About Boas

If you’ve made it to this page, then hopefully you’re thinking about Boas as pets! Boa Constrictors are a great species for both beginners and advanced keepers. They are a “medium bodied” snake, meaning they are neither overly thin, or very fat species. They average, as adults, from 4-7 feet in length, and 5-15 pounds in weight. It will take a Boa several years to reach their adult size. Boas are generally very calm, and can be handled easily. They rely much more on smell and sensing vibration than they do on sight, although they can see well. Boas have no ears, but they make up for it with their other senses. Loud noises still transfer as vibrations!!

Boa Constrictors originate in South & Central America, with the majority coming from Colombia. The climate in their region has average air temperatures of 77-80 degrees year round, with high humidity (60-80 percent!). The key to successfully keeping Boas is recreating these conditions, and including a “hot spot” of around 90 degrees for basking.

One great thing about Boas is their feeding schedule. As babies, mine are fed once every 7-8 days, and as adults that changes to once every 2 weeks for females, and about once every 3 weeks for males. They also only defecate about that often, so cleaning is not a daily necessity, just spot checking and fresh water! Boas need a “food item” (okay, rat!) that is about the same width as the widest part of the snake. I HIGHLY recommend, and only feed my own Boas, rats that were purchased frozen, then thawed and warmed to proper temperature (around 85 degrees). It is much safer for the boas (rats can cause severe damage with one bite or kick), it’s much more humane for the rat, and it’s much cheaper! You just can’t lose. The general term for these is Frozen/Thawed, and you’ll see people refer to them as “F/T rats.” They are available online, vacuum packed and shipped with dry ice. Bulk purchases are easier, since shipping is not very cheap. Rodent Pro & American Rodent Supply are two sources that I use. The use of tongs or hemostats is also highly recommended when feeding, as this is when you will see just how fast your Boa can be! Also, be careful to NEVER handle your boa after handling rats, unless you thoroughly remove the smell from your body. Almost all bites from boas occur because they think food is near, and remember, Boas can smell MUCH better than they can see.

There are many different types of caging available varying mainly from a glass fishtank & screen lid, wooden enclosures with a glass or plastic front door, and custom plastic caging made specially for snakes. Glass tanks can work, but keeping up humidity with a screen lid can be difficult. Low humidity can lead to poor shedding, and illnesses like respiratory infections. It is much better to use a cage that is built with Boas in mind, since controlling the environment is the best way to keep your Boa healthy! If you have the room & tools, building your own is a possibility, and lots of information is available online. The only downside to wood caging is… It’s HEAVY!! I personally use & recommend plastic caging made specifically for Boas. It’s actually not much more expensive than building your own, and when you factor in time saved & ease of moving (plastic is much lighter than wood, I can move one of my adult cages by myself!) plastic caging is an easy choice! Many options are available, and I recommend both Boaphile Plastics and Jason's Jungle for great cages (and great service!).

Heating cages can be accomplished by a few different methods. Spotlight type light bulbs, Radiant Heat Panels, and Flexwatt Heat Tape are the most common. Light bulbs are most commonly used with glass tanks, and can contribute to humidity loss. The bright light can also stress your Boa. Radiant Heat Panels & Flexwatt Heat Tape are both great choices, and can be tailored to specific cage needs. Radiant Heat Panels are installed on the ceiling and “radiate” heat down onto the floor of the cage while Flexwatt Heat Tape is installed under the cage and heats from below. Both provide the necessary “belly heat” for a healthy boa to “bask” on. Boas are nocturnal, and generally warm themselves on rocks & branches that were warmed by the sun. They don’t usually bask directly in the sun’s rays. I personally have Flexwatt Heat Tape installed in all of my cages & racks. Two factors greatly influenced my decision. First, Radiant Heat Panels are expensive!! Second, both of the guys I buy caging from do a masterful job of installing Flexwatt, and I get great results. To regulate the Flexwatt, I use Ranco industrial thermostats. A good Thermostat is essential, and this is one place to spend as much money as you can. Flexwatt is low wattage (20 watts per foot in the cages I use), but the control a thermostat gives is essential in providing proper temperatures, and keeps electricity costs down too! Also, it keeps the electrical hazard to a minimum.

That just about covers it! At least all of the general information has been covered, and I’ll update it as the things I’ve forgotten occur to me… I hope it was an informative & enjoyable read, and I look forward to setting some of you up with your first (or 2nd, or 10th) Boa Constrictor!

Bryan Cantwell
www.bryansboas.com