A nice, big, display animal.

[BoidsUnlimited]

Well.......I have made up my mind on getting into boas. BUT....I just and always have loved large pythons.

I was thinking of getting one as a nice display animal.

My favorites are Retics and Burms.....but Retics are just too big, and the Burms are too big as well.

What other types are there? Considering this will be a DISPLAY and not handled often would you recommend a Scrub Python?

No big hurry really. Just want some opinions. Consider this....I can make a cage no bigger than 12x8.

I was thinking of..when the time comes...looking into some adoption centers and maybe they will have a nice sized male Burm?

Who knows...we're talking 6-10 months int he future here.

Thanks,

BU

[peterm15]

are you ready for that kinda commitment... thats a very large animal... for displays i always liked gtp's... now thats a nice snake...

[BoidsUnlimited]

I have owned Burmese Pythons in the past........so yes.....I am.

Knowing myself and my love for Burms. I will most likely go to a show in search of a Scrub/Papuan/BCI and come home with a cute lil normal male Burm :)

Happened last time I owned snakes.......

[JimmyDavid]

You could consider Rock pythons. They have the reputation of becoming gigantic, but to be honest, in captivity they only show moderate growth. There are no giants, like burms and retics, as far as captive rocks go. I would be surprised to see one outgrowing 14 feet in a cage.
Are you sure you wanna go back to Boas? I find pythons much more interesting (and vomit a lot less, that's for sure). A nice carpet python or a papuan would be my choices.
Respect to all the boa people out here, though. ;)

[peterm15]

well if you have owned one... go for it... just get a looker!!! lol

[Shad0w]

I would go with a carpet :D

[BoidsUnlimited]

Nah I love boas! Mainly the plain ol' BCI. Moderate size, pretty, and not very expensive.

I will most likely end up with a nice Burm or Papuan.

I am considering a pair of IJs also:)

[The Dom]

Hey jimmy,

Have you ever seen rocks that exceed 14 Feet? You just got me wondering .. Ive only seen one that was 16 feet and HUGE.. but except for that all the ones I know off are around 8-13 feet ..

I know of 4 that are just under 13 feet .. Including mine .. I wonder why that is .. or if its just that ppl don't keep em long enough to grow them out..

Anywho .. Just rambling
Dom

[JimmyDavid]

Hi Dom,
It's strange, isn't it? Afrocks are known for being so big, but where are the big ones in captivity????
I've seen only a few over 14 feet, and still they were caught already at a good size (didn't start all the way from captives).
A few years ago we could say that there weren't enough afrocks in captivity to make for a good statistic. But today there are plenty of those snakes around, just like burms. There should be some giants showing around by now...
That's why i posted a thread some time ago, asking for everybody to post pics of rocks. Yours, was pretty much the biggest that we got in the thread.

[BoidsUnlimited]

If this IS the case....I may just go with an Afrock.

But once again...who knows!

[daiyoukai]

conda?

[JimmyDavid]

I believe you are talking about yellows. Because if the guy wants a medium sized animal, then a green anaconda is not a good choice.

[BoidsUnlimited]

Trust me...I would LOVE a Green Annie. I just dont have the TIME or MONEY to house something that is gonna be 15+ feet and have a cage half water..........

A yellow would be nice though:)

The Afrocks or Male Burm sound best to me so far :D
Jimmy do you own any larger pythons?

[JimmyDavid]

Burms, rocks, retics....you name it.

[BoidsUnlimited]

Awesome!

Got any pictures?

[JimmyDavid]

I have some nice new pics in my digital camera that i will pass into my computer. I'll post them soon.
Meanwhile, i uploaded an old pic of my giant burm. You'll find it at:
www.ssnakess.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=29658

That burm died a few months ago. I keep mostly retics now.

[BoidsUnlimited]

WOW...

What did you house her in exactly?

[JimmyDavid]

In a 10 foot long enclosure. Quite wide too.
I have a 14' retic in there now, but she doesn't fill that cage like a 21' , 300+ pound burm did ;)
Nevertheless she will have lots of space to live in as she grows, and in a couple of years she can be gigantic as well. So, it's good to plan ahead, specially the required space.

[McCarthy Boas]

Hi Jimmy,

I am sorry to here about Anastacia I will miss seeing new pictures of her.
Do you know what she died from?

Take care
Tom McCarthy

[JimmyDavid]

Hi there.
I believe it had something to do with a rabbit that she didn't digest very well.
She was quite young.

[McCarthy Boas]

Hi BU,

I think you should get yourself a big BCI female boa for a display animal.
Remember you still have to be able to handle the snake for cleaning, feeding and medical problems. If you have a burm or a retic that you don't handle a lot you could have some problems later on when the snake is to big to handle when you need to.

http://www.mccarthyboas.com/Xena_Tom12.JPG

http://www.mccarthyboas.com/Xena_Tom07.JPG

Take care
Tom McCarthy

[CHRISANDBOIDS14]

Yeah....its strange that there arent that many big afrocks around?! Even though They MAY(but seldom do) reach 23 ft. Well, thats the supposed max for the species. I think average max is 21(all these statistics stem from wild specimens).

There are two subspecies of ARP. There is Python s. sebae, and Python s. natalensis(I think thats the right spelling). The latter is the smaller one. Though they still get quite large. Bob Clark has them. Both species.

I think a papuan would be a good choice too, as they dont get TOO big. I am probably going to get a pair in the next year or two, as they are the biggest snake you can legally own in AB.

Anyways......in your circumstance I would go afrock or papuan myself. Unless I found a REALLY nice Female Coastal.

C.

[JimmyDavid]

McCarthy, that boa looks very nice.

[BoidsUnlimited]

I use to own a Male Burmese Python..who I handled quite often.

McCarthy Boas how big exactly is that BCI?

When I do plan on getting some BCIs...maybe I'll drop you a line? I like what I see so far...that boa looks exceptionally healthy

[McCarthy Boas]

Her name Xena she is 13 to 14 years old, 9' 6" long and 60 lb.
She does have very nice colors for a adult boa.

http://www.mccarthyboas.com/Xena_HeadOutSide04.JPG

http://www.mccarthyboas.com/Xena_Tom08.JPG

http://www.mccarthyboas.com/Xena_Tom10.JPG

Take care
Tom McCarthy

[chas*e]

For great enclosure displays .....Emeralds, GTpythons, even Jungle Carpets ....Tree dwellers are small enough and cool looking

[BoidsUnlimited]

Awesome Tom!
ANy ideas when you'll have some BCIs up for sale?

I'm looking for an UNRELATED pair of Colombian BCI.

Thanks

Chas*e...I was considering some ATBs or Jungles...I dont feel I am ready for Emeralds or GTPs quite yet.

[McCarthy Boas]

Hi BC

I hope to have 3 unrelated clutches and 1 related come springtime.

I have this genetic striped male with Zena.
http://www.mccarthyboas.com/StripedTailMale04_2004_03.JPG

I have my het albino 50% het striped male with Big Mama and a het albino 50% het striped female. This is where I will have the same male bloodline in two clutches.
http://www.mccarthyboas.com/HetMale112002.JPG

This is a nice looking pair I pick up 2 year ago. I do not know there genetics but I should get some nice looking normal BCI babies from this pair.
http://www.mccarthyboas.com/06_02_2003MaleFemaleBCI01.JPG

I will keep my website updated with any babies I have.

Take care
Tom

[BoidsUnlimited]

Sounds excellent!

I will most likely be ready to get a pair or two withing about 4-6 months.

I am located in PA.....I hope shipping there isn't a problem.

[McCarthy Boas]

No problem shipping anywhere in the USA. I live in North West Indiana 50 mile east of Chicago, IL.

Take care,
Tom McCarthy

[Slipknot]

Females average 16'+, males typically top out around 12' in length.

Is the above statement (taken from NERD) true? Because I had no idea that they only got as big as Burms! I might even look into them in the furture if they stay that size. The only reason I never even considered them is their emmense size, but I could handle a 12' male. :D

[BoidsUnlimited]

Mostly for captives.

What you mean as big as burms? Burmese Pythons get alot larger then these in captivity...and sometimes in teh wild also.

[Slipknot]

So, out of the "Big 3", an Afrock would stay the smallest?

[Slipknot]

PS. By "Big 3" I mean Burms Retics and Afrocks. ;)

[BoidsUnlimited]

In captivity yes. But male burms stay small as well.

[Slipknot]

Wow! So if I get one of the "Big 3" I will probably go with a male Afrock. Unless male Burms stay smaller.

[BoidsUnlimited]

I'd go with a Burm PERSONALLY. Much better chance of it being handleable

[Slipknot]

My main question is, are male Afrocks or male Burms smaller?

[BoidsUnlimited]

Either one can grow bigger or smaller...its all in the individual.

[JimmyDavid]

I think male rocks stay smaller.
Hey, i just uploaded another pic of one of my pythons:
www.ssnakess.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=29715

[BoidsUnlimited]

AWESOME Jimmy!

How big is she? About 10-12ft?

[Slipknot]

Nice Retic man!

At some point in the next couple years I am going to get one of the giants...it will either be an Afrock or Burm (male).:cool:

Good luck finding your display snake BoidsUnlimited!:D

[JimmyDavid]

She's around 13/14 feet, they always look a little smaller because they lack enough girth to give them that "massive look". That only happens when they are full grown and start gaining weight.
I have more retics, MIDGARD is longer than EVIL but is thinner.
But, of course, neither MIDGARD or EVIL can compare to ANASTACIA:

www.ssnakess.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=29716

[CrimsonGhost]

That is an awesome burm Jimmy, The pic with her in the bath is amazing. She was quite thick eh!
Sorry to here she has passed on.

Cheers
Matt