Central American red-tail boa questions

Crunchyhippo · 07-29-19, 07:13 PM

I'm about to get this baby Central America red-tail boa at my local pet shop. I thought it was a Columbian, but he said it was in fact Central American. After doing some online research, it was suggested that this species is more aggressive than the Columbian? Also, its colors seem darker and more drab. Is this always the case, or vary from individual to individual? I also understand that they don't grow as long as the Columbian species?

Anything else I should know about the Central American red tails? Would anyone who has one like to share what it's like to have one?

Crunchyhippo · 07-29-19, 07:31 PM

I'm about to get this baby Central America red-tail boa at my local pet shop. I thought it was a Colombian, but he said it was in fact Central American. After doing some online research, it was suggested that this species is more aggressive than the Colombian? Also, its colors seem darker and more drab. Is this always the case, or vary from individual to individual? I also understand that they don't grow as long as the Colombian species?

Anything else I should know about the Central American red tails?

**Aaron_S** · 07-31-19, 12:44 PM

Please only make one thread for your questions.

**Aaron_S** · 07-31-19, 12:45 PM

About your questions, yes centrals tend to be more drab and darker than their columbian counterparts. yes they tend to be more nippy than Columbians too. They certainly do stay smaller as well.

Crunchyhippo · 07-31-19, 07:55 PM

Sorry. After my first posting I didn't see anything go on, not realizing it required moderator approval, which I why I posted a second time.

Crunchyhippo · 07-31-19, 07:56 PM

So every new post requires moderator approval, not just every new thread?

richardhind · 08-01-19, 01:44 AM

the central Americans tend to stay smaller
there not always that nippy,depends on how much the breeder has handled them, if they are regular handling will soon win there trust
my motley is CA and only just over 4 ft and hes always been relaxed, but snakes are so different, remember boas can change a lot in a few years , not all are drab
remember beauty is in the eye of the beholder

**Aaron_S** · 08-01-19, 09:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crunchyhippo

So every new post requires moderator approval, not just every new thread?

Your first few yes. It's a way for us to stop the spam this forum has encountered.

Crunchyhippo · 08-01-19, 06:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by richardhind

the central Americans tend to stay smaller
there not always that nippy,depends on how much the breeder has handled them, if they are regular handling will soon win there trust
my motley is CA and only just over 4 ft and hes always been relaxed, but snakes are so different, remember boas can change a lot in a few years , not all are drab
remember beauty is in the eye of the beholder

Thanks. I was wondering if I had made the right decision. I definitely don't want a nippy snake with three kids.

richardhind · 08-02-19, 05:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crunchyhippo

Thanks. I was wondering if I had made the right decision. I definitely don't want a nippy snake with three kids.

well you may as well go and have a handling session before you buy your new boa and that way you will know and put your mind at rest

Crunchyhippo · 08-02-19, 07:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by richardhind

well you may as well go and have a handling session before you buy your new boa and that way you will know and put your mind at rest

Oh, I have, several times. He never acted nippy at all either time he was handled. He's still only about a foot long. I know that handling a snake regularly will help to keep it tame - but I didn't know if that would make a difference or not with the Imperators. You know, like it's just their nature to bite, whether you handle them or not. If it's he-may-bite-me-or-he-might-not every time I get him out, regardless of how much he's handled, I would just choose a different kind.

Nickkk395 · 08-09-19, 12:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crunchyhippo

I'm about to get this baby Central America red-tail boa at my local pet shop. I thought it was a Columbian, but he said it was in fact Central American. After doing some online research, it was suggested that this species is more aggressive than the Columbian? Also, its colors seem darker and more drab. Is this always the case, or vary from individual to individual? I also understand that they don't grow as long as the Columbian species?

Anything else I should know about the Central American red tails? Would anyone who has one like to share what it's like to have one?

As far as anything else you should know, Colombian / Central American boas are not Red Tails. They are a species called boa imperator. Red Tails are boa constrictors. Up until a few years ago the boa imperator was thought to be a subspecies of boa constrictor. True Red Tails such as the Suriname or the Guyana or the Peruvian Etc were considered boa constrictor constrictor or BCC whereas the Colombian Central American and other variations of boa imperator were called boa constrictor imperator. But around 2015 they discovered that there was a five to 7% genetic difference between the BCI and the BCC which prompted them to elevate them to species status. So now it's bi or boa imperator and BC boa constrictor. Unfortunately Pet Shops and many other people will label Colombian or other boa imperator Red Tails when they are not. I have a Colombian boa imperator and three Red Tails. Two of them are Suriname boa constrictors and one of them is a Guyana boa constrictor. But honestly every bi and every BC that I've ever had has been amazing. The BC will sometimes hissed at me but have never tried to bite. When you get it I would suggest leaving it alone untouched for a couple weeks. Don't handle it don't feed it let it relax and get accustomed to its enclosure. Then start off with short handling sessions. When I first got them I would hold them for about 10 minutes at a time for the first couple weeks until they got used to me. Humidity is extremely important with these animals. My boa imperator I usually keep the humidity around 70% for her whereas my Suriname and Guyana I keep the humidity around 80%. Feeding is also very important. Sadly boas are very commonly overfed. People don't realize that we have learned a ton about their digestive systems in the last decade and they do not get anywhere near as much exercise as they do in the wild and usually eats far more often in captivity. I got my feeding schedule from my veterinarian who is also a herpetologist who has worked with boas and anacondas in the wild and he also gets brought in for lectures at the college and reptile shows in the area. Small my such as Hoppers I seed usually 7 to 10 days. Adult mice 10 to 14 days. I do not switch two rats until they are large enough to take weaned because non weaned rats can carry their mother's milk in their stomach. Weaned rats I seed my snakes every two weeks Mallrats 2 to 3 weeks medium rats every 3 weeks large rats every 4 weeks Jumbo's 4 to 5 weeks. When picking out a prey item you want to try to find a rat or mouse that is as thick as the biggest part of the snake's body. I try not to go much bigger than that at all. Boas are supposed to live 20 to 30 years sometimes even 40 and sadly overfeeding will cause fat pockets to build up and will take potentially decades off their lives. Sadly a lot of owners that have been keeping snakes for 20-plus years will ignore the recent information that has come out from studies from scientists. They think that 4 weeks is too long to wait but I promise you this information is directly from an expert in the field. He has let me sit in on autopsies from people who have had snakes for decades but killed their Snakes by overfeeding them. Very sad. I have included a link to an article that talks about boa imperator as well as boa constrictor. You will want to focus on the boa imperator because that's what you're getting. Now there is also a link in this article that will take you to a peer-reviewed paper that talks about the elevation to species status and how the genetics are different and how they are no longer considered boa constrictors but boa imperator. Now there is such thing as a Columbian red-tail but it's not what you think. If you see a sign in the store for Colombian red tail it's not a red tail. The only time a Colombian is a red tail is if a boa constrictor is found in Colombia. And that is very rare. The Columbian red tails that are sold in stores are not boa constrictors they are the boa imperator. Generally the boa imperator is west of the Andes and goes from Colombia up through Central America. Whereas the boa constrictor is east of the Andes. Good luck! https://www.reptifiles.com/red-taile...es-subspecies/