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Aggressive Central American Boas?

Celtic Constrictors

Celtic Constrictors

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I'm not sure if this information is widely available but of the 5 CA boas I have, at least 3 are disproportionately more aggressive than my 7 non dwarf species. Is this common? Is there any way to nip it in the bud?

Seems like no matter how much I handle this one particular male he just hisses and strikes and twitches his tail at me. I don't mind aggressive boas but when these get bigger, my wife won't have them.

Thanks for the input!
 
I've always found that the CAs were more aggressive and flighty than the non-dwarves, if that helps any. The rule of thumb is usually to handle them as much as possible to tame them down, and if you said you have done so without success, that and the tail twitching would set off some flags for me personally.
 
And here I thought I was the only one who had a small boa with a Napoleon complex! My Tarahumara has more "Taratude" than my other seven boas put together, even as youngsters.

She has definitely improved with regular handling but will still hiss, tail lash, etc. until she's been in hand for a few minutes, and then she settles down.
 
Well that's a relief. Thank you both for the input. I'm going to continue to handle them with gloves on for a few more months. They're all very late 2013 juvis and I'm hoping they tame down as they mature. I have one adult male who would not bite me even if I rubbed a rat all over my hands.

Guess they can't all be super docile.
 
BTW I'm not sure I would call the behavior "aggressive". These guys stay smaller for longer than their bigger-growing cousins, so I'd expect them to be defensive while young, as they would be prey animals for a longer period of their lives than other BCI's.

Fortunately a nip from one isn't life-threatening either. :D
 
I understand what you mean, but one male is outright aggressive. When I walk by his cage he hisses and strikes at me without me even being near the cage. It was cute at first, but lol...

On a side note, I handled him for about 10 minutes last night which was 24 hours from his last meal and he seemed complacent. I'll just keep this up with little Dr. Jekyll.
 
That's still not aggression, but defensiveness as earlier noted. The nice part about CA locales is they tend to mellow with age. I would actually advise against handling too much, as it is obviously stressing them out and just let them mature into more docile animals naturally. They'll come around. What are you caging that male in?
 
JCCS said:
That's still not aggression, but defensiveness as earlier noted. The nice part about CA locales is they tend to mellow with age. I would actually advise against handling too much, as it is obviously stressing them out and just let them mature into more docile animals naturally. They'll come around. What are you caging that male in?
Click to expand...

He's in a 4 foot boaamaster with a female littermate. They have 2 hides on the warm side and 2 on the cool side and a large water dish they can fully submerge in. They're both fed outside of their enclosure in separate rubs.

It's weird. The female is totally calm. The male is bipolar. I had him housed separately for a while and it made zero difference.
 
Don't cohabitate boas. I could go into the laundry list of reasons why you don't do this, but make just to put it simply, it's a bad idea. Could be part of the reason he doesn't feel comfortable in his environment.
 
I'm aware of the risks involved in cohabitation of multiple snakes (of the same species, mind you) in one cage. It's a temporary situation as I'll be doubling my cages within a month or two. I'm diligent with my husbandry practices, so I'm not overly concerned with having an issue in that time frame.

We shall see if the CAs calm down with age. I sure hope so. They're interesting animals. I will share my experiences with their behavior as they get a little older.

Thank you for your input James, Melinda, and Andrew!
 
Don't feed him in a separate enclosure either. Mine hisses the most when she thinks I'm going to mess with her while she's eating - she is very protective of her food.
 
bcr229 said:
Don't feed him in a separate enclosure either. Mine hisses the most when she thinks I'm going to mess with her while she's eating - she is very protective of her food.
Click to expand...

Yeah that I can't do. Several years ago I fed a male/female boa who were being bred in the same cage. Frozen thawed rats don't move but they smelled rats. The male moved and the female went after him. I separated them within seconds but that could've been nasty had I not.

That's not a mistake I will make twice. At least one is coming out of the enclosure when feeding. That really will be a non issue when my cages are done being built and sent. ;)
 
One note: I know a lot of breeders say don't house more than one animal per cage. That's fine, I understand the logic. Others say it's not a big deal but there are risks. That's not what I'm here to debate. I'm just unfamiliar with dwarf species temperament and was wanting to know if they calm down with age typically or if they're always nervous critters.

I'm gathering that they typically calm down with age. That's great news. The housing thing is temporary and may be partially contributing to 'Crimson's' behavior. That will be rectified soon.

I just hope he's not always this way. I don't wanna scrap the project because my wife is timid when handling him. This particular pair has the potential genetics to produce bloody snows. That would be outstanding if they prove out.

You all have been very helpful. I regard your input highly.
 
I don't see anything wrong with a temporary co-habitat if you are in fact as adamant with cleanliness and husbandry of the animals together. I also see the 'aggressive' boas (yes, i would consider the behavior described as aggressive, even for a new baby standard). Needless to say that i would be very shocked if they don't mellow out within the next month of daily, stress free handling.
 
Yes, I replace bedding every Sunday and clean the interior with a non-chemical scrub at that time. Water bowls go in dish washer on hottest setting.

Anyhow, from all the replies I received it sounds as though they will chill out after a while.

Thanks again, everyone. :)
 
Celtic Constrictors said:
One note: I know a lot of breeders say don't house more than one animal per cage. That's fine, I understand the logic. Others say it's not a big deal but there are risks. That's not what I'm here to debate. I'm just unfamiliar with dwarf species temperament and was wanting to know if they calm down with age typically or if they're always nervous critters.

I'm gathering that they typically calm down with age. That's great news. The housing thing is temporary and may be partially contributing to 'Crimson's' behavior. That will be rectified soon.

I just hope he's not always this way. I don't wanna scrap the project because my wife is timid when handling him. This particular pair has the potential genetics to produce bloody snows. That would be outstanding if they prove out.

You all have been very helpful. I regard your input highly.
Click to expand...

I myself have had to house snakes together before but only temporarily. I think what some people on here are trying to say is the fact they are housed together may be the reason for the aggression. I have raised many, many CA boas and for the most part they have always been more aggressive (or defensive as some say) than my other boas. Word of advise, when they are young, don't be afraid to handle them without gloves. Please don't think I am crazy, but most of my smaller CA's were held that way seemed to tame down faster than when a glove was used. Worth a try.
 
Hey, just wanted to know if your boas have improved any? Ms. Tara is down to a token hiss when picked up.
 
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