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a question-


[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ The Beginner Snake Forum ]

Posted by oldherper on April 23, 2003 at 07:22:23:

In Reply to: a question- posted by meretseger on April 23, 2003 at 05:40:36:

Yeah, I have a bunch of Kenyans too. I have kept a few Rosies in years gone by...for a "first snake", I don't think sand boas are the best choice. They are not difficult feeders or anything like that, but make a better 3rd or 4th snake. That's just my opinion. It's based on:

1. Sand Boas are happier in a sand-type substrate, and heating and thermal gradient is a little more difficult to achieve and monitor (not much, but a little).

2. Beginning snake keepers tend to want to see their snakes more and handle them more. With sand boas, in my experience, the less you handle them, the better they do. I've seen a few beginners with sand boas just lose interest because they couldn't "see" the snake...all they could see was a bunch of calci-sand.

3. Sand boas for the most part are pretty "snappy" and don't really like to be handled. The bite isn't bad, but it's enough to make a new keeper shy away from the animal.

With Rosies and Rainbows, really you can just give them a newspaper substrate, a hide box and a water bowl and they'll do fine. They tend to tolerate handling a little better (in my experience) and the beginning keeper can see them and show them off easier.


:What, in your opinion, makes sand boas more difficult captives than rosies? I have a bunch of Kenyans but no rosies and I assumed they were rather similar in their requirements?





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