Friends meet my 5ft RTB!

[red_tail_ale]

So, about a week ago my two friends from Northern IL came to visit me. Just so happened they had yet to meet Basil, my 5ft red tailed boa.


One friend (a guy) took absolutely no interest and avoided her at all costs.
My second friend (a girl) seemed scared at first but quickly livened up to the boa.

My guy friend did not appear in any of these pictures.
My girl friend had SOME pictures taken with my boa, but she asked me not to share them.

Meanwhile, she took some GREAT photos of me with Basil, probably the best I've ever seen! It's too rare to find myself posing for a photo with my snake.

Enjoy, fellow boa lovers!

(Excuse my sweaty appearance....I had the windows open since the IL summer happened to be 55% humidity and 87 degrees at that time. Basil seemed to love the environment, and was far more sociable than usual.)

[MrBD1980]

Gorgeous looking boa!! Very nice!

[SnakeyJay]

Nice photos :)

[CDN_Blood]

Back when I used to be part of our local Reptile Club, we used to do public exhibitions in malls and such during Wildlife Week to promote awareness and eduction regarding reptiles and amphibians, and one thing I noticed during those events is that the vast majority of men were as you describe your male friend, whereas women were *much* more accepting and willing to learn about the animals, even though most were a little afraid of them.

I think it's a male ego thing where men who are actually afraid of them butch it-up and say "I don't like snakes" and such - a masquerade to hide their fear, which is usually based in simply not having the actual facts about the animals. It speaks volumes about the differences in how men and women's brains work when faced with the unknown or things that frighten them. Yet another reason women are referred to as the 'fairer sex' :)

[red_tail_ale]

Thanks for the responses guys :)

You're right, CDN_Blood. The breeder I purchased her from was a female and owned over 8 different species of snakes (Burmese pythons, assorted boas, ball pythons, etc.,) who ran her breeding program with a friend (also a female). A good friend of mine is also a woman and regularly comes to visit Basil when she's not shedding or digesting. Meanwhile my two best friends, both guys, won't get anywhere near her and refuse to watch me feed her.

It's funny to watch couples come over and have the girlfriend hold the snake and the boyfriend get scared :D

[jennuhkins]

makes me want to get into larger snakes! but i love my corns so much

[red_tail_ale]

Big snakes are nice- they don't see you as predator or prey. But at the same time, smaller snakes can be easier to handle. My boa loves to intertwine herself in things (eg., storage shelves, bars on benches/furniture) and refuse to be unwound when I'm ready to put her up :P I imagine corns and ball pythons are simpler in that respect.

[Wildside]

I've found it's much much easier to sell snakes to women than it is men :D

[Jendee]

I've never sold a snake to a women LOl I live next to a house full of guys they all xame from mexico on a work release theyve been my neighbors every summer for 2 yrs now and theyve gotten comfortable enough to pose for pictures with my boas to show friends back home we cant communicate so i cant fill them with info but the smile now on their faces speaks wonders :)
Great pictures I really like the first 2!
Boas I think are more handlable then corns and such BC the smaller snakes are way more Darryl/flighty as a boa well chill in your lap while you read. Watch TV surf the net and such. You can also allow them to "Cruz" the house

[MrBD1980]

OP: great pics. My misus is less keen on snakes than I am, although I think that's due to her love of small fluffy things and her distaste of a predator diet! I must say though she has me fear just is less keen!

Jendee: I think if I let my boa cruz the house it would become the shi**est game of hide and go seek ever!

Brian

[bigsnakegirl785]

Basil is very pretty! Most of the people I know like reptiles, but Harrison. He was scared to death of my ball python. He thought Bud was going to eat him alive when he was just 2 ft long! lol Now he's 3.5 ft long and I bet I couldn't get him in the same house as Bud.

[Jendee]

OP: great pics. My misus is less keen on snakes than I am, although I think that's due to her love of small fluffy things and her distaste of a predator diet! I must say though she has me fear just is less keen!

Jendee: I think if I let my boa cruz the house it would become the shi**est game of hide and go seek ever!

Brian
LOLLL
Well obviously supervised ;) about 6 yes ago a boa went mia (escape not a cruzier) found him 4 months later in my couch LOL he was a tiny bigger though it would be much harder to lose a 6 footer!

[Kettennatter]

I've found it's much much easier to sell snakes to women than it is men :D

I noticed that women are far more likely to come up to you and touch the snake you handle. I had my BCI sexed yesterday (It's a girl!) and a 5-yo and her mother came right up, with the father standing in the background. I have no idea how often this scene when I checked out a snake at a pet store.

I otherwise agree with Jendee that boas are easy to handle because they are so calm. They are rather strong, but you pretty much have a good idea what they are up to. Most colubrids have a nice tendency to surprise you.