Kenyan Sand Boas?

[the_frog_man]

Hi im a total noob to all snakes and i want to get ksb's becuse i like them (always have) and my mom dosnt want a snakes to be seen much (we have people to clean the house once a week

so i need to know EVERTHING you can tell me (breeding feeding cage subsrate) all replys will help i dont really trust the care sheets ive been finding on google.ca so i want u lol




thanx froggy

[BoidKeeper]

I'll find it for ya but I'm not reading it to ya.lol
Enjoy,
http://reptileforums.com/care_sheets...yansandboa.htm

http://www.wnyherp.org/care-sheets/S...-sand-boa.html

http://www.tbcnet.com/~gknaack/info/sbcs.html

http://www.sundialreptile.com/caresheet-ksb.htm

This one I like,
http://www.**************/sandboa/sources.html
Happy reading,
Trevor

[Linds]

If you don't want a snake that will be seen a lot, then you're definitely looking in the right place! These guys stay hidden most of the time, you might see a nose poking out at best.

Babies can be kept in small sandwich containers or deli cups with an inch or so of particulate substrate. I prefer to use Carefresh, since it holds burrows well, can be safely fed on, is soft, contains no processing chemicals, doesn't stick to prey, etc. Many people also like to use Beta Chip, but I wasn't comfortable with the amounts my snakes were ingesting when I tried it. Offer water occasionally, but make sure the environment stays dry at all times. A gradient of high 70's to high 80's should be made available. Make sure the baby you decide on is feeding reliably as well :flick:

[the_frog_man]

insted of taking them out of the tank to feed could i feed them on paper towle put in the tank with no sand on it. OHH YA can i use sand ive been told yes no theyll die with it theyll die with out it




thanx froggy

[Linds]

Sand isn't the best substrate to use, especially since there are MUCH better alternatives out there. IMHO it's best to feed snakes in their enclosure. Sand Boas are ambush predators however, so they prefer to hide beneath substrate and wait for their prey. For this reason, substrate should be something both particulate yet relatively safe to feed on. Some people have success getting their boas to feed outside of the enclosure or on papertowels, but many snakes (especially babies) prefer to hide.

[BoidKeeper]

I keep all 6 of my sand boas on shreded aspen except for one female Rough Scale. She is on beta chip. All of my others eat F/T inside a feeding container. The female rough scale has been rough to get going so I have been feeding her on inside her delicup with the beta chip. This is how Roy Stockwell does it and he hasn't had any problems and this is how I'm doing it.
I would never use sand though. In the wild they don't live in straight sand either. I would try eco earth though. My Ocellated skinks are on that.
Cheers,
Trevor

[the_frog_man]

so wat substrate i now im being stupid but i dont want my boas to die as soon as i get them, Linds ? IMHO ?




thanx froggy

[Graybird]

I keep mine in a 20gl tank. It is best to keep them in a galss tank to holed in heat. He has about 3-4in of sand in there. you want to ues Vita sand. I feed him once a week one fuzzy mouse,and give him freash spring water dayly. Do not ues tap water the cloreen is bad for them. He will eat well then fast for a cupel of weeks this is normal. I try to keep him arond 80-90 dagess.

[thunder]

as for the tap water, that is not true. none of the additives in our drinking water are harmful to reptiles, only amphibians.

[Linds]

Personally, I would recommend Carefresh. I've tried many other things, but in the end I always end up going back to it. It is the only substrate I feel confident feeding on and keeping my animals on. The only downfall is the price, but it lasts forever, so it shouldn't be much of a hinderance

Originally posted by Graybird
It is best to keep them in a galss tank to holed in heat. He has about 3-4in of sand in there. you want to ues Vita sand.

Glass tanks do not hold in any heat, especially when the tops are screened. However, they can still serve fine in many cases where the temps are relatively stable and ideal in the room, for desert animals such as sand boas. Vita sand, Calci sand, and all that stuff is complete garbage and should never be used for any reptile. I've seen sand boas literally perish when kept in the stuff. Additionally, when ingested the stuff does not do anything to benefit the animal (as advertised), but rather acts as an antacid, neutralizing important stomach acids. Now a sand boa probably won't be ingesting large quantities, but nonetheless, the stuff is not worth its weight.

[BoidKeeper]

Linds said everything I was going to say. Even used some of the exact same words I was going to use too. Spooky!lol
Cheers,
Trevor

[CamHanna]

I keep my Kenyans on aspen and feed in the enclosure on top of a margerine lid. This has never given me any problems.

so wat substrate i now im being stupid but i dont want my boas to die as soon as i get them

I certainly wouldn't recomend sand but I used it for about a week once when I ran out of aspen. I found it very difficult to keep the sand at the temperature and moisture that I wanted. The water evaporated (from the bottom heat) and lost it's burrowing-holding capacity.

These are hardy snakes and as long as you do your research they shouldn't give you any problems. They certainly won't die as soon as you get them, assuming you don't heat them to 150F or anything like that. They can be a pain to effectivly switch on to FT though so I would recomend that you get established animals.

http://www.**************/sandboa/sources.html
Trevor already provided this link but I think it's so good it should be given again.

Good Luck
Cam

[Graybird]

WHAT
They are a SAND boas.
What is so bad about them liveing in there natrel substrate

[CamHanna]

From Chris Harrison's care sheet (the kingsnake link)
Most species of Eryx either live areas that are only partially sandy. The data from the field suggest that many of them spend significant time hiding in burrows of other animals, rather than burrowed in sand. Therefore, the name "sand" boa is misleading for most of the species. Yes, they will burrow in sand if you give it to them, but so will most kingsnakes! The problem lies in the fact that sand does not make a good substrate for use in captivity. It is heavy, harder to keep clean and may pose an actual health risk to the snakes. The problem is that I have heard of (and witnessed) several cases of snakes dying due to complications from ingesting sand, so I no longer use sand for any of my Eryx.

[Matt_K]

Originally posted by BoidKeeper
Linds said everything I was going to say. Even used some of the exact same words I was going to use too. Spooky!lol
Cheers,
Trevor

Just that she spelled them correctly

-Matt