5 foot red tail boa update thread :3

this thread is where im going to update everyone on the progress of thor's new home, and finally, thor himself! how badly do people wanna see him? i finally met him and purposely didnt take any pics to keep you guys in suspense but one thing i do have to say, he is BEAUFITUL!

heres the first update!

got the tank into my room, and the substrate in, will be changing it to a more preferred substrate after he settles in more, but he has had repti-bark all 5 of his years, so i dont wanna change it when he'll be stressed from changing homes anyways.

the lonely wall before:




that same wall now:




please excuse the mess....

also want to update everyone that i injured my back getting that huge tank up the stairs, so ill be hung up for a bit...but will still be working on the tank

For a moment there, I thought you were talking about me, haha! Do you already have your 5-foot red tail boa?
Yes, you have some cleaning up to do, girl. Is this the 100-gallon tank you talked about? What substrate is it in the tank?

(09-04-2012, 10:53 PM)Thor Wrote: For a moment there, I thought you were talking about me, haha! Do you already have your 5-foot red tail boa?
Yes, you have some cleaning up to do, girl. Is this the 100-gallon tank you talked about? What substrate is it in the tank?

haha, no i do not have him yet. i will be getting him this upcoming weekend and yep, thats the tank, the killer tank that ruined my back! haha jk...its about 4 feet long and really heavy...the substrate is called repti-bark, its not the most preferred because it has been known to cause respiratory problems, but he has had it all 5 years of his life, so ill stick with it for now until i get to know him better. normally, a mixture of cypress mulch, dirt, sphagnum moss, and leaf litter is preferred..

Looks good Manda! Careful, your becoming a junkie, you've got the beginnings of a full herp room there. I've never had any problems with the "reptibark", though admittedly I don't use the name brand stuff, I get the orchid bark at home depot, its the same stuff, western fir bark.

Its always fun getting a new critter, and learning how to set everything up for him. Can't wait to see some pics

(09-05-2012, 01:30 PM)Fishbone Wrote: Looks good Manda! Careful, your becoming a junkie, you've got the beginnings of a full herp room there. I've never had any problems with the "reptibark", though admittedly I don't use the name brand stuff, I get the orchid bark at home depot, its the same stuff, western fir bark.

Its always fun getting a new critter, and learning how to set everything up for him. Can't wait to see some pics

i am turning into a junkie D: any cures? hehe..my room is being taken over by reptiles! this just means i need to open my store sooner than later so none of those reptiles end up sleeping in my bed with me -.-

update #2

finally got around to cleaning my room! cleaned all the lizard tubs and tanks, and moved spock to his own tub, and mars to spock's ten gallon so i could put away mars's 20 gallon and make room for my tv..needless to say, mars is not happy with the downgrade :p

anyhow, got a dishpan today at the dollar store for thor, and found an old tank decoration to put in his home, even if its not functional, it still looks nice. all i have left is to make his house :3

clean geckos!


a not so happy mars stalking his neighbor venus while she eats lol


finally, thor's cage

The only cure I've found is another animal, lol.

Another thought for utilizing space in that tank for a boa cheaply, is some type of shelf. He probably won't "perch" much, but most boas enjoy sitting up on top of things sometimes. Also gives him more temperature ranges relative to the basking lamp. I've found cheap "over the sink" and "over the counter" shelves to work well. This is one is in my bredls enclosure. Dollar store, $4 I think. Its made of some type of unknown wood, so it has a couple of coats of helmsman spar urethane on it, which also makes it much easier to clean.



You'll have to look around and see what you can find. You can also construct the hide underneath if you'd like. I've got some greenery there cinnamon likes to hide behind some days. But she's in the living room, and rather enjoys sitting up there watching the world. She's obviously not a boa, but allot of boas have a very similar personality.

update # 3

i got thor's house built!!! found some extra wood in the basement, so i sanded all the edges down and nailed together a hide that doubles as a basking spot! :3







i do have one question though..ive read boas like it to be warm at night..unlike chameleons that need a temp drop..and obviously theres no way i can fit a heating mat under the tank unless i prop it up on little feet somehow..but its soo heavy and will take a few people to do..so how can i keep the tank warm at night? what about one of those blue heat bulbs? i have an infrared one ill be using during the day

Looking good there. It looks a lot better than the pictures in your first post. I had a hard time to believe it's a girl's home.
Ok, when do get to see Thor? I am eager to meet the old man.
What did you do with the entertainment center? Where do I get some of those 69 cents coffee? Is it a real driftwood?

Fishbone, is that another snake of yours? I don't recall seeing it before. It is beautiful.

(09-07-2012, 05:15 AM)Ram Wrote: Looking good there. It looks a lot better than the pictures in your first post. I had a hard time to believe it's a girl's home.
Ok, when do get to see Thor? I am eager to meet the old man.
What did you do with the entertainment center? Where do I get some of those 69 cents coffee? Is it a real driftwood?

Fishbone, is that another snake of yours? I don't recall seeing it before. It is beautiful.

haha, im no regular girl total tomboy here! ill be seeing thor early next week because he is being fed tomorrow and wont want touched for a few days..the entertainment center is in my basement until someone takes it, and that sign blew into my yard from a corner store across the street, i thought it was cool, so i kept it hahaha! and no, it has a stone consistancy..i just thought it looked cool lol.

Nice craftsmanship Manda! Looks good I would make sure its finished/lacquered, it'll save you headaches in the long run. You don't really need a nighttime temp drop with boas, unless your cycling them to breed in the winter. You can give them a bit of a drop, but its not necessary. All of the snakes I have in aquaria now, I use a black/blue/purple heat bulb 24/7. Then either ambient room light, indirect light, or fluorescents for daytime light. I get the darkest purple ones I can find. Its simple and works well.

Personally, I don't really like the UTH's on large tanks like that with screen tops, they do very, very little to heat the air at all. So a black heat bulb is probably your best bet, or a ceramic heat emitter. (if you get a CHE, make sure you use the right kind of lamp.)

And Ram, yes, that's another snake. That's Cinnamon, a female bredls python. Her brother is in the apartment right below her.

TODAY IS THE DAY! im getting thor in about 4 hours, will have tons of pics!! :3