Rainbow Boas?

kayleegrace · 03-08-10, 07:31 PM

i am getting a new snake and i have looked at a variaty of rainbow boas. have any of you guys had good/ bad luck? i am trying to find a beautiful snake to show off. i would like something that get like 4-6 feet with some girth. right now i have a ball python.(my baby) and i have a price range of 100 max....which i know isnt much but that is what i have. so if any one has a suggestions please please reply!!! thanks

-Kaylee King

Will0W783 · 03-08-10, 07:39 PM

You might have some trouble finding a rainbow boa for $100, but they are great snakes. I got mine for $125 plus shipping and he's wonderful. They do require comparable humidity to arboreals, so expect to mist several times a day and have to keep after the cage to make sure no mold grows.

kayleegrace · 03-08-10, 07:45 PM

that isnt a problem and i think i could find some more money for this beauty. how does yours do....handling wise, i am just a teenager so i havent started breeding yet....starting out easy... when my ball gets bigger he will be my breeder...cant wait.....this is off subject but how do you get your snake to grow?

Feebo · 03-09-10, 04:29 AM

I`ve answered your query in the other thread you`ve asked in

How do you get a snake to grow?! Feed it. Never EVER over feed to force growth, it`s cruel, unnecessary, ignorant, stupid, rediculous,unfair,selfish.... Well you get the idea lol

Rainbow Boas aren`t really for new keepers though dude, as I`ve gone into in the other thread...

shaunyboy · 03-09-10, 08:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Feebo

I`ve answered your query in the other thread you`ve asked in

How do you get a snake to grow?! Feed it. Never EVER over feed to force growth, it`s cruel, unnecessary, ignorant, stupid, rediculous,unfair,selfish.... Well you get the idea lol

Rainbow Boas aren`t really for new keepers though dude, as I`ve gone into in the other thread...

take your med's mate and count to 10,haha

shaunyboy · 03-09-10, 08:09 AM

joking aside.kaylee listen to feebo's advice and check out his post,feebo owns the biggest female brb ive ever seen and knows his stuff.willow knows her stuff as well and also has experience working with brb's.carpet pythons come in all colours and paterns,they are very easy to keep as well.there will be someone nearer you that could maybe tell you prices for say a jungle carpet python.its a nice black and yellow snake,its girth being roughly that of a coke can,legnth wise anything from 5 to 8 feet.
cheers shaun

Will0W783 · 03-09-10, 08:47 AM

Yes I can honestly say rainbow boas are not easy to keep. But I do think that if you do enough research prior to getting one and set up a proper enclosure, you can do fine with one as a first or second snake. You want to make sure that whatever snake you do end up getting, you are getting one that you can indeed manage to care for and have considered all the aspects of that particular species' needs, not just that it is "beautiful". All snakes are beautiful in their own ways. I have some normal ball pythons that are just as interesting and amazing as my emerald tree boas. I personally don't consider ball pythons good beginner snakes at all- although they are most people's first snake. They require tight humidity ranges, they are notoriously picky eaters, etc.
I think carpet pythons are much better beginner snakes. They are beautiful, colorful, get large enough to be impressive without getting too massive and they are generally docile.

To answer your question about handling, I have a Peruvian rainbow boa, which is basically the same thing as a Brazilian, but they get a bit larger and they tend to have more vibrant reds and stronger contrast. My PRB, Picasso, is just as docile as any ball python, but he is a bit more active. He will cling more tightly to arms and move about more than a ball python, but he's never hissed or tensed or struck at me, or anyone else that held him, in the year I've had him. He is 2 years old and between 3 and 4 feet. He gets one rat weanling, frozen/thawed, every other week.
I despise power feeding and think that it's awful to do to a snake. In the wild, snakes will go months without eating but take very large meals when they do. Snakes are opportunistic feeders, as they never know when their next meal will come in the wild, so they will eat as much as you let them, as often as you let them, for the most part. I have heard of people feeding baby snakes every other day to get them up to breeding size within a year or year and a half. But size is not the most important thing- that massive fast growth screws up the internal clock and causes organ damage and most of these animals don't make it to ten years of age.
Your best bet is to feed once a week for animals under a year of age, and then once every other week for adults. You should be feeding a meal that leaves a small bulge, but not a very large bulge in the snake. If there is a huge bulge, step down a prey size, if no visible bulge, step up a prey size. Most snakes will reach adult size in 3-4 years. But snakes can and often do continue to grow their entire lives, it is just very slow and slight growth after a few years.

Feebo · 03-09-10, 02:55 PM

Can you link me to a picture of yours Willow? I`ll show you mine if you show me yours ! lol Ye heer tha scootash buggurs tekin the pish otta mee ! Dinna forgeet, ama noo unglish maan....

Will0W783 · 03-09-10, 06:14 PM

I don't have any really good pictures of Picasso right now. When the photographer was over, he was deep in shed, but I do have an older pic on my webpage. Carter's Critters - Home

He's about 4 feet long now and quite the looker! If I get a chance I'll try to get some better pictures tonight and get them up.

Feebo · 03-09-10, 06:41 PM

Ooooh nice.... Are they more slender bodied than Brazilians or was he just very young there?

Will0W783 · 03-09-10, 07:40 PM

He is pretty slender. He was only a year old in that picture. His proportions are about like a young carpet python's. I really do need to get a new pic though- his colors are really brightening up as he grows. And his face reminds me of a fox- long, pointed, nose.

shaunyboy · 03-10-10, 06:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Feebo

Can you link me to a picture of yours Willow? I`ll show you mine if you show me yours ! lol Ye heer tha scootash buggurs tekin the pish otta mee ! Dinna forgeet, ama noo unglish maan....

who me ? never...!! i'm just mackin sure ma unglish freeend haz tackin his meds,so he disnae end up wi wan oh em jaykets that buttin up tha baaak maaan...!! an in ah weee paddid room ann awe...!! my appologys to everyone who doesnt get what i just wrote,i'm sure you'll be able to translate it feebo my friend.haha
you had me grinning fae ear tae ear mate.
cheers shaun