Rainbow boa terrarium questions - Page 2

soad · 11-16-14, 07:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snakesitter

Size
Aim for at least six square feet of floor space, unless you plan to move up in sizes as the animal grows. (This is based on the "one square foot of floor space her foot of adult length" rule.) I actually go higher myself, and offer adults eight square feet. Height is not a concern, one foot is fine. As was noted by others, just be sure to add extra hides and other cover.

Heat
A radiant heat panel is fine, just a bit more pricey than undercage options.

Light
I generally do not recommend enclosure-level lighting for this species. They are shy and nocturnal by nature, so bright light is not high on their list. Just use room lighting.

Thermostat
I tend to go high-end, due to the increased accuracy and reduced risk of failure -- and because I buy the units with four controllers in one box. The Herpstat 5 is my unit of choice...though it's not cheap.

Good luck!

Thank you for all the info! you've been a big help but I do have a final question for you. What are good temps for warm and cool side? I've seen different care sheets with different temps where one would say 87 on the warm and another would say above 85 can be dangerous.

Snakesitter · 11-17-14, 02:59 PM

The last part is correct advice: 85F and over can be lethal, if the snake cannot get away from it.

I set up my enclosures with the goal of a ten-degree gradient: 72F low end, 82F warm end.

And you are very welcome!

soad · 11-21-14, 09:08 AM

So if I wanted to grasp some knowledge on breeding and genetics for brbs would I have to get just a general boa book or do they have any specific ones. Not necessarily saying I'm going to start breeding but I am very interested in knowing lots more about it. Been having difficulties trying to get info.

Snakesitter · 11-24-14, 02:50 PM

There are very few dedicated books on rainbows out there. There are also very few proven morphs, as the genetics on this species are still young. Look on Amazon under "rainbow boa" in books. If you can, however, please buy them from a reptile store or vendor rather than there. Good luck!