Best type of boa

[Rage Beard Reptiles]

I just came into some money and am thinking very seriously about getting a boa among other things. Just wondering what your favorite kind of boa. What would you suggest? It has to to be handle able and have a good temperament. Also being pretty wouldn't hurt.

[rebelrachel13]

Whew! Loaded question. No such thing as "best boa," only your own personal favorites and biases. There's many to choose from, but most people will settle with the more common locales of Boa Constrictor imperator, mostly Colombian variants as they are well-tempered and easy to acquire in the pet trade.

So off the top of my head, I would say a Colombian BCI (lots of morphs available), Dumerils Boa, or Hog Island.

Another critical factor is how much money and space are you willing to spend?

[The Serpent Merchant]

I love my Dumeril's boa, they are possibly the calmest most handleable snake I have ever come across... and I think that they look great too

[cmack91]

Another critical factor is how much money and space are you willing to spend?

Very critical here! If money isn't too much of an issue, i would get an Amazon basin ETB, i think that they are stunning! Besides that, i love ATB's, they come in all sorts of colors so you should be able to find one that you like.

If you want terrestrial, the top on my list is a Guyana BCC, and next a Suriname BCC. Im not too much into the boa morphs, but i love all the great locality examples that are out there.

If you want something different or more uncommon, Madagascan ground boas are awesome, as are viper boas.

Then theres the extremely colorful rainbow boas which i always love to look at.

[Mike41793]

A halloween phase ATB, a sunglow boa constrictor, and a dumerils boa. Thats what id get!

[Daybreaker]

In general, IMO, you can't go wrong with a nice BCI: have that be a "dwarf" boa such as Hogs or CAs, or a nice ol' Colombian (and all they're lovely morphs). I also like the looks of the BCCs but can't comment on their ownership personally. Don't forget about the sand boas: they're cute little things too.

[purplemuffin]

Best.. can mean many things to many people. Most colorful? Friendliest? Largest? Smallest? A perfect mix of color and size?

Boas come in all shapes, colors and sizes, from rosy boas to amazon tree boas to red tails to..well, anacondas!

I have a BCI and I love her to bits. She's friendly but active and downright lovely. I also love ATBs and dumerils as well as several other boa species..

Really, it's all about preference. Just like to some the ball python is the worst snake and to others it is the best snake, or why some will want a small dog over a large dog and vice versa, It's what you want in your pet.

[Evenstar]

There's no such thing as the "best boa"!!

It's all a matter of which one YOU like best! Nearly all boas really tend to have good temperaments. The only ones I personally would not really recommend as first time boas would be Anacondas, Emerald Tree Boas, or Amazon Tree Boas (sorry - no offense Cmack91!!). There are exceptions to every rule of course, but generally these guys are a little more tempermental and have trickier husbandry needs (and in the case of Anacondas, they get huge) - although they all are gorgeous!!

A Colombian BCI or Dumerils is what I would recommend for your first boa. They are easy to care for and tend to be puppy-dog tame. Rainbow boas are beautiful and relatively easy to care for, just need higher humidity. They can be nippy as babies but tend to tame down nicely as adults. I would recommend getting a baby BCI, or a juvenile or young adult Dumerils or Rainbow. I think you'd be extremely happy with any one of those.

[Cendalla]

16 pounds of pure sweetheart!!

I love my Dum to pieces! Other than a Dum I have known some amazing Brazilian Rainbow boas. Madagascan Ground boas and Hogg Island Boas are also great. Money is the biggerst factor. You can go $40.00 to $500.00 in the blink of an eye.

[M&H]

Brazilian Rainbow Boas! In my opinion they are the prettiest boas out there. They are a bit nippy when they are little and can be a bit of a handful at times. Today pulling Iris out she decided she wanted to go for a squirm through the racks instead of eat! Decided right against the python's UTH was the best place to stop for a rest (over 85 degrees can be deadly for BRBs). However she is amazing. She looks awesome, super curious when she is out of her hide. She isn't very active like the pythons are. I hardly ever really see her out and about exploring around, however she is still an itty bitty baby with lots of hiding spots in her tank. She is the best eater I have, never skips a meal, even through shed. The humidity is a bit of a pain, however using cypress mulch and spraying down the tank in the morning it is simple.

I also think the Motley Red Tails are very nice looking too. The only red tail I have been interested in was a beautiful Motley.