#snake replies

[crispysnakes]

I'm Slightly confused, so just to clarify, are you currently breeding B. c. longicauda and if so, around what time of year do they become available? All of you snakes look amazing! (just an fyi if you didn't know already, your available page seems to be broken.)

I do breed longis. I had a Denton line litter this year (a repeat of Jasmine x Oolong), but they won't be ready until spring. I’m not sure what will be available at the moment as I’m doing a couple trades this season.

You can always email [email protected] for questions or updates.

[crispysnakes]

positivelycarey Hi, this is so dumb but I can’t find any helpful info online about this. Why IS my boa sometimes dark and sometimes light? Does it mean anything significant or is it just where she is in her shedding cycle, or is it like a mood ring? :P I just have no idea if I’m supposed to do anything about it. Help? :

It seems to have more to do with thermoregulation, digestion and time of day than anything else. 

[crispysnakes]

shadowthorne What causes something like this? Poor guy... Well... Hopefully he did his job before he had to retire for the season

It happens when blood pools in the hemipene due to injury or blockage, and is more or less an excessively long, painful erection. In snakes the opening where the hemipene everts is very tiny and extended swelling will cut blood supply to the organ, causing it to die/dry out and become necrotic (which very quickly leads to infection and left untreated, death). In BB’s case there was no blockage, no twisting or injury, and the organ was structurally sound. The vet thinks Sas was just a bit rough with him. I’d guess she probably pulled away when he was trying to lock up with her since it looked like she was ready to ovulate. 

In any case, I’m grateful I was able to spot it and that she didn’t rip it out. It looks like she has cycled as well, so I’m hopeful that she’ll go on to produce a viable litter. Time will tell. 

[crispysnakes]

Can you give me some advice...? My boa has vomited twice in the past 4-5 days. Each time it’s only been four, bone, and what looks like some mucous, or maybe that’s just stomach fluids I don’t know... I’ve been reading a lot of conflicting info about whether or not snakes can digest keratin, but regardless the vomiting has me worried. And I know for sure he’s vomiting it up and not pooping it because the smell is horrific...

I would leave him be for a few (2-3) weeks without feeding, with the next meal being half the size of normal. Not knowing the circumstances, I don’t know if temps were too cool, if he was stressed in some way, if it was a bad feeder, or if there is something else going on.   

[crispysnakes]

kedreeva Will you be sending out to the mailing list like the first time?

I didn’t keep a list for her litter so it’ll be first come first serve. I will probably look to move Shasta out before next summer as well, if anyone is interested in a proven adult female. 

[crispysnakes]

Hi, nice boas! I wonder your opinion on the South Brazilian and BCC Brazilian lines of boas, their origins and varying characteristics. Are the SB lines from Belknap, King, Lemke etc. selectively bred with more northern animals? In the past few years I have also seen Sao Paulo animals that look more like the old text book photos. I do have some originating from Miller.

Thanks much! It’s difficult to make any definitive statements on the Southies, if I recall right the port of origin did not match where they were initially collected and no one seems to really know exactly *where* that collection occurred. Some of the early scale counts suggest they may be closer to (or are) Brazil BC, but the range of amarali extends quite a bit into southern Brazil - moreso than it does into Bolivia or Paraguay - and there appears to be ample opportunity for intergradation. Personally, I’d guess the Southies are intergrades.  

I don’t think Lemke/King/Belknap intentionally crossed their South Brazils with North Brazils, but we are seeing those crosses now from breeders in Europe (Southie x North, Southie x Bolivian). I assume the founders of those lines did a fair amount of selective breeding just within the animals they had, much like how Joe Terry developed the Silverback line of Bolivians. 

Everything remains speculation, unfortunately. That said, I am actively trying to build out a group of Southies (difficult to do, barring importing, as they seem to crop up so rarely in the US). If you ever decide to move yours, please give me a shout.   

[crispysnakes]

I’m apart of a Boa facebook group and there was someone on there asking about breeding. Most of the community said not to breed unless you breed high value morphs and they also said that you shouldn’t breed a female unless you’re okay with losing her because there can be a lot of complications and a high chance of death. Are both of these true in your opinion? I’ve heard mixed things about breeding high value for your first litter since people generally only want to buy from well known breeders.

There’s some truth to that, but you don’t need the latest and greatest in morphs or morph combos to breed. What you should be looking for in whatever you purchase for breeding, is quality. Keep what you enjoy first and foremost, and if you have any inclination towards breeding it, make sure your animals are stellar examples of whatever morph or locale they represent, because quality begets quality. 

The market is carrying a number of ‘high end’ multi-gene animals that are relatively low quality animals, because people buy just to have and produce those genes without taking the time to thoughtfully consider the impact of good selective breeding. It also carries a number of low end, low quality animals - it spans the range. So again, keep what you like, but be real choosy about it. And if you’re considering pairing, you need to be watching what the market is doing. Know what’s popular, become familiar with prices, projects, etc so you know how best to plan your project(s) and what to expect as far as you being able to move out babies. Many people underestimate the amount of time it takes to move a litter of boas. 

To address the last point - yes, you should not breed an animal you are willing to lose because complications *can* happen. Gravid females drop dead, they slug out and die, they can be slug bound/ retain slugs and suffer sepsis, they can intentionally or intentionally kill your male, etc. Stuff happens when you work with live animals, basically. That said, I do believe when more people start screening their collections for arenavirus the boa hobby as a whole will see less breeding season deaths. 

Hope that helps!