Sexing and Characteristics:
There are several ways of sexing a snake but the main ones are popping & probing, both of these ways are reliable with probing being the most accurate.
If you need your snake sexed, make sure this gets done by a professional.
Size:
Generally Common Boas reach between 5-9 ft, with the females being bigger reaching around 9ft.
It is rare for Common Boas to reach over 9ft but it has been documented that some have reached around 10-12 ft but this is seldomely seen.
Substrate and Water Needs:
For bedding you can use a variety of things, Pine & Cedar are to be avoided as these are toxic to reptiles. You can use newspaper or paper towel which are cheap but not very appealing. Aspen, Auboise, Orchid bark or similar is your best bet, there fairly cheap and look good.
You will need a fair sized water bowl, one the snake can submerse its body in, Cat litter trays work well for larger animals.
Lighting and UVB:
Common Boas have no special lighting requirements but if you do use a basking bulb, please ensure the light has a bulb guard to avoid your snake from being burnt.
Temperatures & Humidity:
Your Boa should be kept at temperatures between 28 - 30’C.
To achieve these temperatures several heating devices can be used such as:
Heatmats (Not advised for bigger snakes)
Basking/Infrared Bulbs
AHS heaters
Ceramic bulbs
These are down to personal preference & all should be used with the appropriate Thermostats to control the temperature & avoid overheating.
BCI’s humidity should be around 40-50% which can be increased whilst shedding.
A moss box can be provided when they are shedding to help assist them.
If help is needed choosing heating/thermostat options, please do not hesitate to contact us & we will guide you in the right direction.
Housing:
An adult BCI can be housed in a 4/5ft x 2ft x 2ft vivarium although a bigger vivarium may be needed for the larger specimens.
Young Boas are best kept in small tubs, with secure hides as they may go off feeding if they feel insecure.
Provide them with 2 hides, one in the hot end & one in the cool end, an appropriately sized water bowl should also be provided.
Older Boas can be housed in 3/4ft x 2ft x 2ft vivarium if big enough.
Diet:
Carnivorous
Description of Diet:
Young Boas are able to take fuzzies on their first feed.
You should be able to start feeding your snake on fuzzies but if they are on the smaller side then large pinkies would be ideal. You may feed them every 5 to 7 days at this point.
As the snake grows it will need larger prey items. You will know when they need to go up a size once you can’t see the food item in their belly anymore.
Older snakes should be fed on an appropriately sized meal every 2-3 weeks to avoid becoming overweight.
Supplements, Nutrition and Usage:
Generally supplementations are not needed but I feel that calcium should be used for breeding females to help the production of the babies to replace the females calcium levels.
Maintenance:
They are easy snakes to keep & attractive to look at, this is why they make good pet snakes.
I would recommend changing their water every 1-2 days, spot clean every few days, and clean them out properly every 1-2 months, using an appropriate disinfectant.
Handling your BCI should help keep them calm & easy to handle.
Sometimes baby Boas will hiss in order to scare a ‘predator’ this is often a warning but mainly a bluff. If you have a nippy one, don’t let it put you off, they calm down easily.
Some Words on this Species:
They are a very pretty medium sized Boa & are manageable if you can handle the bigger snake but as with most snakes can have long life spans, so be prepared to take care for an animal for the rest of its life.
I would say they make great pets as they are calm & come in an amazing variety of colour mutations (known as morphs) making them attractive to look at, they are also becoming more affordable which makes them good pet snakes.
They are typically slow moving snakes although they can be heavy bodied but are still manageable.
We are currently working with a very nicely coloured male who is almost Pastel like with very pale tan colour with pink/orange hues.
We have a very nice Salmon Hypo female here who is close to breeding size, she will be part of our Sunset project.
We also have a gorgeous Hypo Hogg (Het Sunset) Female who is possibly het Blood, she has a lovely striped tail & is loaded with colour.
Our future plans include making our own Het Sunsets with our stunning Salmon female here.