Some beginners questions for a Red-Tail Boa - Page 5

dannybgoode · 02-21-16, 01:55 AM

For an adult boa I'd space that out a little more - 21 days between feeds. That said - what size prey is he on?

AwesomeGuy376 · 02-21-16, 02:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dannybgoode

For an adult boa I'd space that out a little more - 21 days between feeds. That said - what size prey is he on?

He has frozen rats. Hes also a dwarf, so his feeding schedule is a bit different than normal boas

dannybgoode · 02-21-16, 02:26 AM

As I say - he looks healthy enough but even accounting for him being a dwarf I wouldn't feed him any more than 2 weeks even working down to 3 weeks over time (even accounting for him being a dwarf).

Longer is better for boas...

bigsnakegirl785 · 02-21-16, 05:40 PM

He will be fine eating every 3-6 weeks, just the same as other boa constrictors. He honestly looks Colombian to me, males average 5'-6' so he's not small for his age at all even for a Colombian, did you get papers verifying he's a dwarf? You can stick to 3 weeks if you wish, but I would not feed any more often than that.

AwesomeGuy376 · 02-21-16, 05:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigsnakegirl785

He will be fine eating every 3-6 weeks, just the same as other boa constrictors. He honestly looks Colombian to me, males average 5'-6' so he's not small for his age at all even for a Colombian, did you get papers verifying he's a dwarf? You can stick to 3 weeks if you wish, but I would not feed any more often than that.

The store said he was Central American, and he's 6 years old. I just listened to the previous owner, who got him from the manager of the shop and was a breeder.

bigsnakegirl785 · 02-21-16, 05:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AwesomeGuy376

The store said he was Central American, and he's 6 years old. I just listened to the previous owner, who got him from the manager of the shop and was a breeder.

Without papers, you can't claim it as a dwarf. I guess it's harmless saying it in threads, if you acknowledge you don't know, but you will not be able to sell it or sell any offspring as anything other than "unknown" without verified paperwork. Going off size alone, I still don't think it's a dwarf. The patterns look Colombian, but it could very well be a mix. All boa constrictors can be fed similarly, within that 3-6 week time frame. Some details may change slightly depending on species, like constrictor needing significantly smaller meals due to their sensitive stomachs, but they all fit within the 3-6 week schedule, and where exactly they fall on that range is more an individual thing than a species/locality-dependent thing.

AwesomeGuy376 · 02-21-16, 06:11 PM

Well.. I don't plan on selling or breeding him, when I buy animals I get them and take responsibility for the rest of their life and to give them the best life possible. I also don't buy animals to breed them, he's a pet, not a money maker. And I don't think a professional shop that specializes in reptiles would classify him wrong. I'll go back and get papers, but I find it kinda hard to believe that they would classify him as the wrong species saying he's a dwarf considering it's literally a shop that only sells reptiles and has for years without bad reviews...

AwesomeGuy376 · 02-21-16, 06:24 PM

And even if he isn't Central American I'm fine, but the manager of the store and the previous owner both said he was a dwarf soooo

**Andy_G** · 02-21-16, 06:26 PM

Maybe it's just the pics...but I see a lot of nicaraguan (central) influence in that snake and at it's current age the smaller size would support that. Whether it's a mix or not who knows, but if I were you awesomeguy, I would call it what it was sold to me as under the circumstances...nothing more and nothing less, and try to find some kind of proof of lineage to support it in the meanwhile if it is in your interest to do so...and IF you ever sell it, sell with full disclosure.

Sounds like you're happy with your purchase and you're asking all the right questions about keeping it properly and that's really what's important here.

AwesomeGuy376 · 02-21-16, 06:43 PM

Thanks Andy

I'm really happy with him. I think he's what they said he is, but even if he isn't, oh well. I like him for who he is, a nice, calm snake with personality. I'm doing my best to keep him happy and I hope he is, with all the advice in place he seems much more active and curious. Honestly one of the best pets so far I've had and it's only been a week :P what's ironic is that I used to have pet rats and now I'm feeding him rats XD but they lived past their expectancy cause of the care I took (went on a lot of forums) so hopefully Rex will be the same way

macandchz · 02-21-16, 07:37 PM

dear ag, if you are going to seal anything around your tank or put heating pads under it, use foil tape, not duct tape. the foil tape can with-stand the heat, does not melt or come off. you do not need to add anything to his water. if you're worried use bottled water. the extra plants shouldn't bother him, but add them gradually as they get used to the order of their living space. use warm water for spraying as that helps with the humidity problem. good luck with your new snake.

AwesomeGuy376 · 02-21-16, 08:00 PM

Yea I've been spraying the tank and putting a wet towel over half of it. I think my last question is do I need one or three thermostats? I have 3 lights, but can I just put an extension cord to attach all three to just one thermostat?
This one in specific- https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000N...=ATVPDKIKX0DER

And will he be fine for 2 weeks till I get it?
And I think the lights are 50w each

dannybgoode · 02-22-16, 01:15 AM

My Rachel is a CA Bci- snakes. I expect her to reach 6' max so 4-5' for a male, assuming it is a CA, would seem about right.

Also people do have a habit of exaggerating the size of their snakes so even if a Columbian Bci then a male at 5-6' wouldn't be far off.

I also have no interest in breeding mine so kick back and enjoy the snake whatever the exact genes it carries.

AwesomeGuy376 · 02-28-16, 05:09 PM

Hey guys, just wanted to leave an update for those that were curious. So i finally got the thermostat and CHE, which have been working fine. The hotspot is set around 88 with the cool at 80 constant. Its a huge relief to have that thermostat! He's also been coming out a lot more often and seems to be comfortable switching between temp gradients. I had his first handling session a couple days ago and went really well, he was really calm and relaxed. He will be fed for the first time on Tuesday and hopefully it will go well. The only last concern is that hes stargazing, which i searched online to see IDB. I did a few more handling sessions then I did the traditional tests for IDB (\holding the end of him to see if hell climb up) which he did flawlessly, so I'm not that concerned. but yea, that's about were we are with him. Hes actually out right now staring at me XD He overall seems to be doing great and again i thank you for all yalls help

So ill leave ya with some pics

bigsnakegirl785 · 02-28-16, 05:40 PM

IBD stargazing is not what you think it is. It is not them just staring up or staring into space. That is 100% totally normal behavior for many species of snake, if the snake reacts and moves around throughout the day it's just sleeping or resting.

No, what stargazing is, in reference to IBD, is the lack of muscle control (i.e. rolling around, twisting the head, unable to right itself, etc.). It's very misleading.