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  1. #1
    BPnet Veteran NewmanLovesSnakes's Avatar
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    Rosy Boa Care/ Setup (Brand New Member)

    Hello new family, I just joined this forum today. I’ve loved snakes my entire life. I’ve only ever owned a ball python (hints why I joined). I just convinced my wife to let me get a snake, I’ve wanted a Rosy Boa for years so come hell or high water that’s what I’m going to get lol. I would appreciate a setup/ care sheet from the group as detailed as possible. I’ve read a lot about these snakes recently but I know it’s always good to get advise right from the people who own them. Thank in advance y’all I really appreciate it.


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  2. #2
    Bogertophis's Avatar
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    Hello &

    I've kept rosy boas for several decades (still have just one) & successfully bred them 6 times in the past. But rather than re-write all the info, I pretty much
    agree with what's given here: http://www.exoticpetvet.com/rosy-boa-care.html

    I recommend & use only glass tanks with screen tops (they need ventilation, NOT humidity), with UTH (about 90*) at one end, cool side 70-80* (sames as my
    ambient house temperatures (winter-summer). They'll usually want live pinks at first, but transition to f/t pretty well. (When I've sold them in the past, I took
    care of switching them & they never had a shorter feeding record than 10 meals before they left my care, to be sure they were easy to feed.) For substrate, I
    line my tanks with one layer of paper towel, on which I put a layer of 50:50 Carefresh & clean paper shreds (office paper that I shred). Neonate rosy boas love
    to burrow (like an "ant farm" lol) so if you give them deeper substrate, they'll enjoy it. They are desert snakes, yes, but they do need a small water bowl to drink
    from (some ppl try to say otherwise...). Great choice for a pet...females get about 40" while males stay about 32", if that matters. Don't be shocked if they
    get fussy about eating all winter...mine skip some meals but are not brumated (unless needed for breeding) & they don't lose much weight even when they don't
    eat much for a couple months...they'll make up for lost time in spring.

    As with ANY new pet snake, feeding comes before handling: make sure they've taken several meals while in your care before you do any handling. Easy does it.

    I don't use lights on my rosy boa cages, but now & then take them out for a little (hand-held) natural outdoor sunshine (temps. permitting).
    Rudeness is the weak man's imitation of strength.
    Eric Hoffer (1902 - 1983)

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    TechnoCheese (06-26-2019)

  4. #3
    BPnet Veteran NewmanLovesSnakes's Avatar
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    Re: Rosy Boa Care/ Setup (Brand New Member)

    I really appreciate you so much, I’m going to save all this information do I have a proper care sheet. When I get the snake I’ll post pictures. I’m still going back and forth with my wife about the snake but this is going to be one of those issues I put my foot down about.


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  5. #4
    Bogertophis's Avatar
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    What's one more little snake, eh? Rosy boas are cute little pets...I hope your wife warms up to the idea.
    Rudeness is the weak man's imitation of strength.
    Eric Hoffer (1902 - 1983)

  6. #5
    BPnet Veteran NewmanLovesSnakes's Avatar
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    Re: Rosy Boa Care/ Setup (Brand New Member)

    Quote Originally Posted by Bogertophis View Post
    What's one more little snake, eh? Rosy boas are cute little pets...I hope your wife warms up to the idea.
    I think she will honestly, she will need a little more convincing once it gets here, or honestly she could never touch it or look at it idc. She’s not snake ignorant, she just doesn’t really care for them. I have another very important question, I live in Louisiana where the humidity gets up in the 90-100% sometimes. My snake will obviously be indoors and can be air conditioned if need be. This question might sound silly but will the air humidity inside my house be high like it will outside? If so how can I combat this?


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  7. #6
    BPnet Veteran Alicia's Avatar
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    Re: Rosy Boa Care/ Setup (Brand New Member)

    Quote Originally Posted by NewmanLovesSnakes View Post
    I have another very important question, I live in Louisiana where the humidity gets up in the 90-100% sometimes. My snake will obviously be indoors and can be air conditioned if need be. This question might sound silly but will the air humidity inside my house be high like it will outside? If so how can I combat this?


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    Do you have a humidity gauge? Even just an Accurite or Taylor digital one? That might give you some idea. Plus, you'll need it a thermometer/hygrometer for the snake, anyway

    If humidity is high, an incandescent bulb or CHE can help drive it down. I use a 40 watt light bulb as the heat source for my Rosy, and that honestly seems to work fine.

    My Rosy Boa is in a 20gal long with a sliding screen top. This seems to work for her fine. I've not measured her in a while, but she is pushing 40".

    On top of her hide, or in branches when I have them in the cage for her, I've temp-gunned a hot spot up to 115 degrees while, in the hide, it's a cozy 86-88. I say this, because she'll occasionally make use of the extremely high temperatures to charge up her batteries when she's very hungry. Otherwise, she moves back and forth between the warm and cold sides of her cage throughout the day. When ambient temps exceed the upper 70s in the studio, I turn off her light. And of course it's off at night. Mine does skip a few months of eating in the winter, a habit she started ~14 years ago.

    For substrate, I just use aspen. Usually she wears trails in in, sometimes she burrows. (This is a ~23 year old snake, and she is still fairly active from time to time.)

    Otherwise, there's nothing I'd add to what Bogertophis has already posted. Mine, too, always has water available in a small bowl, the usual warm and cold hides, and will climb whenever given the opportunity. Very fun, very forgiving little animal - just nail that humidity

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  9. #7
    Bogertophis's Avatar
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    Re: Rosy Boa Care/ Setup (Brand New Member)

    Quote Originally Posted by NewmanLovesSnakes View Post
    ... I have another very important question, I live in Louisiana where the humidity gets up in the 90-100% sometimes. My snake will obviously be indoors and can be air conditioned if need be. This question might sound silly but will the air humidity inside my house be high like it will outside? If so how can I combat this? ...
    I live in a humid state too...don't worry about it. Your house has heat & A/C, I assume? Both remove quite a bit of moisture from the air, as does the UTH for the
    snakes glass tank. Please DO use a glass tank with screen top though, NOT one of these sealed-up plastic enclosures with very little air flow. Not a silly question...
    but not a deal-breaker, either.

    BTW, while the desert (where these are native) is very dry, keep in mind they spend a lot of time underground when it's hot, and the ground holds more
    moisture than does the desert air. The underground temperatures are lower too...that's how they survive. Otherwise they'd die of heat stroke.
    Last edited by Bogertophis; 06-25-2019 at 10:46 PM.
    Rudeness is the weak man's imitation of strength.
    Eric Hoffer (1902 - 1983)

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  11. #8
    BPnet Veteran NewmanLovesSnakes's Avatar
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    Re: Rosy Boa Care/ Setup (Brand New Member)

    Quote Originally Posted by Alicia View Post
    Do you have a humidity gauge? Even just an Accurite or Taylor digital one? That might give you some idea. Plus, you'll need it a thermometer/hygrometer for the snake, anyway

    If humidity is high, an incandescent bulb or CHE can help drive it down. I use a 40 watt light bulb as the heat source for my Rosy, and that honestly seems to work fine.

    My Rosy Boa is in a 20gal long with a sliding screen top. This seems to work for her fine. I've not measured her in a while, but she is pushing 40".

    On top of her hide, or in branches when I have them in the cage for her, I've temp-gunned a hot spot up to 115 degrees while, in the hide, it's a cozy 86-88. I say this, because she'll occasionally make use of the extremely high temperatures to charge up her batteries when she's very hungry. Otherwise, she moves back and forth between the warm and cold sides of her cage throughout the day. When ambient temps exceed the upper 70s in the studio, I turn off her light. And of course it's off at night. Mine does skip a few months of eating in the winter, a habit she started ~14 years ago.

    For substrate, I just use aspen. Usually she wears trails in in, sometimes she burrows. (This is a ~23 year old snake, and she is still fairly active from time to time.)

    Otherwise, there's nothing I'd add to what Bogertophis has already posted. Mine, too, always has water available in a small bowl, the usual warm and cold hides, and will climb whenever given the opportunity. Very fun, very forgiving little animal - just nail that humidity
    I really appreciate you, I have a whole cart of stuff set up on eBay I plan on ordering. I plan on getting two digital gauges first so I can test everything out. I’m still in the early stages, I have a 20 gallon tank and that’s about it other than an old light. I have a really good set up ready and I’m looking forward to ordering it here soon. I was just very worried because Louisiana gets so hot and humid. I said to myself I could always get another ball python but honestly I’ve wanted this snake for years now. I appreciate the advise and if my reading is high I’m going to try all of those things. I’ve even added a small dehumidifier to my cart if need be. The next solution will be making sure I can run all devices without throwing a breaker


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  13. #9
    BPnet Veteran NewmanLovesSnakes's Avatar
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    Re: Rosy Boa Care/ Setup (Brand New Member)

    Quote Originally Posted by Bogertophis View Post
    I live in a humid state too...don't worry about it. Your house has heat & A/C, I assume? Both remove quite a bit of moisture from the air, as does the UTH for the
    snakes glass tank. Please DO use a glass tank with screen top though, NOT one of these sealed-up plastic enclosures with very little air flow. Not a silly question...
    but not a deal-breaker, either.

    BTW, while the desert (where these are native) is very dry, keep in mind they spend a lot of time underground when it's hot, and the ground holds more
    moisture than does the desert air. The underground temperatures are lower too...that's how they survive. Otherwise they'd die of heat stroke.
    You where my voice of reassurance lol I was worried because this state is like hell’s armpit. I feel better knowing you manage just fine in a humid state like me. Also I appreciate that information I did not take that into consideration about the ground temp and humidity.


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  14. #10
    Bogertophis's Avatar
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    Re: Rosy Boa Care/ Setup (Brand New Member)

    Quote Originally Posted by NewmanLovesSnakes View Post
    ... this state is like hell’s armpit. I feel better knowing you manage just fine in a humid state like me. Also I appreciate that information I did not take that into consideration about the ground temp and humidity.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

    Not to worry: you're apparently in the left pit, while I'm in the right one, I also keep other desert snakes here (a TX longnose & 3 Trans Pecos rat snakes) & have
    for well over 10 years now, without any difficulty. BTW, some rosy boas are from the coastal side of the mountains too...they're pretty flexible. I do not use any sort of
    dehumidifier either...just what my A/C pulls out.
    Rudeness is the weak man's imitation of strength.
    Eric Hoffer (1902 - 1983)

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