# New sand boa help!



## Dannidoll93 (11 mo ago)

Hiya,

my new sand boa arrived by courier today. My plan was to check him over and then put him into the viv, give him a week and feed him, then wait a few days before handling again.

It didn’t go to plan- as soon as I opened the tub and went to pick him up he was really upset, jerking away, trying to bite, and musking. I didn’t want to distress him any more, so I skipped the check and put him in the viv to settle.

when I was trying to check him over I did see a kind of pink area on the area above his tail, under his body, which looked exposed and wet. I am assuming this is his cloaca? And that I could see it more because he’d just musked? But would be grateful if someone could confirm.

he is my first ever snake. Just wondering if anyone has any tips. Should I be trying to check him over properly, or leave him be now that he’s in the viv? Also worried about trying to pick him up again, since he seemed so stressed and I hate to scare him and can’t really imagine how I will be able to handle him in future if he is doing these things again.

any advice very welcome!


----------



## ian14 (Jan 2, 2008)

A sand boa as a first snake isn't the best idea, but you have it now.
Theu are not known as muskers. They can be snappy though!
Sand boas can be rather shy and defensive. They are also not a particularly handleable snake, certainly in my experience of keeping and breeding several species. Leave it be for a few days.
What species have you bought, and how are you keeping it?


----------



## Dannidoll93 (11 mo ago)

ian14 said:


> A sand boa as a first snake isn't the best idea, but you have it now.
> Theu are not known as muskers. They can be snappy though!
> Sand boas can be rather shy and defensive. They are also not a particularly handleable snake, certainly in my experience of keeping and breeding several species. Leave it be for a few days.
> What species have you bought, and how are you keeping it?


thanks for responding. It’s a Kenyan sand boa, there’s so much info out there and everything I read says they’re a good first snake, very docile… :/
I have him in a wooden viv now, on aspen. He has a heat mat for night time and a lamp for daytime, both on stats. Temps are at 34 in hotspot and 27 in cooler side. And uvb tube too. Trying to do everything right so appreciate your help.


----------



## TheHouseofReptilez (Sep 26, 2021)

Dannidoll93 said:


> thanks for responding. It’s a Kenyan sand boa, there’s so much info out there and everything I read says they’re a good first snake, very docile… :/
> I have him in a wooden viv now, on aspen. He has a heat mat for night time and a lamp for daytime, both on stats. Temps are at 34 in hotspot and 27 in cooler side. And uvb tube too. Trying to do everything right so appreciate your help.


*Don't believe everything you read online*, I made that mistake then I found RFUK fortunately I got corn snakes which are considered a good starter snake although they move around a lot,

I have little to no experience when it comes to sand boa's but from what I've been told about them by my reptile store and read about them on this forum they don't make great starter snakes,

Maybe you'd have been better off getting a Hognose or a Ball Python two very docile species and great as starter snakes with the right amount of research,

However each snake is it's own individual so you may end up with a sand boa that's relaxed and will accept being handled or you may end up with one that doesn't like being handled or touched,

I hope everything works out for you and your sand boa just give it a week or so to settle in try to feed and go from there.


----------



## LiasisUK (Sep 30, 2019)

Dannidoll93 said:


> thanks for responding. It’s a Kenyan sand boa, there’s so much info out there and everything I read says they’re a good first snake, very docile… :/
> I have him in a wooden viv now, on aspen. He has a heat mat for night time and a lamp for daytime, both on stats. Temps are at 34 in hotspot and 27 in cooler side. And uvb tube too. Trying to do everything right so appreciate your help.


Every single Kenyan Sand Boa I have ever dealt with (and we used to breed them every year at my old job) is bitey, thrashy and awful for handling. I am unsure where this information comes from, I see it around and I can't understand where it comes from, maybe they keep their animals too cold?

I may be biased as I do not like them very much, but they aren't a very good first snake, their temperament is poor, they don't like being handled (even the ones that don't bite don't like it) AND they're fossorial, they live underground, so you also never see them. They are very easy to care for if you don't wish to ever touch it, and they are very hardy and easy to breed. I guess this is the reason they are recommended.

All you've described is normal from my experience. It is worth just leaving him alone and not handling him until he has eaten a couple of times. This is the same for all new snakes, not specific to sand boas.


----------



## Dannidoll93 (11 mo ago)

ThatCornSnakeGuy said:


> *Don't believe everything you read online*, I made that mistake then I found RFUK fortunately I got corn snakes which are considered a good starter snake although they move around a lot,
> 
> I have little to no experience when it comes to sand boa's but from what I've been told about them by my reptile store and read about them on this forum they don't make great starter snakes,
> 
> ...


thank you. I generally don’t believe everything I read, which is why I did hours and hours of research but never found anything other than praise for their temperament. It’s a bit surprising to learn otherwise! I will give him some space before I try again.


----------



## Dannidoll93 (11 mo ago)

LiasisUK said:


> Every single Kenyan Sand Boa I have ever dealt with (and we used to breed them every year at my old job) is bitey, thrashy and awful for handling. I am unsure where this information comes from, I see it around and I can't understand where it comes from, maybe they keep their animals too cold?
> 
> I may be biased as I do not like them very much, but they aren't a very good first snake, their temperament is poor, they don't like being handled (even the ones that don't bite don't like it) AND they're fossorial, they live underground, so you also never see them. They are very easy to care for if you don't wish to ever touch it, and they are very hardy and easy to breed. I guess this is the reason they are recommended.
> 
> All you've described is normal from my experience. It is worth just leaving him alone and not handling him until he has eaten a couple of times. This is the same for all new snakes, not specific to sand boas.


Thanks for your thoughts… sounds like I may have to get used to this! I am not planning to get into collecting at all and just wanted one pet, so it’s a shame to hear it might not be what I thought. But he is still very cool! I will give some space and try again, maybe he will calm down.


----------



## LiasisUK (Sep 30, 2019)

Dannidoll93 said:


> Thanks for your thoughts… sounds like I may have to get used to this! I am not planning to get into collecting at all and just wanted one pet, so it’s a shame to hear it might not be what I thought. But he is still very cool! I will give some space and try again, maybe he will calm down.



No problem, sorry to be the bearer of bad news. If you only wish to keep one snake and you want it to be a pet for handling personally would recommend exchanging the sand boa for something else. 

But anyway, your set-up sounds good with decent temperatures. Though I would recommend removing the heat mat, in nature an animal that burrows will dig down to escape the heat (from the sun), this is their natural instinct, using a heat mat underneath the substrate will mean it gets warmer as they dig down, it may also be hotter than you think, as temperatures are most commonly taken from the surface, it will be hotter under the substrate. Most UK household room temperatures should be absolutely fine for the animal at night.
Another reason to remove the heat mat is that kenyan sand boas like a deep layer of substrate, a thick layer of substrate on a heat mat is a potential fire risk. 

The overhead heat source is great, I assume its a basking bulb like a halogen,. as it will mean that if your animal wants to warm up it will come to the surface to bask, meaning you will see it more.


----------



## Dannidoll93 (11 mo ago)

LiasisUK said:


> No problem, sorry to be the bearer of bad news. If you only wish to keep one snake and you want it to be a pet for handling personally would recommend exchanging the sand boa for something else.
> 
> But anyway, your set-up sounds good with decent temperatures. Though I would recommend removing the heat mat, in nature an animal that burrows will dig down to escape the heat (from the sun), this is their natural instinct, using a heat mat underneath the substrate will mean it gets warmer as they dig down, it may also be hotter than you think, as temperatures are most commonly taken from the surface, it will be hotter under the substrate. Most UK household room temperatures should be absolutely fine for the animal at night.
> Another reason to remove the heat mat is that kenyan sand boas like a deep layer of substrate, a thick layer of substrate on a heat mat is a potential fire risk.
> ...


Thank you. He is the bedroom, and we generally have the window open at night so it does get colder in the room which is why we have the mat… there’s glass between the mat and the aspen so I’m hoping it won’t be too dangerous? But during the day the mat is off. The bulb is halogen yes  funnily enough the only time he came above the surface so far was last night after the lights went off, so moving away from the heat- but he is crepuscular so not too surprising he was more active then actually.


----------



## TheHouseofReptilez (Sep 26, 2021)

I mean I know you said you aren't looking to start a collection but maybe you should look into the Hognose again I have little to no experience with them but from the praise they get and also having a friend who has one I've heard nothing but great things about them,

They also don't get very big and enclosure wise they only need a 3 x 2 x 2 of course if you want to go bigger you can, temps are pretty much in the same range as a sand boa 30 - 32c on the hot spot,

They are rear fanged venomous a bite from a hoggy isn't going to invenomate you just don't let them chew on you otherwise you will get invenomated.


----------



## Dannidoll93 (11 mo ago)

ThatCornSnakeGuy said:


> I mean I know you said you aren't looking to start a collection but maybe you should look into the Hognose again I have little to no experience with them but from the praise they get and also having a friend who has one I've heard nothing but great things about them,
> 
> They also don't get very big and enclosure wise they only need a 3 x 2 x 2 of course if you want to go bigger you can, temps are pretty much in the same range as a sand boa 30 - 32c on the hot spot,
> 
> They are rear fanged venomous a bite from a hoggy isn't going to invenomate you just don't let them chew on you otherwise you will get invenomated.


Weirdly enough I was between the two and went for the boa as I saw a lot of info about them being calmer than the hognose! 😅 I’ll see how I go with my little guy but maybe in future that’s the way to go. Thanks


----------



## TheHouseofReptilez (Sep 26, 2021)

Dannidoll93 said:


> Weirdly enough I was between the two and went for the boa as I saw a lot of info about them being calmer than the hognose! 😅 I’ll see how I go with my little guy but maybe in future that’s the way to go. Thanks


I sincerely wish you the absolute best I hope it works out for you also I like his name (Toto) has a nice ring to it.


----------



## LiasisUK (Sep 30, 2019)

Dannidoll93 said:


> Thank you. He is the bedroom, and we generally have the window open at night so it does get colder in the room which is why we have the mat… there’s glass between the mat and the aspen so I’m hoping it won’t be too dangerous? But during the day the mat is off. The bulb is halogen yes  funnily enough the only time he came above the surface so far was last night after the lights went off, so moving away from the heat- but he is crepuscular so not too surprising he was more active then actually.


I would still turn it off, or mount it on the roof/side (may need to switch it out to a high power mat to do this) rather than under the substrate.


----------



## Dannidoll93 (11 mo ago)

ThatCornSnakeGuy said:


> I sincerely wish you the absolute best I hope it works out for you also I like his name (Toto) has a nice ring to it.


Thank you! 😊


----------



## Dannidoll93 (11 mo ago)

LiasisUK said:


> I would still turn it off, or mount it on the roof/side (may need to switch it out to a high power mat to do this) rather than under the substrate.


Okay that’s good to know, thank you!


----------



## ian14 (Jan 2, 2008)

I never used heating at night. Sand boas tend to inhabit regions that are very hot by day, and very cold at night.


----------



## Dannidoll93 (11 mo ago)

ian14 said:


> I never used heating at night. Sand boas tend to inhabit regions that are very hot by day, and very cold at night.


Thanks for this. I’m going to ditch the mat i think. Does it make any difference if the snake is still quite young at 6mo? Also the room can be around 15c at night, everything I’ve read says 20 or higher is okay for nighttime?


----------



## TheHouseofReptilez (Sep 26, 2021)

Dannidoll93 said:


> Thanks for this. I’m going to ditch the mat i think. Does it make any difference if the snake is still quite young at 6mo? Also the room can be around 15c at night, everything I’ve read says 20 or higher is okay for nighttime?


Shouldn't be a problem at all, also if you are taking the readings from the thermostat or digital thermometer just ignore what they say more so the thermostat as they are inaccurate so are the digital thermometers but only by a plus or minus of a degree or two,

The snake will use the substrate to stay warmish during the night and as long as he has a heat source to go to during the day he'll be 100% fine.


----------

