Thinking about making the jump to boa's

[Ronin]

Hello all!! I have been keeping bp's for a little bit now but still not that long. But I was looking around craigslist and completely in awww over this red tail boa. Actually, its a female crimson pastel and she is more than gorgeous!! I have done a bit of research and it seems that they pretty much take the same type of care as a ball python, housing, temp, humidity, etc, all seem to be pretty much the same. Of coarse I realize she will get big, a LOT bigger than a ball python lol.

Can anyone shed more info on these beautiful creatures? Anything I need to know or be aware of aside from already owning ball pythons?

[Daybreaker]

I'd check through more boa threads on here, there's been many people recently who made the jump and there's great info there.

The main differences for me with my boas is that they prefer slightly cooler temps than my pythons and they don't eat as frequently. Babies every 7 days, subadults 10-14 days, and I feed my adults every 2 weeks. Feeding weekly for older boas is not recommended as it can lead to obesity = lower lifespan/less healthy.

For housing I recommend at least a 4' cage for Colombian males and 6' for large males and Colombian females. Smaller "dwarf" locales can be kept in tubs fine but the larger locales (the BCCs and BCOs) will need cages/vivariums. These can be heated with flexwatt or radiant heat panels.

[alykoz]

they get BIG. the one at the place I work for is huge, not as big as our albino Burmese, but I have handled it myself one of the first days I even handled snakes lol so it was awesome. we just got a new smaller one that I'm sure I'll love too. they pretty much have the same temperament as balls, with less hiding

[purplemuffin]

Boas are awesome. If size is a concern, go for a hogg island. They get big but not quite as gigantic as the big Colombians!

Generally boas have awesome feeding responses and as far as personality goes, they tend to be fairly confident snakes, which generally means they are pretty cool with handling. Of course we have one scaredy cat boy who just huffs and puffs any time you get near him, so there is always that exception (of course that's the same with ball pythons!)

I adore them. Very cool pets. Love how active they are.

[Ronin]

Sorry if this is a dumb question. Is there any concern with keeping boa's and pythons in the same room at all?

[SnowShredder]

Sorry if this is a dumb question. Is there any concern with keeping boa's and pythons in the same room at all?

No concern at all. Mine are all kept in the same room.
Boas are great, you won't regret it. They aren't nearly as shy as balls so it's nice to take them out. Yes they get large but it won't seem as bad as you might be thinking. They're an awesome species

[Daybreaker]

No concern at all. Mine are all kept in the same room.

x2

There is a disease called IBD that seems to be most common in boas (I'm not saying it is common occurring disease - I don't want to be misunderstood) and it can be spread to pythons and some colubrids I believe (usually proving fatal very quickly) but I don't believe IBD is as common as some believe. The key that I go by is to get boas (and any snake) from reputable people/breeders. Skiploder posted a very informative thread on IBD: I'd do a search for it.

[Evenstar]

I'd check through more boa threads on here, there's been many people recently who made the jump and there's great info there.

The main differences for me with my boas is that they prefer slightly cooler temps than my pythons and they don't eat as frequently. Babies every 7 days, subadults 10-14 days, and I feed my adults every 2 weeks. Feeding weekly for older boas is not recommended as it can lead to obesity = lower lifespan/less healthy.

For housing I recommend at least a 4' cage for Colombian males and 6' for large males and Colombian females. Smaller "dwarf" locales can be kept in tubs fine but the larger locales (the BCCs and BCOs) will need cages/vivariums. These can be heated with flexwatt or radiant heat panels.

Excellent advise here. I agree. I also keep mine at slightly cooler temps at 78 with an 88 hotspot. Be careful with feeding. Boas have a much slower metabolism than pythons do and do not handle as large a prey relative to their size as well as pythons do - especially babies. Less is better with boas. While their care requirements are similar to ball pythons, just always remember that they are NOT ball pythons and there will be some differences.

Boas are AMAZING animals and once you get one, there's no going back! But be warned - they are addictive! Bet you can't have just one......

Sorry if this is a dumb question. Is there any concern with keeping boa's and pythons in the same room at all?

No concerns at all. I keep my young boas, not only in the same room as my balls and Angolans, but actually in the same rack. They are fine. Just make sure to QUARANTINE any new additions before keeping them in the same room as your existing collection, whether they are pythons or any other species.

There is a disease called IBD that seems to be most common in boas (I'm not saying it is common occurring disease - I don't want to be misunderstood) and it can be spread to pythons and some colubrids I believe (usually proving fatal very quickly) but I don't believe IBD is as common as some believe. The key that I go by is to get boas (and any snake) from reputable people/breeders. Skiploder posted a very informative thread on IBD: I'd do a search for it.

And this is only one reason to quarantine well! It is generally recommended to q/t for a minimum of 60 days. I q/t for 90 days to be extra safe. The problem with IBD is that it can sometimes not show up for a loooong time - a year or more. There are no guarantees. But strict q/t is the best way to safeguard. There are actually other health issues (with any new snake, not just boas) that present more of a concern than IBD, so proper q/t is vitally important for any new acquisition.

[Ronin]

Excellent advise here. I agree. I also keep mine at slightly cooler temps at 78 with an 88 hotspot. Be careful with feeding. Boas have a much slower metabolism than pythons do and do not handle as large a prey relative to their size as well as pythons do - especially babies. Less is better with boas. While their care requirements are similar to ball pythons, just always remember that they are NOT ball pythons and there will be some differences.

Boas are AMAZING animals and once you get one, there's no going back! But be warned - they are addictive! Bet you can't have just one......

Is there a % of weight to feed compared to a boa, like 5% or 10%???

[BFE Pets]

evenstar and daybreaker are some of our resident boa experts. take what they have to offer to heart! as far as a % to body weight for feeding a boa I havent seen any as of yet. The general rule for feeding boas is smaller is better. you want the prey item to be slightly smaller than the largest part of the body. when in doubt get a smaller prey item. i believe daybreaker gave a feeding schedule in a previous post. Its the same schedule that I use. I cant stress this enough to someone looking to get there first boa. Buy one from a trusted breeder! please dont get your first one from a cragslist crack pot! once you know what you are looking for and can do a through health check and have a proper qt procedure then maybe jump on a cl deal if you find one. but until you know what to look for dont risk your collection to save a few bucks!