question about female BCI breeding age and size

[Reticsrule]

one of my dads friends has a BCI that he wants to get rid of and he said i could have it for free if i want it. if i remember correctly the guy said that the boa was 3 years old and 4 feet long. i know that this is small for either sex but if it is a female would she be able to breed at that size and age? my male is somewhere around 4'8". is this too big to breed with her if she is only 4 feet? im thinking it is going to be too small but i have not seen it in person so for all i know it could be 3 feet or 5 feet. like i said i would have to get it probed to find out if its male or female but if it is a female would she be able to breed with my male?

[jason23]

to my knowledge a female should be at least 6 feet and have a good weight say around 15 lbs

[Reticsrule]

i didnt think that they had to be that big but i could be wrong.

[jason23]

http://www.redtailboas.com/forum/showthread.php?t=23704
http://www.newenglandreptile.com/CareBoa.html i did a little search for you

[gonesnakee]

Female is way too small yet, give her another year to grow first, 2 if required. Mark

[hbwright]

Might I suggest giving yourself some time to grow too, and maybe get a college education.

[Reticsrule]

thanks for the help guys. im most likely not going to be getting this snake because my mom is already mad enough that i have two. i was pretty much just making sure that i had the right idea on breeding size and weight.

[NocturnalBC]

Might I suggest giving yourself some time to grow too, and maybe get a college education.


I agree about the growing up part. This person is way to young to be breeding snakes. Don't agree with the College Education though, ther are some great known breeders around that have never seen a day of college.

[gonesnakee]

Way too young to breed snakes? Theres an age requirement? In the case of a minor if the parents/guardians agree & support it, why not? I personally think it great that teenagers show enough interest in the hobby to learn about & try breeding. Age sometimes has very little to do with maturity & the younger you start the sooner your experience does. I know a couple of younger breeders myself & a few more that want to. They are our Hobbys future afterall. Mark

[NocturnalBC]

At 14!? ha, your on your own with that thought.

[Reticsrule]

Am i missing something here? what is wrong with breeding snakes when your 14 years old? if you mature enough and know what i you are doing why couldnt someone breed snakes at 14 years of age?

[Andy_G]

I agree about the growing up part. This person is way to young to be breeding snakes.
At 14!? ha, your on your own with that thought.



That last quote is one of the most arrogant things i've seen in a long time...maybe where you live all 14 year olds are irresponsible or something...you should probably move if that's the case...I've met plenty of balding adults that shouldn't be allowed to keep any animal, let alone snakes...age means very little in this hobby, it's about what's in your head.


Reticsrule, if you feel you are responsible enough and you do your research and you are sure you have the time to do so then there is absolutely NO reason why you shouldn't. Nuff said.

Edited for spelling

[zero&stich]

I agree with gonessnake and andy_g. I didn't know myself there was a written law in our hobby that age was a nessessity(sp). I've seen 13 year olds breed, not snakes but leos. But breeding reptiles no less, big healthy leos. :)

reticsrule, if you have the mindset, breed. but ONLY if shes upt to par. i dont know much on breeding boas but id assume she should be 6ft like someone said and of good wieght. i'd wait a few years before you try and breed with your male. take it slow and you wont have regrets. best of luck.

[Reticsrule]

now im not calling myself an expert here, but IMO i know quite a bit about snakes, their behavior, ect. for my age. i think i could successfully breed a pair of boas (once the female reaches proper size and age, of course) but taking care of the babies is another thing. i know that the SMALLEST litter of young that a boa is going to have is somewhere around 15 babies, and that i could end up with 50+ babies. when i do breed them i most likely wont be keeping any of the babies (parental reasons) so i would need to be POSITIVE that i could sell all of the babies within a few months of them being born. i wouldnt mind selling for 40-50 dollars but i also wouldnt want to sell them to an irresponsible keeper either.

[NocturnalBC]

That last quote is one of the most arrogant things i've seen in a long time.


Do you have any idea what the word arrogant means? Your a fool for using it in that text. If you don't agree with my opinion that's fine, but don't use words you don't know to try and get your point across. there are better ways of doing this. Maybe they will teach you how to use that word properly in grade 12 next year.

[Andy_G]

I can't see how I am a fool for using it in that text because it did seem that you regard yourself much higher then Mark...and that's what "arrogant" means in case you didn't know... A proper response would have been something like "I don't agree with you." followed by your reasoning(or even not followed by any reasoning). Your above post was flat out arrogant...and yes that IS the right word to use in this case... I got the vibe that you think that you are more intelligent and have more knowledge then I do because of my age...trying to "school" me without knowing much yourself apparently. I don't know whether or not you have more intelligence then I do, and quite frankly, I don't really care(so you can keep your opinion on that matter to yourself ;))because I am successful and confident with my keeping skills and my life in general, and your intellect, either superior or lacking when compared to mine...doesn't really bother me or affect my thoughts on you or any opinion much. I have no problem with your opinion, I have heard it lots, I do however have a problem with how you show it...and then I sunk to your level and did the same thing because it struck a nerve LOL...but I most certainly did NOT use "arrogant" in a completely incorrect way. Like you said, there are better ways of doing this...throwing personal attacks at one another is pointless and I know that I will not be participating in this fashion any longer.

Now...back on topic. :D
Retic, you sound like you know what you are getting into and I wish you the best of luck with it. The female is a bit small in size for her age...she needs more growing to do before she's ready. Don't EVER buy the "you are too young" thing in this hobby, you know better then anyone else what you can and can't do, and there is no reason to wait if it will give you more experience at a younger age.

[Reticsrule]

Retic, you sound like you know what you are getting into and I wish you the best of luck with it. The female is a bit small in size for her age...she needs more growing to do before she's ready. Don't EVER buy the "you are too young" thing in this hobby, you know better then anyone else what you can and can't do, and there is no reason to wait if it will give you more experience at a younger age.

thanks for the encouragemnt :thumbsup: ill see what happens and keep you guys updated if anything develops (which i doubt it will).

[ffollett]

Just thought I would add my opinion to this.

I don't think 14 is to young to breed as long as;

You can handle the responsibility both financially and finding good homes for the babies.

Your parents at least know what you are doing and are willing to help out if you need it.

You are doing it because of your love for the hobby and the animals you keep not just because it would be cool.

My 4 year old son has a blind ball python that we rescued. He was upset that we were going to give him away so we gave it to him. It lives in the rack like any of the other snakes, its bin is just covered in sponge bob stickers. He does not do anything with it unsupervised, but its his snake. My 7 year old has a sulcata, again it's all supervised.

If this were Bob Clark's or Mike Wilbank's or any of the other top breeders kids no one would question it. Before you tell him he shouldn't do this find out a little information first.

As for the boa I would give it some time to get some size and weight on it before breeding it.

[Boakid]

I have 5 snakes, 3 corns and two boas, and I'm 14. I had my first snake when I was 10 years old. My parents know that I am responsible enough to look after them, and I know my limits. If you are a responsible enough person then there is no reason at all why you can't breed snakes at 14 years old.

[gonesnakee]

Like I said before age sometimes has very little to do with maturity & theres a few examples of such presented here ; ) Nuff said! Mark

[arash]

I Love It How Whever Someone A Lil Too Yonge Writes Something About Anything Someone Mentions The Age.

How Someone Says Anything You Guys On This Forum Get Too Caried Away Maybe You Should Just Stick To The Question And The Topic Take Your Argument Elsewhere .

What Are You 5 Years Old , Are We Here To Help Eachother , Attract New Users Or B***h At One Another And Lose The Members That This Site Has Worked Hard To Get ????? Iam Jus Fed Up With All This Threads Gettin Outo Hand

[dnt]

Overall I would have to say yes 14 is to young to be breeding snakes, under 18 is to young to be breeding snakes.

In case most of you have forgotten, you are not concidered a legal adult until 18, in some countries 21+. A 14 year old teenager who should be focusing on his future goals, completing school. With breeding there is a financial responsiblity and a large time commitment. At what point does a young adult have time to accomplish these things in a RESPONSIBLE manner while maintaining all aspects of life.

Secondly, us parents are responsible for what our children do, if they fail to capitalize , sell or get rid of 15+ snakes, it is now in the care takers hands.

Rectic I have nothing against you so please dont take this post that way.

If his parents would like to take this journey with him, learn with him, or even teach him then I say all good. But seeing as his mother is already a little uspet with the 2 snakes he owns, in the end it is not his decision.

When my daughter gets old enough and say she would like to breed animals of whatever nature, she will be allowed to do so as long as I am with her every step of the way. Last, we must think about the animals we are caring for, breeding and producing.

[philli]

Arash...you said it all brother :thumbsup: nuff said.Next post please.