 4ft in length. he eats 1 (80g range) rat every 10 days now.

Jynx, female #1, is in a tub, she's 2 1/2 yrs old, she does better in the tub, she gets a (60g range rat every 10 days).

Akita female #2, is in a 6ft boaphile. she is approx 8ft, and gets a XXXL f/t rat every 10 days.

[The-Jame]

Oscar, male, is in a vivarium (30gal I think), was 3 yrs old, less than 500g and a picky eater when I acquired him in July '09, he now sits at around 1200g and approx 4ft in length. he eats 1 (80g range) rat every 10 days now.

Jynx, female #1, is in a tub, she's 2 1/2 yrs old, she does better in the tub, she gets a (60g range rat every 10 days).

Akita female #2, is in a 6ft boaphile. she is approx 8ft, and gets a XXXL f/t rat every 10 days.

Thank's, how fast do they grow? I'm definitely going to get a RTB, I think they're going to be the best choice for me for sure (atleast for now) thanks.

[SnakeKB]

Red tails grow slow. They take many years to get to a large size (8ft and 4" in diameter). Retics seem to grow mainly off what you feed them. Get them on rabbits at a early age and you could see 10+ft in the first year. Burms grow slower than retics but stay heavier. Think my friend told me his burms get roughly 6-8ft the first year. And slow down from there. He has a 4 or 5 year old male that is around 12ft. His females are upwards of 15-17ft though by this time. Im personally going for a Burm cause i want a large relaxed snake. One i can hold on the couch and not worry about moving all over the place.

[The-Jame]

Red tails grow slow. They take many years to get to a large size (8ft and 4" in diameter). Retics seem to grow mainly off what you feed them. Get them on rabbits at a early age and you could see 10+ft in the first year. Burms grow slower than retics but stay heavier. Think my friend told me his burms get roughly 6-8ft the first year. And slow down from there. He has a 4 or 5 year old male that is around 12ft. His females are upwards of 15-17ft though by this time. Im personally going for a Burm cause i want a large relaxed snake. One i can hold on the couch and not worry about moving all over the place.

Thanks, just so many snakes its definitely so hard to choose, the thing which may sway me away from pythons though is that they don't stop growing (or so I've heard, maybe someone with more knowledge could chime in and put me right) I'm going to go to the shop where i got my bp from and speak to the guy there (he's got burms, retics, a king cobra and even a crocodile!) I'll see from his experience and also take a look at his big girls and see where to go from there, thanks