Red Taled boa, I'm a new owner, ?'s...

[e burna]

I got 2 sisters. They are around a year old. around 39 inches. I fed them each a rat and 2 mice, which I'm told I should have stuck to one or the other, why? Also, I want to get rid of 1 and just keep 1 (got them both from same person as a deal), how hard will it be to get rid of one, and what can I expect to get out of it $$ wise? I was also told I can feed every week, or every 3 months? Which is it? I don't want them getting too big too quick(which is what I was told will happen if I feed every week), but I also want them to be tame so when I handle they will not strike me out of hunger. Sorry for so many questions, I'm sure I will have more, but that's all for now. Thanks for reading, and hope someone can help me.

[e burna]

Sorry, I knew I'd forget something. How much do you pay for your feeding mice/rats? Is this all they will eat at that age, or will they eat anything else? What's the most economical way to feed them? Thanks for reading.

[Reticsrule]

ok i think you should stick to just rats (if they can handle them okay which at that size they should be able to) because if you were to feed them mice you would eventually have to switch them to rats anyway and that can be a problem sometimes. as for the feeding schedule if you dont want them to get big fast feed them one or two rats every two weeks maybe instead of every week. if you fed them once every three months they would be devils to handle. in my opinion that is way to long for a snake not to eat in captivity. and if you want to sell one you could probably get anywhere from $65 dollars on the cheap end to $175 dollars on the really expensive end but thats like a rediculous pet store price. i hope i have answered your questions and if you have anymore just ask.

[Reticsrule]

when you buy your feeder animals i would highly suggest buying them at a local reptile show. they are about half the price of other places.

[e burna]

Thanks a lot for the quick replies. How often do they have reptile shows? I live in a big city (Columbus Ohio) where would I look to find something like that? Just by a bunch of rats and throw them in a tank or something? When I fed them, I gave them each a rat first, then 2 mice, 1 at a time, afterwords. So, you think I could "get away" with feeding them 1 rat every 2 weeks and they would still be ok? How do I know if they're going to strike at me? Can I just expect it to happen sooner or later?

[Reticsrule]

in most places reptiles shows are held once a month. i subscribe to Reptiles magazine and in the back it has a list of the shows that are being held every month. im not sure about ohios reptile shows but i know there are a lot of them. when feeding any snake it is best to feed them separatly so they dont fight each other. its also not good to feed them in their cage because they can strike at you when you go to take them out for handling thinking your food. i feed my little male(im almost sure) two large mice(pretty soon rats) in one feeding every friday. he takes them without any hesitation. but if you're not looking to have a big snake fast 1 rat each every two weeks should be a good diet.

as far as striking goes they shouldnt do it unless they are hungry or they get scared. just avoid fast movements and you should be fine. also dont put your hands near them when they are eating or they will definetly strike at you(mine tagged me for the first time last night because i did that).

[joey]

Columbus, Ohio----There's the All Ohio Reptile Show that's held once a month on Saturdays.

http://www.allohioshows.com/

Also check out RodentPro--- I always place an order with them via telephone and then pick it up at the All Ohio Show----takes away the shipping cost which can sometimes run more than the rodents themselves.

http://www.rodentpro.com/

I'm from Yellow Springs which is about 30 miles South of Columbus.

[mcfreshdeli]

There is also a new guy from around where i live (1hour up 33) he might be at the next columbus show his small/medium rats are only a dollar.

[joey]

You can get medium frozen rats from Rodent Pro for 1.09 a piece-

[mcfreshdeli]

I would but he is 5 minutes down the road from me and I dont have a freezer so I'm just gonna kill them myself untill I get my c02 set-up

plus he has lions and tigers and all kinds of crazy stuff I would like to see

[boaking]

medium frozen rat for 1.09 woo i have to pay like 3.50 for live small rats....

[Linds]

I fed them each a rat and 2 mice, which I'm told I should have stuck to one or the other, why?

Sometimes snakes can develop preferences, especially where mice are concerned, so it is usally advisable to not regress when feeding. Mice are also quite small, boas are capable of feeding on rats from the mnoment they are born. Nothing is worse than a snake that should be eating 5lb meals that will only eat mice :rolleyes: Rats and rabbits are interchangable, as adults can easily be sustained on either, so if they refuse one it isn't a big deal.

I was also told I can feed every week, or every 3 months? Which is it? I don't want them getting too big too quick(which is what I was told will happen if I feed every week), but I also want them to be tame so when I handle they will not strike me out of hunger.

Every 10-14 days is a pretty decent guideline to follow I find. I find weekly is overkill for snakes that age or older, unless you are trying to rehabilitate an animal, or get breeding weight on. You don't want to try to hinder the rate of growth, you want to support it but not rush it. Bci are snakes that naturally get big fast when properly cared for however, I have one female here that exceeded 6 feet by her second birthday fed no more than twice a month. They are growing machines as well as feeding machines. They will generally always eat, so if you were feeding in order to keep them full you would be overfeeding. Your best bet for a handlable snake is to handle it frequently, but not excessively or for long periods of time. Bci are variable snakes in terms of temperament, and feeding generally doesn't have much impact on that. The main correlation between feeding and biting is mistaken identity.