Any suggestions about best species to breed?

Hi-

We have three snakes in our family currently-a ball python, a rosy boa & a haitian tree boa. We are considering another boa, but this time when we were looking around, my kids decided that they would like to get a pair so we could breed them. We've been breeding fish for quite some time, but never snakes before. My first thought was a blood python, simple because of their looks, but the ones I've looked at were downright nasty, even worse than our tree boa. I've more or less settled on the idea of breeding boas, mainly because of the fact that they are live-bearers, but I would GREATLY appreciate some advice from those who have experience breeding boas before I make a commitment.

I am currently leaning towards the possibility of Hogg Island boas. I like them because they are smaller and appear to me to be pretty "friendly". Temperament is a VERY important consideration for me since my kids are still young. Dumeril's also seem to be very docile boas. I am tending away from BCI's simply because of their size.

I guess what I am wondering is ... is there a good species to start out with that would be docile and smaller and profitable?

Thanks,
Ken

hog island

if you decide to go with hog island i have an ice 3 foot female very docile will be ready to breed next year 225 shipped

If you want docile, and a boa that will likely sell well because not all that many people breed them, then you may want to look into Rubber Boas. Rubber Boas are extremely docile, and I have never heard of one biting in defense. Like any snake though they may ocassionally make a misplaced feeding strike. I had a pair for awhile, now I have only one, because I facilitated the escape of the other one while I was suffering from a brain fart. Hopefully it will show up again as have other escapees.

As to size they remain pretty small, and adult is often under 2 feet, and only reach a maximum of about 3 feet. They are a hardy species and require less heat than many other snakes and are very cold tolerant. A problem with breeding them maybe that they require a pretty cold brumation temperature, as in nature they are sometimes found to be quite active at temps in the mid to low fifties. They probably need a brumation temp in the mid forties, but check on that more before taking my word as i am going by recall right now. If you want to breed them, I suggest getting an adult pair (possibly a trio as some boids breed better when you use two males ond one female but I am not certain if this goes for Rubber Boas).

Whenever Ihave seen baby Rubber Boas at shows, they were sold out before the show's end.

Here is a link to a site with a lot of info about them http://www.rubberboas.com/ .

A truly interesting different kind of a boa, and native to the USA.

Best regards,
Glenn B

If you want docile, and a boa that will likely sell well because not all that many people breed them, then you may want to look into Rubber Boas. Rubber Boas are extremely docile, and I have never heard of one biting in defense. Like any snake though they may ocassionally make a misplaced feeding strike. I had a pair for awhile, now I have only one, because I facilitated the escape of the other one while I was suffering from a brain fart. Hopefully it will show up again as have other escapees.

As to size they remain pretty small, and adult is often under 2 feet, and only reach a maximum of about 3 feet. They are a hardy species and require less heat than many other snakes and are very cold tolerant. A problem with breeding them maybe that they require a pretty cold brumation temperature, as in nature they are sometimes found to be quite active at temps in the mid to low fifties. They probably need a brumation temp in the mid forties, but check on that more before taking my word as i am going by recall right now. If you want to breed them, I suggest getting an adult pair (possibly a trio as some boids breed better when you use two males ond one female but I am not certain if this goes for Rubber Boas).

Whenever Ihave seen baby Rubber Boas at shows, they were sold out before the show's end.

A truly interesting different kind of a boa, and native to the USA.

Best regards,
Glenn B