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Best beginners boa

Try a Dumerils boa. They don't get too long, though they can get thick, and have a reputation for being very chill and tolerant of handling.
 
Hog islands are good too! You just have to find a pure one, usually females stay in 5.5 foot range.

Tarahumara boas are hard to find, but stay super small. Like smaller than many ball pythons.
 
This is who I bought my boas from. Well my TARAHUMARA SONORAN DWARF Bci BOAS.

Here

Let me know if you are going to buy a pair.

PM me if the URL doesn't work.
 
Indeed he is, definitely why I am recommending him and his snakes. He has been a real pleasure to work with and a damn nice guy. It's nice to know an expert is there if need arises.
 
Any website for Michael beach and any good breeders for Dumerils & hog island & which is the best of the 2 for a beginner or a they about the same for a beginner boa thank you
 
Moved to the Boas Discussion Forum.
Please be more careful about where you place your threads, Mr Colon...avoid posting discussion topics in the classifieds.
 
I don't have experience with dumerils, but I have a few hog islands that I absolutely love. My "big girl" is 4 years and around 5.5 feet. Some of dwarf BCIs due start off defensive as babies, but quickly grow out of it. My male has been a sweetheart from the jump, my girl took a few months when I got her years ago.
 
I have 1.2 2013 Tarahumaras. They are still defensive and hiss, but at least they've stopped nipping. They also are more likely to want to run and be active when being handled. That's why I recommended a Dum as a first choice, they're a lot less defensive than the smaller/CA locality boas, and while they eventually get bigger they tend to stay put if you throw them across your shoulders or want to carry them around.
 
Just the ad I linked in my first reply. I would suggest you do a bit more research. Temperament can be a factor for a species but next to corn snakes boas are a great starter imo. Maybe you can find a pet store or a reptile zoo, something like that near you and see if you can handle different snakes, see how you are with medium to large snakes. Sometimes a snake can be a real challenge but the more you handle your snake at the right times, the more social they are. Remember if you order a snake that you run the risk of getting a butthole snake, so check out the breeder reputation. A good breeder/handler can give you an idea of the snakes temperament. There are so species that are aggressive and don't want to be handled but most boas are easy going if you take good care of them. Snake owners are like dog owners in respect to the breeder they own. There are always detractors to any type of pet and opinions are like armpits, everyone has them and a lot of them stink.
 
Good feedback bcr, my rat snake is very active like that. Always on the move. The more I handle it the better she gets. Thats until my dog decides to try and give her a bath. Lol.
 
Honestly, a male Colombian is a great beginner boa. With a more conservative feeding regimen (which is better for the snake anyway) it probably will never reach 5.5'. Colombians tend to be the most tolerant of handling as well. I don't feel that Tarahumara or pure, lineaged Hog Islands should be kept as pets as they are very rare and need to be in experienced breeders' hands to make sure that more of them are produced. Same goes for Caulker Cays and Crawl Cays. They don't make as good of pets anyway as addressed on here, they tend to be less tolerant of handling.
 
I have Hog, Tarahumara, BCI (male & female), and Dumerils ... I do enjoy and love owning all of them ... I have not had any major issues with any ... but my vote would be Dums .... mine are easy to handle, laidback, and slow-moving.
 
I agree with Alan. My male Dumerils is very relaxed and just as easy to handle as my ball pythons. He has quickly become one of my favorite snakes. Dumerils are great beginner boas. I've also owned Colombians for 15+ years and they are great as well. just a little more flighty as youngsters than the Dumerils.
 
Hmm, I have quite a few boas now, and I honestly think all of them would make great pets. Possibly not first ones, but great nonetheless. Here's my take on the species I own.

1) Caulker Cay Boa. Mine is a baby male. This is a dwarf species. He is fantastic and very laid back and curious. He will hiss and be defensive when he wants to (He's only done this when I've tried to feed him frozen/thawed instead of live and he kept striking and missing, I guess he got frustrated.) All other times he's a fantastic snake, never strikes or bites. He's the one I take with me if I want to go to a petstore, or if I want someone who is scared of snakes to hold. He will wrap his whole body around your hand and just chill there forever. He lets you touch him anywhere, including his head. And this is all as a baby, he was like this from the start.

2) Bolivian Boa. I have an almost 4 foot male. He is, quite possibly, the tamest boa of all of mine. (Though I could say that about a lot of them, boas are so great lol) He's big, tame from the get go, perfect feeding response. I can also touch him anywhere, including his eyes. (I had to rub some mineral oil on a stuck eye cap, and he had no problem with it.) He loves to wrap around my neck and crawl down my back or on top of my head. He enjoys going outside and crawling around everywhere. Has never attempted to strike or bite at me, ever. He was like this from the start. This is a snake under the definition of "puppy dog tame."

3) Brazilian rainbow boa. I have a baby female. She was sweet and active right out of the package. She's a little more shy than my other boas, but is still friendly.

4) Nicaraguan boa. I have a young female. This is probably the only boa I have that I wouldn't recommend as a beginner boa, just because she is a little more wary than the others. She's never actually tried to bite me, but I am still careful around her. She will intently watch me and follow my movements, however, I do put my hand into the tub and stroke her, and she still won't bite me. She just watches, and she will put her face right onto my hand and tongue flick me. She was a little flighty when being held in the beginning, but after only a few handling sessions she stopped that and moves slow and curious like the others.

5) Jungle/albino/snow boa. (These are all BCI's) My jungle is male, albino is male, snow is male, and I have a female snow coming. All of these have fantastic dispositions. They are all similar in docile-ness, (Made up a new word lol) Active, curious, great feeders, etc. Once my jungle got a bunch of dirt in his mouth and he let me hold his neck, stick my fingers in his mouth and dig all the dirt out. They are all sweethearts.

6) Dumeril's boa. I just recently got this guy/gal at a local show, but I am super in love already. He is my first Dumeril's boa, but I am super glad I took the jump and got him. He's very very sweet, completely gorgeous, and such a nice feeder! He lets me watch him while he eats, which I really appreciate. Also (I don't know if it's just him or all dumeril's) but when he sits coiled up, he creates a perfect coil. He looks like a female sitting on eggs, that is how perfect it is lol. He's just so gorgeous and nice, he's a definite favorite. I have to stop myself from bothering him too much during the day because I just love him so much.

I hope this helped :) Honestly my first snake was a ball python, but a boa would have been a better choice for me. No offense to ball pythons (Which I love and own) but the boas, there's nothing like them. It is very clear to me that boa's are my favorite snakes to own. The first boa I ever held was an adult male BCI, and I could handle him no problem (He is also the one who made me fall in love with them. He was a pet store snake and yet was so sweet to me.)
 
I also recently picked up some Dumeril's boas and agree they would make a good beginner boa. Mine have a nice food response without being hyper-aggressive about eating, they're easily handled, they get to be a decent size without being overwhelming, and they're not flighty. Mine are more inclined to just chill in my hand, on my lap, or across my shoulders and stay put than try to be active like my BCI's or BRB's.
 
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