what can you tell me about rainbow boas?

[grizlatron]

so i'm getting a new snake soon, and i'm leaning towards a corn (i joined this forum after all!) but i must admit rainbow boas are VERY appealing. but i don't know anyone who owns one! so what can you tell me about your's? are they friendly (on the average?) i know they get to about 8ish feet, are they still easy to handle? what size feeder do you have yours on? are they hardy? any info would be greatly appreciated!

 

[mishima25]

I'll stick to corns and maybe BP for some years to get more experience. But I am also really interested in the rainbow boas, though will not get one for many years (too much need to control humidity for my current schedule). I have been reading about them recently. I'll be around this thread and read some opinions and experiences of other users.

If this will be your first snake I'd not get a rainbow yet. Get a corn or a BP to start with, which are (usually) hardier and tamer, and get some experience with snakes first. I have read rainbows are nippy as babies and usually bite, and are extremely vulnerable to humidity changes, so you have to maintain it around 80-90% and mist often. So this also causes having to clean the vivarium often to avoid mould formation. As they age then can toletare a bit lower humidity but they definitely need quite a lot of attention. They also get pretty big and are strong, so at adult ages you may need someone to help you in case of accident, but they do get slightly tamer.

I hope other users can give us more feedback.

 

[grizlatron]

my family has a king snake, so i feel pretty comfy with corns/kings/rats, which is one reason i was thinking about trying something new- but that rainbow boas need such high humidity is a big turn off for me thanks for the info! (i'd still be interested if anyone else wants to chime in!)

 

[grizlatron]

i don't have anything against BPs (they have cute little faces!) but they're just not interesting to me- it's a shame, they come in so many great colors!

 

[HVani]

I don't have one yet (I have a hold on a BRB, waiting for warmer weather to ship). I have been doing research for a while. The humidity thing is pretty easy to solve with daily misting and an enclosure that is not glass. Even glass can work but it's a little more work. I have an Animal Plastics PVC cage waiting for my future girl.

Babies can be nippy, some are some aren't. They grow out of it. Adults are easy to handle when adults by yourself. Males tend to get 5-6 feet while females can reach 8, but they are slender compare to red tails.

For food, I'm pretty sure rats are the biggest ever needed. Most start out on mice then work up to rats. If they are anything like my BCI boa, they will take food without question.

If you are not comfortable with the humidity needs of a baby, try to get a yearling or adult. They don't need humidity quote as high. Provide a large water bowl and a humid hide and you would be set.

Also don't let the temps get too high, they don't tolerate too much heat. Even though they are considered an Intermediate snake, they still are not that difficult to take care of. A pet rat or hamster needs much more attention than a rainbow boa.

 

[mishima25]

I've been finding pretty much the same info, but I still have some doubts and too little experience. So thanks for a bit of confirmation.

Also don't let the temps get too high, they don't tolerate too much heat.

I've found discussions about getting them heated with UTH or bulbs, and most of the time people say bulbs are better because it's difficult for the UTH to get through. What do you think of this? What would you recommend?

 

[grizlatron]

if the humidity needs slack off after a year or two i wouldn't mind starting wish a baby- just so i could be sure it was tamed down. i wouldn't be thinking about them so much, but BHB reptiles is selling normals for $40 (+shipping) and it just seems like such a cool snake for the price tag. makes me want to search for the catch!

 

[HVani]

That price is for a columbia rainbow boa. Usually when people look at rainbow boas they think of brazilian rainbow boas.

Columbian

Brazilian

 

[grizlatron]

That price is for a columbia rainbow boa. Usually when people look at rainbow boas they think of brazilian rainbow boas.

Columbian

Brazilian

o i'm aware- i like how the iridescence looks on the darker background! it's so unexpected! are they really that unpopular?

 

[grizlatron]

but goddamn that BRB is a stunner!

 

[HVani]

Just making sure. Columbians are not as popular though they do some in some nice morphs. I've seen red tail boas that are iridescent in much the same, but a rainbow boa is out of this world. I'll admit I have not seen a columbian in person but I have seen a brazilian.

 

[Tavia]

The Columbians aren't as popular, I think just because the Brazilians are so beautiful! I'm seduced that way myself. The Columbians have as much iridescence but are darker shades of brown and black, without the orange. Nice thing about them though is that they are generally a good bit smaller than the BRB. I believe care and temperaments are pretty much identical between them, though I don't have much personal experience with Columbians, aside from usually seeing a few at most of the local expos.

 

[FTK Slim Shady]

I have 20+ reptiles and my BRB is my favorite. He is still less then a year old and never snapped at me and I got him at a week or so old. I find him also to be one of the easiest to care for. Very smart and active when I handle him. I don't have any good pics of him, maybe tomorrow I'll take one

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