Keeping boa in aquarium...?

[e burna]

I have a female Columbian Red-Tailed Boa Constrictor. Right now she's in a 20 gallon fish tank. She is around a year ol.d, and a little over 3 feet long. I'm wondering, how long can she stay in this house? Also, for her next house, I want to get something big enough so I don't have to upgrade after this. Thanks for reading.

[CARLiTO_]

Isn't a 20 gallon already too small?

[e burna]

Yes, I believe it is, that's why I want to upgrade.

[peterm15]

5x2 would be a good size so ive read... i think 4x2 is the minimum.. but imo your definatly keeping him in way to small of a tank

[peterm15]

your not keeping both your boas in that tank are you

[e burna]

Yes, they are both in that tank right now. That's how I bought them a month or so ago when I got them. I want to get rid of one to a good owner and keep the other w/an upgraded tank.

[Invictus]

For a female boa, a 4x2 enclosure is a MINIMUM. It's good that you have realized the error in the way you are keeping the boas.

[peterm15]

4x2 is min for a female... i thought that was for a male.. wow.. so whats the min for a male or is it the same...

sorry im starting to look into one now,... i got to hold a 5' male at the yorkdale petstore last night and now im reasearching them.. lol.. so i figure i might be able to squeese a 4 or 5' x2.5 by 6 foot tall display cage for one of thoes and maybe some different species that have similar cage size req... ( all in seperate cages 16" tall not housed together.. lol...)

[peterm15]

oh and p.s e_burna i think you should trade off the second boa for a lager size tank or cage.. you may want to look on sites and at the show and see if ppl want to trade the boa for a cage setup... it may be worth it.. minimal cost for building so you may get a cage that worth 200 for a snake thats worth 100...

[e burna]

Cool. Thanks for the advice. I had contemplated a 99 gallon aquarium for the one I keep. If I'm not able to trade the snake for a set-up, would the 99 gallon be acceptable?

[SCReptiles]

Length plus width of the enclosure should be equal to or greater than the total length of the snake. For example, a 6’ snake would need an enclosure 4’ by 2’. Most commercial breeders will shade this formula to the small side and they have big, strong, impressively healthy animals. As long as you clean up baby waste immediately and be careful not to keep too much water (and therefore moisture) in the cage, you should be fine. I think one would encounter more problems attempting to provide too big of an enclosure. You said you didn’t want to upgrade again, if that is the case…I would allow this snake to be a little larger before I invested in a bigger tank.

[peterm15]

http://www.ssnakess.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=40741&highlight=boa+cage+size

here this is a thread i was looking at earlier i thought it had great info about caging

[e burna]

SCReptiles, you said:

You said you didn’t want to upgrade again, if that is the case…I would allow this snake to be a little larger before I invested in a bigger tank.

So you think I should keep the female in the 20 gallon for a bit longer yet before upgrading? How much longer is an estimate?

[SCReptiles]

How long is your snake and what are the measurements of your 20 gal? They are not all uniform size.

[ATBlover]

first of all a 1 year old boa should not be in a 20 gallon tank....it should atleast be in a 40 gallon right when u got it.....I think a 4' x 4' x 2' custom tank should be good for an adult BCI...

[SCReptiles]

first of all a 1 year old boa should not be in a 20 gallon tank....it should atleast be in a 40 gallon right when u got it.....
from where, prey tell, do you discern that?

[boas_and_such]

i keep my 3.5 foot boa in a 20 long and she's about 2 inches from out growing it (meaning shes getting a new set up in the next couple of weeks) anyway, if your tank is a 20 gal. long i think that would be ok for 1 juvi up to about 3.5 feet but not 2...but if it just a straight 20 gal. then that maybe a bit small, taking into consideration that you lose floor space for height...anywho, thats just my 2 cents...