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Supporting a Large Reptile Cage Tree and Arboreal Cage Tips
Question
hello there mark, nice to see your keeping busy with your website, nice 1 for keeping me with your updates. well i have a problem arising ha ha. i have bought a red tail boa 18 month old 4 ft in lenght. the viv it was previously in was my royal pythons 4ft viv but i have decicded to go bigger and swapped him for this boa.
i wanted a boa in the first place but was put off by a man i know saying there vicious , but i had a 8 ft boa round my neck on saturday and it was great i loved it. now my prediciment is i have to build a bigger viv in the near future. i would like to provide the best living accomadation i can give him in the space provided.
this space is (length) 5 and a half ft x(width)3ftx(depth)5ft. i know these snakes like to climb but god sakes this would have to be a damn good strong solid viv to be able to take the weight on any branches or shelves it would be sitting on. secondly what is the temprament on a boa of this size and age? if you could dig out some d.i.y viv plans i would be very grateful. keep up the good work . from jason.
Answer
I think the size of the snake cage you are planning should be OK. Ideally it may be a little higher or longer but given it is quite a large reptile cage both ways, should be fine. There is no reason to think a boa that has been handled regularly from a young age and is accustomed to being handled will be aggressive. Like all large snakes, you have to give them some deference when handling them. Sudden movements or giving them a fright will usually get a fairly 'snappy' response but gentle and easy should cause no issues.
There are some snake cages building ideas and pics for free around the place - you just have to hunt them down and that can take some time. Try some of the forums for some ideas - or just buy the snake cage plans and I will answer what I can. :)
As far as support for the snake in the cage, the snake will probably get to around 50lbs or approx 25kgs. I would use some fairly hefty reptile cage logs and provided you secure these logs in your reptile cage with timber underneath the ends where they attach to the snake cage sides there should be no issue.
Glue and screw
the timber supports and you can then just screw the branches into place
on top of the supports. The timber support piece holds the weight and
the screws in the branch really just hold it in place and stop it from
moving or rotating (see diagram for pic of support piece). I usually
get the timber piece so that it sits into position first on the support
pieces and then add the securing screw.
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This prevents the screw having to hold the timber in an un-natural or unsustainable position. The shelves would also have timber strips (say 50mmx19mm or 2"x3/4" pieces attached to the walls to support them and the shelves are then supported on the strips. The shelf in the pic, shown from underneath, does not have to be rectangular as in the pic but can be triangular or you could even just cut the corner off.
You might consider making two sets of sliding glass doors for your snake cage - top and bottom, so you can access from either and it also gives a strengthening piece in the middle of the reptile cage.
Another thing to consider is having two sets of basking lights for your snake - one at the top and another about half way, underneath a shelf for example, to give the snake some choice about where to be (ideally they would be able to be turned off and on separately).
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Hope this helps.
Mark Chapple is the Author of "How to build
enclosures for reptiles"
Find out how to build these snake and lizard cages and arboreal reptile cages.
Full color pictures, detailed diagrams and easy to follow, step-by-step instructions
any can use to make homemade reptile enclosures.
http://www.reptile-cage-plans.com
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