Staggsmalexis
New member
I am getting a red tail boa female this evening. I will post pictures when I get her. Her previous owner said she ha never biten anyone. Any advice? I know nothing about snakes. Thank you!
Please help!
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SilverSage
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- Sep 14, 2013
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Hey Staggs. I can't help because I am not a snake owner (though I find them interesting and beautiful) but what I can say is that if you post your threads with more specific titles (like, "help with new Boa" or "Getting a red tail boa") You will probably get more answers than when you just post "help!" and things like that. So many people post with these tittles and ask questions that have been answered here a hundred time. This means that sometimes people may ignore the "help" titles that don't specify what you need help with.
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Staggsmalexis
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She is little. I am afriad to handle her bc I don't know if she will bite although I've been told she won't. She is in a tank. I got her because I've always wanted one and my friend needed to get rid of her bc he moving.
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Staggsmalexis
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I've held her twice now and not been bitten yet! I keep the sessions short though!
- Jan 19, 2014
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Red Bellied Parrot /
Ruppell's Parrot /
Bronze Winged Pionus /
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Victoria (Riddick07) is a snake person and is on here fairly regularly. I think she even has a RTB. Hopefully she'll see this thread 
Sonja said she knows snakes, and I know a few others do to.
Sonja said she knows snakes, and I know a few others do to.
SilverSage
New member
- Sep 14, 2013
- 5,937
- 94
- Parrots
- Eclectus, CAG, BH Pionus, Maximilian’s Pionus, Quakers, Indian Ringnecks, Green Cheeked Conures, Black Capped Conures, Cockatiels, Lovebirds, Budgies, Canaries, Diamond Doves, Zebra Finches, Society F
I am sure there are also snake forums online, maybe even a Boa forum specifically I bet it would be a good idea to find those.
I bet it would be a good idea to find those.
MrsKay
New member
Hi Staggsmalexis, sorry I'm no help, Snakes just give me the willy's ;(
PLEASE PLEASE research. Red tails are pretty easy going, and easy care but they get HUGE. You do know that right?
I had corn snakes and ball pythons, specifically because they were smaller...and my butter corn was 6 ft long! You'll need a BIG house for her eventually. They aren't known for biting however. You're too big to eat so she probably won't bother. HOWEVER, if she does and doesn't immediately let go, you have to stay calm and do not pull away. You can accidentally pull their teeth out. You have to relax and if she won't let go, drop some water on her, etc. In years of snake keeping, I never had one do that, but its possible and boas and pythons will pull that sometimes.
I had corn snakes and ball pythons, specifically because they were smaller...and my butter corn was 6 ft long! You'll need a BIG house for her eventually. They aren't known for biting however. You're too big to eat so she probably won't bother. HOWEVER, if she does and doesn't immediately let go, you have to stay calm and do not pull away. You can accidentally pull their teeth out. You have to relax and if she won't let go, drop some water on her, etc. In years of snake keeping, I never had one do that, but its possible and boas and pythons will pull that sometimes.
Research Research Research
Join snake forums and learn as much as possible
Join snake forums and learn as much as possible
riddick07
Well-known member
I'm not sure what you need help with either... but yeah they do get huge! I'm not sure how big yours is so far but a cage 6ft by 3ft is about as small as you can go for an adult. If it is still small/young then plastic containers with secure lids and air holes can be used until they are too big and need the 6ft by 3ft. Red Tails don't need too high heat but I do keep one side in the 100s even though they don't generally like it that high but the other side is way cooler so she chooses where she wants to go. Varying temps are the more important part then having any one specific temperature. As long as you have a bowl of water in the cage humidity should be fine.
Don't get me wrong boas are generally nice but I used to have a very nasty red tail male. If you can't handle an 8ft snake trying to eat your face then you might have to rehome it. They are right if it does grab on don't yank no matter how hard you might want to...those teeth end up in your arm and you have to pick them out. And not only do you have teeth in your arm but you have done more damage to yourself by ripping your wounds when you dragged the snake teeth through your skin. You want the snake to release you by pulling their teeth up and out. Snake teeth are designed to curve backward into their food source so the prey can't escape easily...which means the only way to get them off without causing further damage is to convince them to let you go. Generally pouring something down towards the mouth will get them to let go. I've had to pick a boa tooth from my arm when my aggressive male just grazed me the one time so yeah it doesn't take much to get a tooth stuck in your arm. Plus, I didn't even notice it at first and when I did it had healed around the tooth partially so I had a hole in my arm for a bit.
Even if your snake acts like the nicest thing ever still get a hook since it will make it easier on you to get them out of a big butt cage without putting body parts in striking distance when you do not have control. Also, if you need to do something with them that they don't like you can grab them behind the head and it will give you control of the mouth....the rest of the body will try to coil around you though so you have to be ready for that....if you are nervous and do not have much experience two people is best for handling an adult until you are comfortable. I do not generally handle my red tail when I am alone in the house since she can do very severe damage to me and having someone around to help if that happens is best....and my boa has always been sweet except for when shes hungry! A hungry snake can be extremely unpredictable just a warning...
Food size will depend on the size of the snake but an adult red tail can need a bigger food source then rats...if you are not comfortable feeding things like bunnies, guinea pigs or even baby pigs then this might not be the animal for you. I recommend feeding frozen if you are not already. Makes it easier for you, it doesn't cry when dieing or fight and damage the snake. If you do feed live never leave a live food in the cage without your supervision. If the snake is not hungry it will not bother with the live food and eventually the food will attack the snake and believe it or not the snake might just sit there instead of killing what is attacking it. Then you have a nice vet bill for your snake.... I also recommend having a different container for feeding your snake in so you are not feeding it in their cage. You do not want an adult boa thinking that food is coming every time you open their cage up and they move very fast when they think food is coming:52:
So yeah...maybe some of that will help...or not...
Don't get me wrong boas are generally nice but I used to have a very nasty red tail male. If you can't handle an 8ft snake trying to eat your face then you might have to rehome it. They are right if it does grab on don't yank no matter how hard you might want to...those teeth end up in your arm and you have to pick them out. And not only do you have teeth in your arm but you have done more damage to yourself by ripping your wounds when you dragged the snake teeth through your skin. You want the snake to release you by pulling their teeth up and out. Snake teeth are designed to curve backward into their food source so the prey can't escape easily...which means the only way to get them off without causing further damage is to convince them to let you go. Generally pouring something down towards the mouth will get them to let go. I've had to pick a boa tooth from my arm when my aggressive male just grazed me the one time so yeah it doesn't take much to get a tooth stuck in your arm. Plus, I didn't even notice it at first and when I did it had healed around the tooth partially so I had a hole in my arm for a bit.
Even if your snake acts like the nicest thing ever still get a hook since it will make it easier on you to get them out of a big butt cage without putting body parts in striking distance when you do not have control. Also, if you need to do something with them that they don't like you can grab them behind the head and it will give you control of the mouth....the rest of the body will try to coil around you though so you have to be ready for that....if you are nervous and do not have much experience two people is best for handling an adult until you are comfortable. I do not generally handle my red tail when I am alone in the house since she can do very severe damage to me and having someone around to help if that happens is best....and my boa has always been sweet except for when shes hungry! A hungry snake can be extremely unpredictable just a warning...
Food size will depend on the size of the snake but an adult red tail can need a bigger food source then rats...if you are not comfortable feeding things like bunnies, guinea pigs or even baby pigs then this might not be the animal for you. I recommend feeding frozen if you are not already. Makes it easier for you, it doesn't cry when dieing or fight and damage the snake. If you do feed live never leave a live food in the cage without your supervision. If the snake is not hungry it will not bother with the live food and eventually the food will attack the snake and believe it or not the snake might just sit there instead of killing what is attacking it. Then you have a nice vet bill for your snake.... I also recommend having a different container for feeding your snake in so you are not feeding it in their cage. You do not want an adult boa thinking that food is coming every time you open their cage up and they move very fast when they think food is coming:52:
So yeah...maybe some of that will help...or not...
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