Though it is rarely referred to as a pet, a Rubber Boa is most definitely an interesting creature, and in my own opinion, it is the best snake that a person can have, especially for a first pet snake. Everything about a Rubber Boa Snake is easy from their temperament, care, feeding, and hygiene. Most snakes are a pet to be observed but not to be played with. Rubber Boas are the type of pet that a person can interact with, as they enjoy the warmth from a hand and will curl up on one for hours. The feeling is mutual, as a humans hand enjoys the soft feel of these docile serpents.
What Makes a Rubber Boa So Great?
1. Interactive: Rubber Boas will be a pet that you can hold, touch, be held by, and not be afraid that it is going to get away while playing with it. They are rather slow and will prefer to hang out on a warm hand any day and stay there for a long time. The feel of their skin is much like their name, Rubber, but even softer than that.
2. Appealing: Rubber Boas have been used as a form of treatment for snake phobias in several cases. While most snakes are fast and quick to bite, these Boas are slow, docile, and almost never bite (I have never seen nor heard of one biting, but it could happen). If they are to bite a person, it will be harmless and most likely painless. The one thing that impresses me most of these snakes is their soft texture, which is why they are called a Rubber Boa.
3. Easy to Care For: Rubber Boas are very easy to take care of. They do best in an area that has similarities to their native range which is mostly limited to the Northwestern U.S. and Southwestern Canada. They can be found in both arid forests to the rainforests of the coast. Their temperature preference is between 70 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit, such as room temperature in a home, and need a decent size dish of water for them to soak in. The only cleaning necessary is switching out the water once it had been defecated in.
4. Easy to Feed: Rubber Boas eat primarily on young rodents in the wild while fending off the parents with their blunt tail. Therefore it is best to feed them pink mice, and several at a time. They are known to binge feed and then not eat for a month or two. That is why they will eat several in one setting.
A Rubber Boa has many benefits over other snakes. Here is a list of just a few as well as the one negative.
Benefits:
• Interactive: easy to hold
• Soft to touch
• Slow moving
• Won’t Bite
• Safe around children
• Easy to care for
• Long life span: 15-25 years
Negative:
• Hard to find in the wild and hard to find for sale.
While there are not too many bad things about this species of snake, the biggest downside is the lack of places to buy a Rubber Boa. I will keep an eye out and list any links I can find that sale them. The ones that I have had, I have caught on the road at dusk as I live in the Northern Idaho where they are common to find. They are incredible hiders and I have never seen one anywhere except for on the road. I would not attempt to go looking for them though as many times where they live is also areas that you may find rattlesnakes, unless of course you are in to that type of thing.