Questions About Choosing an Enclosure for a Boa

[Mad Max]

I've decided to get my BCI, Karl, a new cage and I'd like to hear some opinions about what my best options might be. Karl is supposed to be a small locality (under 5 feet) of Costa Rican BCI and I know that his father is under 5 feet and his mother isn't much bigger. If he grows larger than 5 feet then I'll gladly buy him a bigger cage, but I really believe that he'll stay about 5 when he's fully grown.

So, assuming that he'll grow to about 5 feet, I'd like to find the best option available for us. By that, I mean I'd like to give him the most energy and space efficient cage that he would still likely enjoy living in. I want him to have all of the room that a 5 foot boa could need, but it's important to me that his cage use only as much energy as his needs require and he's still going to need a radiant heat panel, an under tank heater, and a cage with very good heat retention to stay warm in my cold house.

I was considering a Boaphile 421D which is 48"L x 24"D x 11.5"H. I like the 422D better, which is 17.5" high, but I've heard that it's not nearly as good at holding in heat or humidity and that adult boas don't really use the extra head space anyway (not sure if that's true).

Anyway, what do you guys think? Are either of those cages absolutely big enough or are there bigger/more efficient/better options for a 5 foot boa?
Thanks

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[IW17]

That enclosure will work fine. But make no mistake boas will climb and use any space you give them. But I wouldn't feel bad about having a five foot boa in that size enclosure.

[Mad Max]

Originally Posted by IW17

But make no mistake boas will climb and use any space you give them. But I wouldn't feel bad about having a five foot boa in that size enclosure.

Well, that's good. I wonder if the taller one really is that much less efficient... seems like I've heard that a few times.

[sharthun]

Also, check out the offerings from Animal Plastics:

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and Pvccages:

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[metalcopper]

Either the 421 or 422 will work fine. The 17 inch height will be easier for you to get in there and clean though.

[Cmwells90]

I have my Boa in a large tub with about 2' of vertical room, she's using the climbing space ALL the time. She was in a lower tank that didn't have any vertical room, and she seemed to do just fine and was still very active. So from what I've learned is, if you give them the room, they'll use it, but it doesn't hurt to not have it.

[Mad Max]

Originally Posted by metalcopper

The 17 inch height will be easier for you to get in there and clean though.

That' true. At this point I think I'll probably go with that one.