Boelens Python and Whitethroat mointor

[whereaminow?]

Thanks everyone! If I'm successful with him I'm going to look for a female. I think everyone who's seen a boelens wants to find the secret to getting them to breed.

Is your boelens wc, captive hatched?

captive hatched

 

[ScatMan]

i love the whitethroat

i wish i would have gotten one of them instead of the blackthroats... oh well, i still love mine too!

they grow quick, keep us posted with pics please.

 

[whereaminow?]

i love the whitethroat

i wish i would have gotten one of them instead of the blackthroats... oh well, i still love mine too!

they grow quick, keep us posted with pics please.

I love the faces on albigs, black or white.

Do you have any pictures of your blackthroat? Any pictures of his setup? I'm going to be building a bigger cage soon and I'd love some ideas.

 

[davo]

Awesome boelens. Don't get much better than them!

 

[ScatMan]

I love the faces on albigs, black or white.

Do you have any pictures of your blackthroat? Any pictures of his setup? I'm going to be building a bigger cage soon and I'd love some ideas.

i'll try to get some up for you tomorrow and i'll show you what i did wrong (or should have done differently) to save you from the same mistakes. nothing that i can't fix, but i haven't had the time.

 

[ScatMan]

here he is...



he's not red, that's dust from the cypress



what i did
and what i should have done

it's basically a 3/4" plywood box with a framed 2x3 floor.
i should have made the bottom deeper so i could fill it with soil without blocking the glass. kinda like building the whole thing on top of a 2x10 base. like this...



i glued plastic bathroom paneling to the inside walls with liquid nails and caulked the corners. the monitor dug up the caulk so it's not water tight and i can't wet the substrate. i'm going to liquid nails some concrete-board to the walls and epoxy the whole thing to make it water tight (kinda like the diy plywood tanks).

the front glass is an old sliding door (found on craigslist for free and it's strong glass) that i glued a frame to and screwed to the box. i probably could have trimmed it in without the glue though.

the lid is chicken wire with a 2x3 frame and 3 door hinges. there's a 2x3 rim around the top because i wanted a little bit more stability around the edges. i used widow locks to keep it secure, i'll be replacing them with lock hinges.

inside...

i'm using cypress mulch but i want to use a deep layer of dirt so he can dig and tunnel (that's why i wanted to make it with a deep base)

the box on the left is water (big enough to soak in)

there's a cinder block for him to scratch on

the box on the right is his hide that's full of damp mulch, even though they're from deserty areas they still love their humidity!

the lid of the box is a piece of painted cement board. i painted it so it would hold the heat from the lamp better. a piece of dark slate would be nicer... but i didn't have one of those laying around.

 

[whereaminow?]

He's adorable! How's his attitude? What are you feeding? How big is he?

Thanks for the photos and the ideas! I totally agree with giving the cage room for a deep layer of dirt. I'm thinking of building a "box" on top of a metal livestock trough and filling the trough part with dirt for my guy to dig.

The sliding glass door idea is excellent. A good way to see the monitor and not worry about having to pay for a huge piece of glass. I'll probably have at least a partially solid top though, I live in a dry are and the cage would loose humidity too fast with chicken wire. I'll post pictures when I finish mine (and hopefully don't damage myself in the process. I'm not too good with power tools lol.)

-Jessica

 

[ScatMan]

He's adorable!

haha! thanks, i agree.

How's his attitude?

he was a little bastard when he was small but he's good now. he does some threat displays, hissing and tail whips when i try to grab him some of the time but he never tried to bite or open his mouth. when i pick him up he usually chills out pretty quick and then just starts exploring.

i don't handle him too much though, usually only when i give him baths and clean his cage. it's not that he's mean, i'm just more of a hands off keeper.

What are you feeding?

he got mainly gut-loaded mealworms when he was a baby (i used to breed them and had bucket loads of them) and some pinkie mice. now he gets mostly chicken parts (legs, wings, necks, livers and gizzards), whole chicks and anything my snakes don't eat over night.

How big is he?

hmmm... i suck at estimating but his cage is a little over 7ft long if that gives you a little better perspective.

Thanks for the photos and the ideas! I totally agree with giving the cage room for a deep layer of dirt. I'm thinking of building a "box" on top of a metal livestock trough and filling the trough part with dirt for my guy to dig.

no problem! i was thinking about that too but the troughs were a bit pricey for my taste.

The sliding glass door idea is excellent. A good way to see the monitor and not worry about having to pay for a huge piece of glass. I'll probably have at least a partially solid top though, I live in a dry are and the cage would loose humidity too fast with chicken wire. I'll post pictures when I finish mine (and hopefully don't damage myself in the process. I'm not too good with power tools lol.)

-Jessica

i was going to make it a solid top to keep the heat in, but i decided against it because i wanted to be able to look in from the top. if you're building yours higher up, looking down into it shouldn't be a concern obviously.

i had the glass in my garage for about 2 years before i even had the monitor. i picked it up because i thought i could use it for an enclosure at some point (i intended to use it for a yellow anaconda that i never bought).

good luck with your build and pets, and definitely be extra careful with power tools!

 

[ceeej31]

That boelens is amazing, I love the albig too.

 

[Collinsmomma]

You are sooo lucky! I adore Boelens! They are sooo beautiful! Your white throat is adorable as well!!