RTB or Coastal Carpet

[herpchick]

Ok so i work at a petstore and i had brought home a BRB over the weekend as my new snake but had to take it back due to severe problems keeping humidity up enough for the little guy. :-(

So now i am looking at either a RTB or Coastal Carpet but wanted some input on what you all recommend ive always liked RTBs but wasnt ready for one at first so i got a ball. But now i am ready to take on a new snake i wanted a male im either as they get big but not nearly as large as some females. Can you also tell me how large some of your RTBs and Coastals are as adults? The distributor said rtb males tend to stay around the 6-7 foot mark and i read its about the same for male coastals as well. I know the RTBs are easier on my pocket though.

[KORBIN5895]

Boas all the way! My three year old bci is about 5.5 feet long.

[red ink]

What do you want from your new snake?

I have no experience in Boas... do they behave differently to carpets?

[herpchick]

I want something that will be super tame that i can drag out to petstores and work or just sit with me and watch tv or play video games. But i also want it to be a midsized snake kinda like my bp was.

[alessia55]

RTBs and Carpets will get bigger than a ball python. Carpets are much more active, and you probably won't get to just lounge around with a carpet. Some RTBs are more calm and you can do that with them- but they are much larger than a ball python... both as far as length and girth.

Since you mentioned you used to have a ball python... why not get another? What happened to your first one?

Also, both RTBs and Carpets will need larger enclosures than what you would get for a BRB or a BP. So you'll have to take that into consideration. Also, RTBs and Carpets also need higher-than-room-humidity levels (meaning, you'll have to deal with raising the humidity in their enclosures). You mentioned having trouble doing this with your BRB. What was the issue? What kind of enclosure did you have? What techniques did you try? What was the highest you could get the humidity to go?

[herpchick]

I know both species will be larger than my bp was.

BPs are cool and all but honestly im just bored with them right now - constantly hiding, going off feed for months at a time... I mean he was an awesome snake but again i have ALWAYS wanted a RTB or larger snake but it wasnt an option when i first got my BP. I ended up rehoming him as i dont have space for another tank i would love to have 2 but my hubby said i can have 2 (and only 2) when we get a house

Yes I understand they will need a larger enclosure. I can manage higher than room temp humidity but everything i read for neonate BRB required 75+ humidity. I could only keep it at 50-60%. I tried covering the cage, moss, water, and im not home enough to mist ALL day. I have a glass aquarium with a screen top in a basement. But I also used to soak my BP an hour a day when he went into shed mode.

[moshirimon]

Personally I prefer boas over pythons. Alot more muscle tone, I like their "loaf of bread" shaped bodies, and i like the way they "cling" onto you with extreme power. not saying the pythons dont have this power but they seem to be more chilling, or hanging when you handle them. A 6-7 foot RTB will eat larger prey than a 6-7 foot carpet so altough RTBS may be easier on your pocket to buy the actual animal, they cost more to feed. Carpets are a bit too slender for my liking but still a really cool animal and i'd say if size is an issue go with a carpet. plus I hear they grow reallly slow.

Also there are boas that stay smaller, check out Hogg Islands, Nicaraguans, and i'm sure theres more

[exwizard]

A Boa would probably be your best bet. Humidity isnt as much of an issue with them as with BRBs or BPs. They are calmer more handleable snakes as well. They also get to be around 6-7' for a male depending on the locality. There are some Boas that get bigger than that but you should be able to find a locality that fits your needs. Btw BCIs are specifically what you need since they dont get as big as BCCs.

[alessia55]

Originally Posted by herpchick

Yes I understand they will need a larger enclosure. I can manage higher than room temp humidity but everything i read for neonate BRB required 75+ humidity. I could only keep it at 50-60%. I tried covering the cage, moss, water, and im not home enough to mist ALL day. I have a glass aquarium with a screen top in a basement. But I also used to soak my BP an hour a day when he went into shed mode.

Part of your problem is that glass enclosure with a screen top in the basement. You'll find that you'll have the same problem with an RTB or a carpet. I suggest you get an enclosure that will support humidity, such as the ones from Animal Plastics, Boaphile, etc. The glass ones (tanks, etc) are awful for keeping humidity. Plus an RTB or a carpet will benefit from a non-glass enclosure too. So that's something you might want to look into before you get your new snake Putting the enclosure somewhere where there is better humidity, like a bedroom rather than the basement, will also help your cause.

Other than that, if you can get that larger enclosure that will hold humidity well, either snakes will be a good choice. A carpet will need a semi-aboreal enclosure (though other carpet experts on here will be able to tell you more about that). From what you mentioned, like I said before, an RTB is going to be more relaxed than a carpet python.

(Kind of irrelevant since you no longer have a BP, but soaking your BP for an hour a day while in shed is unnecessary and can even be damaging to the BP to be in water for that long. A snake will soak itself in its own water dish if it needs to, but those prolonged baths aren't good for them.)

[Strutter769]

Two words: Boa Constrictor

Ok, so I'm somewhat biased, but that's my suggestion and I'm stickin' to it!

Get a "True" Red-Tailed Boa. A locality. Surinam, Peruvian Pacullpa, Guyana.. just a few examples.

[herpchick]

It was going to be of the columbian locality

[Strutter769]

Colombians are great too! Lucy's been with me since 1996! I wouldn't trade her for the world. Care to meet her? http://www.ssnakess.com/forums/boa-c...file-lucy.html

[KORBIN5895]

I recant my suggestion and feel you should wait. If you got bored with your royal I guarantee you will get bored with just about any other boid. Maybe you should try a garter snake. That's my next species.

[Rogue628]

I have both and each are great animals with great temperaments. In all honesty, you can't go wrong with either. Husbandry is a tad bit easier with a carpet as they have no humidity requirements, as Shauny on here told me when I first got mine. Both are great eaters and easy to handle as an adult. I don't have any experience with carpet hatchlings, but BCI hatchlings are usually docile (all of mine were).

It's going to come down to what you're looking for in an animal. If you want one that's got a really good chance of being mellow, one that you can chill out with, go boa. If you want one that thinks it's in a new world each time you get it out, giving you hours of entertainment by never sitting still, or at least for long, making you the mommy of a toddler (because you can't let them go, they get into everything! lol), go carpet. IMHO, carpets have a better personality because of their more curious behavior. Boas are curious, but I don't think it beats the carpets curiosity.

I had a hard time deciding when I got my BCI because I wanted a carpet around the same time too. I chose BCI because of initial affordability and I already had previous experience with them so I knew what to expect. The carpet pretty much fell into my lap as a guy I know wanted to rehome his. She's an adult (unsure of age) and is as much of a delight to interact with as the boa, maybe more so. Her antics outside the cage always make me smile and gives me the giggles. My boa will watch movies with me lol.

Good luck with whatever you decide to get. It's a tough decision.

[hellosugaree]

Carpet carpet carpet carpet carpet. All the way, end of story