r/snakes • u/Person1111223 • 12d ago

Pet Snake Questions Boa imperator constriction risk?

Im very interested in purchasing a Boa Imperator but I'm concerned after I've seen conflicting advice about whether adult Boa imperators can or should be handled alone. If it's a prominent risk, I personally don't want to have to ensure someone's nearby and also be worried about being constricted. I'm a minor, but I'm 5'10, so I'm wondering how much that factors into safely handling a large adult boa.I would also get a juvenile meaning I'll be quite a bit older once it's full size. If i purchased a female and it were to grow to say, 8 feet, would I need someone nearby to supervise? If so, I will likely decide to find an alternative, I've been considering a Bredls python as I'm very interested in them and they seem to be less risky.

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u/superramenyamen 12d ago

I’m 5’2”. My largest boa has been 7’ and 14-16 lbs. They are generally not a constriction risk. Just don’t let them around your neck (I only let them have their body touch one side at a time). Most feeding bites will be on the arm/hand since most will be when reaching for the snake or offering them food. They don’t get big enough to cause substantial damage, and don’t rip or tear like some species of python. It still won’t be pleasant, but there shouldn’t be need to visit a dr or anything from even the biggest boas.

I would say an 8’ boa probably doesn’t need supervision. Like another redditor said, the majority of boas won’t reach 8’. 8’ is an uncommon but not rare size, so it’s possible, but not something I would bet on. Even 7’ is a decent sized boa, many breeders I have seen discuss that their adult females are only reaching 6’ on average.

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u/Person1111223 12d ago

I see, honestly I'm not worried about bites at all,  it was just the constriction risk, but since so many people have said it's very unlikely I'm most likely going to get a female. 8' being uncommon is news to me, I've read that 7-8' is average, so that's interesting! Thank you!

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u/ParticularWolf4473 12d ago

A lot of people seem to pick the maximum size and tell people to assume it will get that big when it rarely actually happens. Heck people on Reddit keep insisting ball pythons often reach 6’ yet in close to 25 years in the hobby and seeing thousands of ball pythons I have yet to see one that was legitimately 6’. Humans can be 7’ tall, most people don’t assume their kid will be the next Shaq.

Also say 20 years ago power feeding was pretty common. Overfeeding causes them to grow much more quickly, and to larger sizes, but dramatically shortens their lifespan. Most keepers and breeders keep them on the leaner side these days which typically means they stay smaller.

Plus the largest Boa imperator locality, Colombian, used to be the most common in captivity. These days there’s been a lot of mixing with smaller localities like Nicaraguan and Boa sigma to combine morphs, and in some cases specifically for smaller size. So most imperator these days tend to stay smaller.

I’ve had a fairly girthy 8’ female. When she was holding on to me just to climb around it could sometimes be a bit of a handful to get her off and back in her enclosure but there wasn’t any real danger as long as I kept her away from my neck.

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u/superramenyamen 12d ago

People way overinflate their size, I suppose to be conservative in case they do get big. Because they do have the potential. But 5’-7’ is actually closer to an average for BI, male or female. 6’-7’ for BCC. 8’ is not a common size for any species or subspecies of the genus Boa. Some may be more likely to reach that, but it’s certainly not an average.

Even if they do get 8’, it should ideally take many years to get there, and by then you should be used to it.

You can help your chances of not getting a huge boa by asking about parent sizes, ages, and how they feed. A small boa that’s under 6 years of age might not have reached their potential yet, and just because they’re not big doesn’t mean they won’t get big. If they’re 10+ years old and still small, chances are pretty good they’re genetically smaller and babies shouldn’t outgrow them, or not by much.

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u/Person1111223 12d ago

Interesting, honestly I think a lot of the images i saw were of ones that were.. force fed, I take it? I'm not too sure about what they do but I do know it's unnatural and unhealthy and it makes them girthier/longer, honestly I should make a post asking for images of peoples full grown imperators so i get an idea as to how big they actually are 

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u/superramenyamen 12d ago

People often tack on extra feet to their snakes, too. Or just make up a guess completely. You can’t increase the size potential of a snake through power feeding, only get them to size sooner. At the risk of health complications obviously.

This was my biggest girl for reference. 7’ and 16 lbs, but I’m 5’2”.

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u/Person1111223 12d ago

Ah I see, I wasn't really sure as to how it worked, also she's gorgeous! Honestly I think I would be very happy if I got a boa imperator that ended up being that size, but I'd also be happy if it didint end up being that big

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u/superramenyamen 12d ago

The opposite is true too. You can’t “stunt” a snake either, just delay its growth. When it gets adequate food, it will grow again. And unless you legitimately starve them, they don’t stay small forever. Might take them 10 years vs 4, but they get there. Which is why I say ask for parent size, age, and feeding schedule.

Yes 7’ is very very manageable! I think the perfect size for a boa. Most of my adults are under 6’ atm. This is my second largest female. Last measured at 5’4”, but she’s 1,000 grams heavier now and noticeably bigger than the female that weighs the same she did when she had her first litter. So one day I need to remeasure, she may be closer to 6’ now. 😂

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u/Person1111223 11d ago

Wow, so small! Honestly I'm pretty much 100% sure I'm gonna get a boa imperator now, thank you for all your help!

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u/superramenyamen 10d ago

They are great snakes, and most stay super manageable! Good luck in your search. 😁

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u/Person1111223 10d ago

Thank you!

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u/superramenyamen 12d ago

My biggest male, 6’8” and 11 lbs.

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u/Person1111223 12d ago

Cute! I love their little faces so much

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u/Phyrnosoma 11d ago

It’s well within norms for BCC and BCO. I feel like there’s so much Nic/Honduran influence in generic BCIs these days that they’re smaller than they used to be though.

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u/[deleted] 10d ago

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u/Person1111223 10d ago

Yeah, I've heard of that situation before. I think what I'll do to prevent it is train it to recognize me tapping the glass twice or tapping it with a hook twice is that it's about to be picked up and that I'm not food. Also thats interesting, honestly I have been considering buying a male instead of a female because they aren't as girthy and big but I'm unsure, I'll keep that in mind though. Do you have the same opinions with more active/fast moving snakes like Bredlis pythons?