I'm about to be a foster mama!

[hrafn]

She’s definitely hypo and I don’t see any Central American influence. Super Hypo isn’t uncommon and isn’t worth more than most hypos unless they have been proven through breeding and even then they have to be quality to be worth real money. Orange tail is a line of Hypo but without documentation can’t be claimed. Hypos are honestly a dime a dozen even though your new foster looks like a nice clean one with some decent coloration!

She honestly looks perfectly healthy and not skinny at all. Most people grossly overfeed boas. She looks like a loaf of bread/boxed off and muscle tone which is a sign of a healthy boa. I’d be surprised if she’s actually anywhere near 20 and is most likely way younger & a good size. 40 isn’t a common age for boas to get to even though they technically can. Mid 20s is a more common lifespan if the boa hasn’t been fed to death.

Also boas are generally smaller than people imagine them haha. You can get some real big ones but average is actually 6-8ft for them. And Boa constrictor imperator have been upgraded into their own species they are now just Boa imperator.

In retrospect, you're right about her weight. The pictures my boa-keeping friends saw weren't great, and I'm not used to boas enough to tell; I'm generally a python person, and blood pythons look like land whales compared to Peanut Butter lol

She's muscular and powerful, but she does seem stunted for a boa that's supposed to be twenty-one. My close friend had a boa named Butters who was eight feet long at only ten, but for the most part Butters is the only boa I've been close to in my life. Maybe she was just enormous?

 

[riddick07]

In retrospect, you're right about her weight. The pictures my boa-keeping friends saw weren't great, and I'm not used to boas enough to tell; I'm generally a python person, and blood pythons look like land whales compared to Peanut Butter lol

She's muscular and powerful, but she does seem stunted for a boa that's supposed to be twenty-one. My close friend had a boa named Butters who was eight feet long at only ten, but for the most part Butters is the only boa I've been close to in my life. Maybe she was just enormous?

8ft isnt enormous they just seem huge because they have so much body to them. While boas grow their whole life it starts getting so minimal that you don’t really notice much length added on after awhile. 8ft at 10 years isn’t bad especially for females who are much more likely to hit the 8-9ft mark. Not all boas will hit the 8ft mark though. My biggest girl hit the 8ft mark at around that 10 year age too and she’s 15 years now and still sitting at the 8ft mark (so in 5 years the growth was so minimal that she’s still at 8ft).

Given the situation where the boa was just dropped off I wouldn’t be betting on the animal being in it’s 20s honestly. They could have gotten it thinking it was older or it’s been in so many homes the actual year it was born was lost along the way or just lied about the age for some odd reason. If it was bred too early or too often her resources would have gone to babies instead of growth too. They give live birth, no eggs, so pregnancy takes a lot out of them but honestly an animal that’s overbred early on wouldn’t be expected to hit 20 either.


I would just tell any potential adopters the story and the age given but mention no one can be 100% on the age & it’s likely that it could be much younger.

 

[hrafn]

Update on Lady Peanut Butter!

This sweet girl is such a good snake. Amazing feeding response, no cage aggression to speak of, not even head shy. Her vet is super pleased with her improving health, but agrees that she's almost definitely not as old as claimed. She even suggested that maybe the dude who abandoned her mixed up the word, and she was 21 months instead of years, lol.

She'll be ready to be put up for adoption soon! I'll be sad to see her go.

 

[faislaq]

You've done well by her. A wonderful foster mom.

 

[hrafn]

Oh no.

Oh no, you guys.

My phone notified me of an email from the rescue's adoption coordinator. I figured it was going to be a message telling me that LPB was going to be put up on the site for adoption, and I was immediately hit by a tidal wave of sorrow, but instead...she asked me if I want to officially adopt her.

OH NOOOOOOO WHAT DO I DOOOOOOO

 

[Lady Jane]

I know nothing about snakes except this one will be huge if not already Are you confident in the safety of all birds?

 

[hrafn]

I know nothing about snakes except this one will be huge if not already Are you confident in the safety of all birds?

Oh yes, definitely. The fids and the snakes (and other predators) are kept entirely and permanently separate from one another. Peanut Butter lives in an escape-proof enclosure, but even in the event that she somehow got out, everything is snake-proofed in a way that prevents her, and Ice Cream, from being able to get to the birds at all.

 

[Shezbug]

Ohhh wow. How cool that she gets to stay!!
When will you be signing the papers??

 

[tka]

Yeah, I don't think she's going anywhere. Looks like you got yourself a snake!

Called it!

Sooooooo are you keeping her?

 

[aooratrix]

Boas are big sweet puppies temperament-wise.

Oh, not always. I've met some that were always defensive.

She's hard to measure but roughly between four and five feet. Not nearly the size I'd expect from a 21-year-old female, as they grow throughout their entire lives. She may have not been fed enough to keep her size up while she was young.

 

[aooratrix]

Oh believe me, I ADORE him too. He's such a funny little character, he just needs someone to work with him after being left in his tank for years. I've handled him a few times and while he's nowhere near as chill as the big girlie, he's not overtly aggressive. He has a hyper sensitive strike response, but that's because the only interaction he's had for ages is someone opening his door to dangle a mouse in his face, and now he recognises that any time the door opens, it's time to eat, and anything that moves is fair game.

He's a good boy. He just needs some TLC.

And tap training.

 

[hrafn]

And tap training.

You know it, lol!
Ice Cream has been doing great with his tap training!

 

[hrafn]

Whoops, I just realised that I never updated everyone!

Not that I need to. You all know exactly what my decision was.