So I’m deciding to get back into boas and I wanted some insight as to which are more manageable, dwarf boas or common boas? I have only ever kept the dwarf boas so I dont know what owning the other one is like. Idk is this helps but I’m big on ball pythons and that’s 90% of the reptiles I own
Dwarf boas tend to be smaller but they are sometimes bitty.
I personally would go with a common boa because I have one. He is a sweet heart, and never bit me.(He is my only snake/boa for now)
I hope this helps
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I can only comment on common boas.
Mine are still babies in the grand scheme of it so I can’t really use them as a great example other than to say they are the easiest animals I’ve ever cared for, never skip a meal, shed all in one every time and are the nicest snakes to handle… But that’s just mine and I’ve had them since pretty much the day they could leave and handle them pretty much every night… And again, they are still no where near full grown.
Personally, the hardest part of keeping them is getting them back in the enclosure when they aren’t ready 
they will happily spend a hour just slivering around and climbing the coffee table or wrapped around my arm while I clean up.
They are 110% completely different animals to what I thought they were going to be.
Now on the other side of the coin.
My brother in law a while back got a ~5 year old female and doesn’t quite have the same temperament. He got her from some relative of his and she had been left un-handled for a decent amount of time and without a heat source for months, but really heavily fed. Luckily we have never been bitten by her but that is not out of her want of trying. She would strike at shadows passing by and once when attempting to get her back in her enclosure she literally pulled the snake hook off of him and bent it 90°… Don’t buy cheap snake hooks… Shes calmed down a lot since and you get a good 20 mins of happy handling now and again but she is still a threat at times and I would not handle her while on my own.
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I’ve kept BCI and Columbian Rainbow boas, both were very manageable. As of late, I prefer the old-world boa’s, specifically the pearl of Madagascar. Dumeril’s boa (Acrantophis dumerili) not to be confused with Madagascar ground boa’s. They seem to be more robust and thrive quite well when it comes to being housed in a North East climate, more so than Python regius. They are slow growing and very personable, can’t think of anything negative when it comes to keeping a Dumeril as a pet……then again I like all snakes, so my opinions are probably based more on what thrives in my climate zone. I love my Ball Pythons, but I find that they are the more demanding of the Serpentes I currently keep when it comes to temp and humidity. 
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Size of the snake really matters to me. I can at most only care for a 7 foot snake at most for now due to space
You will be fine getting a male common boa is 7ft is your max. My children handle my boas with no problem at all.
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Consider rainbow boas–as long as their humidity requirements are met and they aren’t kept to warm they’re pretty solid snakes with very interesting personalities, reasonable size, and amazing looks. These are both proven breeders
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If you can not go beyond 7 foot than I advise against a female common boa. I have mine from a friend who got her about one year ago. She was at that time half a year and only about 80 cm. I bought her from him about end oktober last year. She was by then already 135 cm ( going to 4,5 foot) ànd only 1300gram. I measured her last week and she was already 1950 gram and 150 cm ( about 5 foot) . So they really grow quick. In my care 650 gram in only three months. I do feed her every week but not a big prey. Sometimes a small rat, sometimes medium ( 50 to 120 gram)sometimes only a xl mouse but never more than one. she’s is nice and square so it’s is not that being overweight explained the quick growth . She is strong so when she is adventures for my 11 year old son it is really sometimes difficult to control her and she is only a little over one and a half years old. We sometimes joke she wants to become a retic concidering the speed she grows. I have to be honest, I don’t feel the difference in weight to much myself but getting her in her enclosure when she doesn’t want to is sometimes a hussle 
. It feels like they are so much more “slippery” because they are really more muscular than a ball python. She is a total sweethart but if she keeps growing like this the next one and a half year I don’t think she will stop at 7 foot. I don’t have experience with the dwarf type. I know my friend now got some baby Nicaragua boa’s and I promised to go and see them end if the week so by then I’ll know more about their temperament. Common boa’s are great, and if you select a more docile one they can be a good choice but don’t get a female, get a male since they stay smaller.
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As promised an update on dwarf boa’s. I saw the Nicaragua from my friend today. They where six sisters he bought from a boa breeder who almost didn’t handle them. They are born in august last year. They are total sweethearts. I handled all of them several times and none of them tried to bite me. They are like ball pythons but a little thinner and more wiggly. I really fell in love with them and knowing they only get the size of a ball python makes them great pets. I turned today in a nicaragua boa promoter 
.
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Do you have pictures please?
I didn’t make pictures myself but here are some he made
I have to be honest. I just couldn’t resist them so I bought one girl from him. She is in quarantine now and I want to give her some time to adapt, but I will for shure post some pictures later on. She is now only 66 gram and about 60 cm. They are from halfway August 2019.
They look like real boa’s, infact they are boa constrictor imperator’s but because they are from Central America they can resist colder temperatures and they only get the size of a ball python. He saw the mother and she was only about 1,20 cm /4 foot.
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just wanted a update on your Nicaraguan boa girl if possible 
. and since i am restarting the build of my collection i may get a boa or two. thought revisiting this thread would help me decide my plans further down the road
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I read about the theft in your house and car. I’m really sorry for you. I just hope that you will find at least most back and catch the person who did it. I also hope they will start taking more measures to make your building more safe.
On the part of Nicaragua boa’s, I can really advise them. They really grow slow compared to larger boa’s , even compared to ball pythons and they make great display animals. I, in general see more of my boa’s than the ball pythons. The big one is so confident she doesn’t mind to be in the open. For the Nicaragua boa, as soon as my girl sees something to climb, she climbs. She is now 10 months old and only weight about 125 gram. When I got her she was only 66 gram so they are really a lot smaller that normal BCI’s. My big one was already about 1100 gram at a year old. No matter how often I offer food she only eats once in 14 days, but she is very steady in eating.
The only thing you have be careful with is to check it’s really a pure Nicaragua boa. A friend is really looking for one hut everytime he sees one it’s a mix between a normal BCI and a nicaragua, which is not bad in general but personally I prefer to keep this type pure because of the size and the benefits of it.
On the other side, offspring is easy to sell here because there are so few pure ones. They have the looks of a real boa, but the size is so much more easy to handle. I really love our big girl, but she is active and very strong so she needs a lot of space and is a handfull. And I will never put my hand in her enclosure in the evening because she is so food motivated I’m shure she will try to eat my band and a boa bite is a total different thing than a ball python bite. But still, the bigger boa’s are also great.
I’m happy to hear you at least also start thinking about restarting because snakes, and reptiles in general are really the best.
Our little girl Millie
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Thank you for the support and the update on your little girl because she is just gorgeous and now that i have to restart i really think i may get back into Nicaraguan boas because like you said they are a big boa in a smaller package
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I’ve owned Dumeril’s boas, Garden boas, Pacific boas( rare in our hobby), Red-tail boas, Rosy boas and Amaral’s boa( very hard to find captive bred).
In my experience boas are one of the best species to keep. If you’ve never kept boas before I’d go with the common Red-tail boa. B.c.constrictor( true red-tailed boa), B.c.imperator( Colombian boa) and B.c.occidentalis( Argentine boa) are my favorites. The Argentine boa has the most attitude from my experience. BCC and BCI are easily the most common kept of the three and make amazing and rewarding pets.
If you can find a B.c.amarali( Amaral’s boa) those are awesome. They are almost impossible to find in our hobby, but with work and time tame down very well and are a sweet species to keep.
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I forgot to add: The Argentine boa is listed as an Appendix I species on Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora( CITES). Most Argentines are captive bred, but you should still be carful that you are not buying an illegally collected one.
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I really appreciate the recommendation but which ones max out at 7 or 8 feet? Due to spacial restrictions of my apartment that’s really the max size snake i can keep at the moment
Hog island boas reach around 5-6ft, BCC and BCI will reach 6-10ft( females being much longer and larger than males). Most Red-tailed boas as males will get to 6ft, 7ft if you really try. Amaral’s boa( also known as the Bolivian boa) will also hit about 5-6ft. Rosy boas are by far the smallest of the ones I’ve mentioned. Most will be 2-4ft, and have a very awesome personality. Females will always be larger than the males for boas, some species like the Bairds rat snake, the males are actually larger then the females. Kinda a cool fact.
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