Hello everyone, my name is Auraria and this is sylvanas

[auraria]

Welp, Recently I got a Ball Python(Illidan) and I've been in love.
Then some how or another(COUGH boabug COUGH) I got a beautiful girl.
She's a Paradigm Boa about 8 months old!
She's a little sweetheart and I can't wait for her to get big!
Also plastic cages are the best! 81 ambient temp, 91 hotspot, 79 cold spot, 58% humidity 24/7 no issues.









And first feed was successful!




Here's her enclosure, please do not mind the paper towels she's in quarantine otherwise she'd be on aspen!
and the cardboard stopping her from getting stuck.
And as you can see in the background of this one she's hanging out on top of her hide with her head.
Silly girl.



On top I have fresh water, temp/humidity sensors for the top and bottom cage.
Jumbo hide filled with aspen, extra bag of aspen, thermostat, and my RGB LED strip remote/sensor.
The color is a lot darker red than what shows up in the pictures.

[acephantom903]

Re: Hello everyone, my name is Auraria and this is sylvanas

Is that a 6 foot cage? Looks like a great set up. You technically don't really need lights in the cage for lighting purposes. The light that comes in through the window behind it should be plenty for your little one. Lights are just to make it look pretty for us, but they do need a period of time to rest. My girl sleeps between 6AM and 5:40ish PM when she pokes her head out and just watches what I'm doing until I go to sleep when she roams her cage. Welcome to the addiction ... I mean hobby.

[auraria]

Re: Hello everyone, my name is Auraria and this is sylvanas

Is that a 6 foot cage? Looks like a great set up. You technically don't really need lights in the cage for lighting purposes. The light that comes in through the window behind it should be plenty for your little one. Lights are just to make it look pretty for us, but they do need a period of time to rest. My girl sleeps between 6AM and 5:40ish PM when she pokes her head out and just watches what I'm doing until I go to sleep when she roams her cage. Welcome to the addiction ... I mean hobby.

She's in a 4x2x1 for right now.
And I added the LED RGB strip just for looks lol.
I keep it at a dark red and it cycles brightness on time.

And yup, I got the bug.
I'm currently watching tv with my ball python but I think I caught the boa bug.
HARD.

I have another 4x2x1 under that one that's all ready to go but empty....originally for my ball python when he gets big enough but I'm tempted to pick up another paradigm. but a male and possibly make little paradigm babies in a few years...


What have I got myself into!

[acephantom903]

Re: Hello everyone, my name is Auraria and this is sylvanas

I have a 4x2x1 and that looks bigger for some reason. lol I'd probably hold off on plans to breed as it is nerve wracking. Boas have live birth which is even more stressful on the mother. Boas dying from trying to have babies is not uncommon. For some reason this last year was difficult for many breeders in the USA. Many breeders lost some of their breeder animals. It is a risk that isn't always in the best interest of the animals.

[auraria]

Re: Hello everyone, my name is Auraria and this is sylvanas

I have a 4x2x1 and that looks bigger for some reason. lol I'd probably hold off on plans to breed as it is nerve wracking. Boas have live birth which is even more stressful on the mother. Boas dying from trying to have babies is not uncommon. For some reason this last year was difficult for many breeders in the USA. Many breeders lost some of their breeder animals. It is a risk that isn't always in the best interest of the animals.

I agree, I don't want to breed for money or anything of the like.
I just to produce beautiful animals that I love .I wouldn't breed every year either and would wait for them to be 3-4 years+ for maturity purposes.
and I heard that about LLH reptiles, it's sad to hear. :/

[acephantom903]

Re: Hello everyone, my name is Auraria and this is sylvanas

...and I heard that about LLH reptiles, it's sad to hear.

I didn't even hear about them. I follow a lot of boa groups on instagram. Every year there are losses but this year was full of losses. Of the 10 groups I follow, there were close to 20 adult animals lost -- not including babies which would make it higher but as to be expected with stillbirths, slugs, and weak babies. The groups are not usually one individual, but a group of people posting on one channel/page.

[Noelle7206]

Re: Hello everyone, my name is Auraria and this is sylvanas

I agree, I don't want to breed for money or anything of the like.
I just to produce beautiful animals that I love .I wouldn't breed every year either and would wait for them to be 3-4 years+ for maturity purposes....

As one who has bred a few snakes, I second the cautions given by acephantom903, & I'll add some. It 'seems like a great idea' but snakes like boas can have a ridiculous number of babies, way more than you'll want to
keep...and you have to consider that you'll be caring for them ALL until you can find them homes...which is getting harder these days with so many breeding. I hadn't heard about the many losses this year, but breeding
does have risks especially for the female even when she's the right age (4+) & seemingly great physical shape. You can lose your pet, or need expensive vet care to pull her through, and consider that some babies don't
turn out the way you expect either...consider there may be deformities that make them hard to place, much less sell. And some snakes keep reproducing without further mating even though you want & expect them to
quit....I'm not sure how often boas do that but some of our snakes just do the strangest things anyway, like parthenogenesis. (-I had an old female rosy boa that pulled that on me!) And then too, no matter how much
you love a particular kind, it's more interesting to have different kinds...especially with all the temptations online & elsewhere. The actual mating even has risks, with some snakes that attack the intended mate...if you're
right there, you might only have injuries, but if you're not, you may have one or two dead snakes instead.

Anyway, you have plenty of time to think it over...we're glad to have you join us. We are all "snake addicts" here, lol!

PS- most pets get better care when sold instead of giving them away...many ppl will take something just because it's free & then treat it as if it has no worth, like a toy they soon tire of, so be careful.

[auraria]

Re: Hello everyone, my name is Auraria and this is sylvanas

As one who has bred a few snakes, I second the cautions given by acephantom903, & I'll add some. It 'seems like a great idea' but snakes like boas can have a ridiculous number of babies, way more than you'll want to
keep...and you have to consider that you'll be caring for them ALL until you can find them homes...which is getting harder these days with so many breeding. I hadn't heard about the many losses this year, but breeding
does have risks especially for the female even when she's the right age (4+) & seemingly great physical shape. You can lose your pet, or need expensive vet care to pull her through, and consider that some babies don't
turn out the way you expect either...consider there may be deformities that make them hard to place, much less sell. And some snakes keep reproducing without further mating even though you want & expect them to
quit....I'm not sure how often boas do that but some of our snakes just do the strangest things anyway, like parthenogenesis. (-I had an old female rosy boa that pulled that on me!) And then too, no matter how much
you love a particular kind, it's more interesting to have different kinds...especially with all the temptations online & elsewhere. The actual mating even has risks, with some snakes that attack the intended mate...if you're
right there, you might only have injuries, but if you're not, you may have one or two dead snakes instead.

Anyway, you have plenty of time to think it over...we're glad to have you join us. We are all "snake addicts" here, lol!

PS- most pets get better care when sold instead of giving them away...many ppl will take something just because it's free & then treat it as if it has no worth, like a toy they soon tire of, so be careful.

Sorry for the late response but thank you for your honesty and opinion.
I definitely wouldn't breed them unless I felt 100% ready to A: take in and care for a possible extra 20 mouths, and B: take the risk of breeding my animals.


Even more so "A" because I wouldn't sell any to someone I don't feel comfortable caring for the baby.
Even to this day people still don't research an animal they pick up(even though it's so freaking easy with the internet) and usually they sell it on craigslist, or have RI and pass away, or have other issues.

For me personally I just love animals and would like to produce more of these gorgeous animal for other people to enjoy.
Especially if this LACY act keeps getting worse. But it might be irresponsible of me doing so if the market is flooded or if I won't be able to spend the time on each individual baby needs.
I got a while to sit and think about it before my snake is able to breed.

I still would like to pick up another, because boas are awesome.
Don't get me wrong I love my ballpython but boas are just a whole different level.
They're so curious and fun to hang out with.

Thinking of picking up a Male Sharp sunglow or a paraglow because their colors are sweet and it'd be a good thing to breed to my paradigm if I go that route.

[Noelle7206]

Re: Hello everyone, my name is Auraria and this is sylvanas

... But it might be irresponsible of me doing so if the market is flooded or if I won't be able to spend the time on each individual baby needs.
I got a while to sit and think about it before my snake is able to breed....

I very much like your answer! I hope (& suspect) that you WILL do more thinking & research before jumping in. Realize that many people breed their snakes & sell the whole litter cheaply (to avoid long-term care)
to pet stores or wholesalers...so very stressful for the snakes, with many losses, and like it or not, these are "competition" for those from the more responsible breeders. Watch the prices at large expos...that will
give you some idea of how the "market" truly is. I can also tell you that when it comes to making money off selling the less-common kinds of snakes, it's mainly the first ones who make money...those who follow
pay more up front, then have to compete with others who made a similar "investment".

Though you mentioned not being in it for the money (& I wasn't either!), I'd encourage you to price them with competition in mind, and pay close attention to what's really in demand before jumping in. There's no
shame in keeping some as just pets...and in fact, if you want more to "do", try doing some educational programs with your snakes. You can do far more good when you're changing minds, IMO. Breeding snakes is
more work than it looks like, and then you're emotionally attached & often end up keeping more than you should. We're not kidding when we call this addicting... there ARE some rarer snakes that I'd love to see
people working with & successfully breeding, but then the market for them is still uncertain. Right now boas are 'in'...but in terms of pet stores, that's partly because they have SO many babies that eat SO much
food AND their owners need to keep buying bigger (pricey) cages, etc. It's not because boas are "better" pets than others that stay smaller either, in fact many people find themselves giving up snakes that get
"too big". Boas are beautiful & impressive...don't get me wrong...but there's only so many 'good' homes for them all...and we don't want them to end up like dogs & cats, euth'd for lack of homes? I sure don't.

Ball pythons: beautiful pets made popular for both their 'usually calm nature' and for staying an easier size to house & handle. I actually like the 'normals' better than all the silly morphs that many ppl breed for.
I've kept some for many years. They have their drawbacks (can be fussy feeders & need more heat & humidity than most beginners understand or get right) & yes, rather placid for my taste as well. And talk
about flooding the market: much of which results from all the normals produced when ppl are really trying for the fancier ones that sell for more.

[Jrock23]

Re: Hello everyone, my name is Auraria and this is sylvanas

Hey Auraria and welcome to the forums and beautiful snake and I really like the enclosure

Sent from my SM-G386T using Tapatalk

[auraria]

Re: Hello everyone, my name is Auraria and this is sylvanas

Hey Auraria and welcome to the forums and beautiful snake and I really like the enclosure

Sent from my SM-G386T using Tapatalk

Thanks for the welcome!
And I can't wait to put aspen back in, want to give her another month in quarantine before I get rid of the paper towels.

[zamora]

Re: Hello everyone, my name is Auraria and this is sylvanas

Hello! I'm a few days late into this but wanted to say welcome to RTB and the most addictive hobby around.

[auraria]

Re: Hello everyone, my name is Auraria and this is sylvanas

Hello! I'm a few days late into this but wanted to say welcome to RTB and the most addictive hobby around.

Thanks for the welcome!
And I'm in love!

I can't believe my mom was fine with lizards but never with snakes. My iguanas were *******s compared to my snakes! :P

[Noelle7206]

Re: Hello everyone, my name is Auraria and this is sylvanas

....I can't believe my mom was fine with lizards but never with snakes. My iguanas were *******s compared to my snakes! :P

People don't really choose their phobias...they've typically picked them up in childhood from experiences (-like being teased) or from what others told them ("horror stories" etc). I hope your patience & education will
change her mind...but don't despair if not.

[auraria]

Re: Hello everyone, my name is Auraria and this is sylvanas

People don't really choose their phobias...they've typically picked them up in childhood from experiences (-like being teased) or from what others told them ("horror stories" etc). I hope your patience & education will
change her mind...but don't despair if not.

My kid brothers love to come over and see them so hopefully she warms up to them as well.