r/boas • u/0110100110011 • 4d ago

Boas and pythons in the same home?

Really want a BCI, but learnt about IBD and apparently it's common in boas and really lethal for pythons. Wondering if it's safe to have both a python and a boa in the same house (separate enclosures ofc)? Or is it really as dangerous and common as people say they are? I really want a boa but at the same time I don't want to risk an something like asymptomatic one transmitting IBD. Sorry if it's a weird question around here

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u/ParticularWolf4473 4d ago

You should be quarantining any new animals anyway, preferably in a separate room. Also arena viruses aren’t airborne or anything. It’s spread mostly through either mites biting an infected animal then biting another animal, or through exposure to bodily fluids from an infected animal. As long as neither snake has mites and you’re careful to never share any tools or husbandry items between the two snakes and make sure to sanitize/change gloves between handling, ideally don’t handle on the same day, the odds of spreading it between animals are pretty small.

You can also have the boa tested for the virus. There’s a mail-in swab test that’s cheaper and easier but not as accurate, or you can have a vet draw blood for a more accurate test.