First Boa

[Terranaut]

Bought our first Boa at the St.Jacobs reptile expo. Don't know jack about taki g car of a boa. His eyes are blue so I assume h is in shed. Super docile even in shed so we had to have him. He is a male carmel boa ??? Better identification would be appreciated if you can. Here he is , yes he is an adult but my son held him and it was love at first sight. Advice for care???
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/terranaut0/photo-14.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/terranaut0/photo-15.jpg
We also picked up a nice kingsnake too.
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/terranaut0/photo-12.jpg

[marvelfreak]

Very nice looking Boa and cool King.

[dudesteve151]

Wow great animals love the colors.

[Terranaut]

Why thank you!!

[Terranaut]

Thirsty little guy wow!! Bet he drank 200-300 ml of water in one sitting.
Can anyone be more specific on his breed from the pics?
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/terranaut0/photo-17.jpg

[sassy_snake_lady]

Why get a boa if you have no idea how to care for one?

Nice looking boa and I replied on your other thread about the king :)

[Terranaut]

Why get a boa if you have no idea how to care for one?

Nice looking boa and I replied on your other thread about the king :)

Be assured he will be taken perfect care of. We do have another snake in the house and I will learn eveything I need to know "today" so to speak. I have everything needed for his enclosure already. So I guess the answer to why is to enjoy the learning as well as the snake.
Thanks for being concerned but he will be better than fine.

[alessia55]

Congrats on your first boa. Hopefully you'll manage to get everything he needs to live happily. Sorry I can't help with the type of boa he is-- but he's gorgeous! :) I wish you'd gotten more info from the person you got him from. You could've gotten more answers from him

[Terranaut]

They guy I got him from wasn't 100% on some of the things I asked him. I think he may have bought him to breed then changed his mind. If it wasn't for my son I don't think I would have got him. Puppy dog tame. Blue eyes and not even a hint of temper. Awsome. Can't wait till we get to feed him. Owner said he eats F/T. I hope so. Not a scar on him so lets hope its true ;)

[bigsnakegirl785]

I've looked at many different ones pics, and it appears to be a Sonoran boa constrictor. I'm not 100% sure, but based off of observation that's what I'd say it is.

[snake man12]

Wow he almost looks like a salmon but a little faded. I wish mine was that big

[Terranaut]

So is the normal?? Boa burrying itself in the substrate?
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/terranaut0/photo-18.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/terranaut0/photo-19.jpg

[Nismo89]

100% normal. Boas are burrowers. Although I own a different species BRB I find her burrowed all the time sometimes I can't even find her but I know she's hidden in there somewhere lol. Nice looking boa btw I want a sunglow boa someday

[Terranaut]

Hes way to big to hide ;)

[Nismo89]

I wish I could say the same about my Brazilian lol but she's still just a little girl only around 28" at last rough check I believe.

[Jenn_06]

Looks like a salmon or hypo but now sure until it sheds then you will see the colors better. I'm on my phone so I can't link you to a really good care sheet for boas but I'll get one up soon. It's normal for it to hide like that if I had aspen in my cages all my boas will do that. Just make sure you spray the cage once a day until he sheds.
Congrats on the new snakes.

[Terranaut]

Thanks for the tip. Will do.

[millertime89]

great looking boa, love the head shot.

[Terranaut]

Can't wait for the post shed picture session. I'll do a profile then. Going to have his sex confirmed in the next couple days. We are quite happy.

[bbb13]

Thirsty little guy wow!! Bet he drank 200-300 ml of water in one sitting.
Can anyone be more specific on his breed from the pics?
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/terranaut0/photo-17.jpg
I can't speak on the burrowing, my little fella spends 3/4 of his time off the ground on his perch or hiding in his trees. And I can count how many times I've actually seen him drink or even go in his water. But he seems quite content taking all but one of his BM's in his water bowl.To each their own I suppose. I do however make a point to set him in his water once or twice a week after handling him, hell my parents gave me baths when I didn't want em' lol. You have a great looking snake there man.:yes:

[snake man12]

I'm actually gonna say it again, Beautiful boa

[Terranaut]

Thanks everyone. He was scratching his nose today so hopefully some post shed pics soon.

[alessia55]

can't wait to see those post-shed pics...

[Terranaut]

Well the kids were dying to feed him so even though he is in shed I thought what the hell lets see if he's hungry. Yup ;)
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/terranaut0/photo-25.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/terranaut0/photo-26.jpg

[blindfireak40]

Grats on the first feed!! One thing that I'm not sure if you're planning on or not: make sure he sheds before taking him to a vet or anything else like that. Handling can cause the old skin to stick to the new skin, adding difficulty. Also, snakes stress more in shed anyway and a vet visit will only compound matters. Better to wait until he's at his best :)

Once again, congratulations! He looks great! :)

[millertime89]

OM NOM NOM NOM!
He looks awesome.

[Terranaut]

By the way that rat was f/t. He took it with absolutely no hesitation. He hit it hard and "killed" it a full 5 min before he ate it. Our other 2 snakes eat fuzzys and hoppers so my wife and kids were flipping out watching. Funny ;)

[KrazyKat]

Congrats! He looks like a very clean looking hypo to me, but he could also be a pastel - it will be easier to guess once he sheds. Here are a couple good caresheets: RED-TAIL BOA Care Guide and Frequently Asked Questions (http://redtailboafaq.com/) and the Ultimate Care Guide: RedTailBoas.com Main Menu - Ultimate Care Guides (http://www.redtailboas.com/content/section/120-ultimate-care-guides.html)

[alessia55]

That's awesome! Great feeding pics. Watching a big snake eat is way more exciting than watching a small one eat lol, I totally understand your kids' reactions :p

[Terranaut]

Thanks Kat for the links = great info!!

[KrazyKat]

Thanks Kat for the links = great info!!

Don't mention it, glad to help! :) And I can't wait to see pics of your lovely boy once he sheds ;)

[Terranaut]

Shed has begun. Pics to follow!!!
Eye caps came right off. Might take a while though.
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/terranaut0/photo-27.jpg

[youngster]

Wow you can see the difference! Post-shed you'll have a pink snake I expect! :P

[Terranaut]

Poor guy is having a rough shed. Didn't know to pre soak him. Hes getting a nice bath and towel down after the kids hockey games. Only about 1/3 came off in little chunks. I guess his rehomeing stressed him out worse than we new. :(

[alessia55]

Ohh I bet he'll look awesome when he gets it all off. Can't wait to see those post-shed pics!

[Terranaut]

Well after a nice bath we git him all cleared off other than a spot on the top if his head. Here are sime post shed shots. Anyone think he could be a dwarf boa? We were told he had mated once already but after seeing another mate ready male he seems a bit small.
Here we go.
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/terranaut0/photo-32.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/terranaut0/photo-31.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/terranaut0/photo-30.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/terranaut0/photo-29.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/terranaut0/photo-28.jpg

[Lankyrob]

Poor guy is having a rough shed. Didn't know to pre soak him. Hes getting a nice bath and towel down after the kids hockey games. Only about 1/3 came off in little chunks. I guess his rehomeing stressed him out worse than we new. :(

You shouldnt need to pre-soak a snake to get a good shed, up the humidity in its viv when in blue but shouldnt be a need for a soak if the husbandry is spot on.

[Terranaut]

I picked up a 90 gallon lexan tank for free. I plan on making him a much better setup. Humidity can be tough to make here in Canada once the night temps drop below freezing. BUT we will make it happen for him. He's worth it!!

[Terranaut]

Aftermath of his bath. Great little bonding experience for us and him. We were slow and gentle and he sure seemed to know we were helping him even if he isn't smart enough to understand why. I can't believe how much he likes my son. In a circle of people he always goes to him. We are so happy with him!!
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/terranaut0/photo-33.jpg

[alessia55]

Aww I'm so glad you're all so happy with him! It's great to hear your son is enjoying him too :) And he looks awesome after his shed too!!
In one of the photos it looks like your son has the boa around his neck... It's really dangerous, no matter how tame the snake is. If the snake gets spooked and jerks backwards, he can accidentally choke or knockout your son. Just be careful. Again, I can't really tell, but this is the photo I'm referring to:

http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/terranaut0/photo-29.jpg

[Terranaut]

Yup he hangs him there often but isn't allowed to handle him unsupervised. I have also told him not to let him cross over himself when on him. Thanks for the tip though :)

[It'sKourtneyYo]

Wow!!! Thats a nice looking boa! I love his colors! Especially his tail!
To me it looks like some type of red tail morph but I'm not sure because I don't really know much about red tails or morphs. I do know that I want one someday!