Transcript: Jeff Ronne
Boa Constrictors
February 13, 2009
PHFaust: On behalf of Jeff Barringer and all of us at kingsnake.com, Jeff Ronne to our 11th annual Chat Month..
PHFaust: Jeff Ronne is an expert in the breeding of Boa Constrictors, and his writings have detailed nearly every aspect of the entire boa breeding process. He has also been proven to give me some of the most memorable photos I take each year at Tinley. Always ready with a wink and a smile....
PHFaust: His "tunnel vision" efforts enabled him to observe the many previously undocumented little nuances that are unique to boa constrictors -- the "pre-ovulation swell," the "post-ovulation shed," the "heat conservation position," "slow motion ovulation," "yolk solidification syndrome" -- Jeff reveals all! .
PHFaust: Jeff will answering all those boa questions that are constricting your mind tonight. He might even have a ball python opinion or three.
PHFaust: Jeff, when you have completed your answer, please type GA so we know to Go Ahead. Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls I present Jeff Ronne!
boaphile: Glad to be here and I hope I'm not too boring...
Herptile_nr: Could I keep 2 boa constrictors together and If so what dimensions should their cage be?
boaphile: I have and you can but it is not best.
boaphile: It's always best for the animals to be kept separate. The size enclosure depends on the animals. What size are your Boas?
Herptile_nr: Don't have any yet
boaphile: That's easy. not cage necessary
boaphile: LOL
boaphile: Breeding pairs are bred in 4' cages for me
boaphile: At least anything less than about 7'. GA
SilentHouse: Hey Jeff! What would you say is the most exciting thing about working with boa constrictors?
boaphile: BABIES!! BABIES!! BABIES!! BABIES!! BABIES!! BABIES!!
boaphile: Did I mention babies!
BURMTIC: out of all the "RED TAIL" boas which would u say is the TRUE "RED TAIL" boa?
boaphile: No such thing
boaphile: Wait a minute. Every thing is.
boaphile: There are certain animals most people consider to be true Red Tails.
boaphile: Peruvians, Brazilians, Venezuelans, Surinames and Gyanans. GA
Sulfurboy1o3: w/ breeding large boas, some people say you should feed them normally and some say u should really get your females bulked up before they die during the time of carrying the babies inside of her.what do you think?
boaphile: Oh, there are also some Amazon Basin Colombians that most everyone would agree are true red tails.
boaphile: About feeding.
boaphile: I think some females do very well being fed heavily. Others do well while still quite thin. I lean more toward trying to keep then thinner than I once did.
boaphile: I have had a number of females produce great litters even though they were quite thin when bred. GA
Ceasar_nr: How ya digging the ball.... Have you added more? Are you leaving us boa folks?
boaphile: Oh yea. I'm out here.
boaphile: Not really. Just the one Pin stripe Ball. I like him a lot. I don't have any more and no plans to get any. GA
Monkee_nr: What is the big deal with the "red tail" label.... some people get very touchy about that,... They are boas and their tails are red... I realize its a generic Pet store term
boaphile: The names are all man made and there is no true definition. It depends who you talk to what definition you get.
boaphile: Yea lots of people are picky about it, but those people mostly only like certain Boas.
boaphile: I like and have kept and bred most of them. the label put on them is irrelevant to me. GA
Bruteybull_nr: is there a major difference between the localities in care?
boaphile: No...
boaphile: Very little difference. I keep everything about the same except some of the rain forest types i try to keep a little more humid.
boaphile: They have smaller scales that say Hoggs do which seem to be less sensitive to drier conditions. GA
BURMTIC: have u ever worked with anacondas,,,,,,if so which did u like better the GREEN anaconda,,,or the YELLOW anaconda?
boaphile: I had yellow anacondas. Not greens.
boaphile: Anacondas smell a lot. They poop a lot and they don't warn you before the nail you.
boaphile: Other than that, I really liked them!
boaphile: I really did like them. They are a little bit squishy, which seems weird. Great animals! GA
Sulfurboy1o3: what is the largest boa you've come across live or dead.(not including any anacondas)
boaphile: Christina a Peruvian Red Tail I raised from a 3' import.
boaphile: She was between 10 and 11 feet at her max. Never produced a good litter for me. She was a beauty and around 60 lbs.
boaphile: I had a 10' Colombian named Sarah that gave me 64 babies on Super Bowl Sunday in 1992!
boaphile: That was the biggest litter I ever had. She was a chunk! GA
boaphile: Oh, I have one now that is close to 10'
Herptile_nr: What was the worst experience/injury you ever had with your boas?
boaphile: Worst?
boaphile: Having something really special that never reproduced for me, like Christina the Peruvian.
boaphile: Those are the worst. I had one other really strange animal that did not breed for me before she died. Those haunt me. GA
Ceasar_nr: What are your most anticipated project this year?
boaphile: That's a tough one. I am hoping that my Tribal Boa figures out what I want him to do pretty soon. So far nothing... GA
Sulfurboy1o3: when around your collection,do u always have somone else around just incase something might happen?
boaphile: No I do not.
boaphile: Boas are not the same treat as the large pythons. At least my experience keeping hundreds of them and producing thousands of babies over the past nearly 25 years now has told me that.
boaphile: If they grab you by accident in a feeding response, they always let go immediately. GA
BURMTIC: what is the average litter for a rubber boa?
boaphile: My spelling is especially bad tonight just to give Cindy something to do later by the way...
PHFaust: lol
boaphile: I don't know anything about Rubber Boas? GA
boaphile: Well, except they aren't really made of rubber.
boaphile: Stumped the Pile! Congrats!
PHFaust: LOL
Herptile_nr: What other species do you realy like besides boa constrictors?
boaphile: That's tough. I have thought about Rainbow Boas. GA
kerry_nr: what is more important with breeding? Age or size?
boaphile: Age. 5' is big enough for a female if she is four years old. GA
SilentHouse: What advice would you give to someone considering getting a boa constrictor?
boaphile: Get what you like.
boaphile: People ask what would be a good investment. I hate that question. It's easy to give a self serving answer.
boaphile: But I always like to tell people to look for and get what you like. GA
boaphile: Hey Bubba!
Bubba_nr: With all the current legislation, have you run into a situation where you have dealt with someone and kinda said... Nahhh Lets move you to a ball. Boas just aren't for you.. ?
boaphile: No.
boaphile: Again, I think a person should get what they like.
boaphile: If they prefer an animal that most of the time does not move around much, then think about a Ball.
boaphile: If you want an animal that will move if you take it out and crawl around, they why get a Ball.
boaphile: There are always exceptions but the really answer is to get what you like whether that be a Boa or a Ball.
Bubba_nr: Meant more to move them away from a snake that is currently taking a lot of fire... ball was just what came to mind...
boaphile: Boas aren't taking fire. Bums and Pythons are. That is what we are currently fight hardest for.
Cleobear_nr: What about males for breeding.... I notice you only gave female size... does male size matter>
PHFaust: We will be having a chat with Kevin McCurley on the ethics of breeding and selling large constrictors... That is coming up later in the month.. I believe Friday the 27
boaphile: Most of my breeder males are about 4' long. Some males will try to breed when only a bit over 3' but that is unusual.
boaphile: Age is a lot more important in males as well.
boaphile: A young male is not going to be as persistent as an old guy is. GA
Herptile_nr: What was the most exiting reptile related experience you ever had AND what got you into reptiles?
boaphile: By the way, I am a believer in keeping Boas on the smaller size.
boaphile: What got me into Reptiles was...
boaphile: When I was about 8 years old a neighbor kid caught some Garter snakes.
boaphile: I held one, got bit and musked. I was hooked!
boaphile: The best expereince was holding my first large snake.
boaphile: A burm actually. That was great! GA
DIRTY_BOAS_nr: What plans do you have for Hogg Islands?
boaphile: I don't really have any specific Hogg Island plans. Wrong answer probably huh? GA
DIRTY_BOAS_nr: Yup!
DIRTY_BOAS_nr: I need one
styrsnake: Hey Jeff, I have to say the male Monstertail hypo I just got from you is out of this world. Anyways, I don't€ know if this was already brought up but I was curious as to what is happening with the Prodigy boas. Are there any plans on breeding some of the males this year to prove out the trait?
boaphile: The trait is already proven out. I do plan on my little guys doing something but they didn't get the plan yet.
boaphile: They are in with a Monster Tail Hypo female.
boaphile: I am hoping they get in gear sometime. Clay will probably have some babies. Maybe hets AND Prodigies if all goes well!
the_night_demon: what do u think about the bill H.R. 669 and how it will hurt us in the reptile bess ?
boaphile: I think we are working on it and PIJAC is all over it as well. We have to be diligent and not sit and hope someone else is going to take care of this.
boaphile: This is a real threat and every single one of us has to have a hand in making sure our rights are not taken from us.
boaphile: Every one! GA
Herptile_nr: What do you think about the ethnics of keeping hybrids and venomous reptiles?
boaphile: None of the animals we produce are ever going to reintroduced to the wild.
boaphile: As such so long as they are represented honestly, I don't have any problem with crosses.
boaphile: Hybrids are so rare and usually not viable so what's the harm?
boaphile: Venomous snakes are something I would never keep, but if I did what to keep them, I don't think it's anyone but my wife's right to limit my ability to keep such. GA
Bruteybull_nr: OK saw this in the intro... What is the heat conservation position... I'm interested and saw it in the introduction....
boaphile: It's a position that a female rests in where she is all gathered up laying on top of herself in an effort to conserve heat.
boaphile: Typically a gravid female but you can see other Boas do it as well if you keep them too cool. GA
SilentHouse: How did you get into working with boas, specifically?
boaphile: I traded a 7' Burm I had for a 4' Boa that was much more handlable.
boaphile: I was always fascinated by them since seeing babies in a pet shot for $18.
boaphile: I wanted one but was not able to get my first one till I was about 23 years old.
boaphile: That was a while ago and I have had then since. GA
BURMTIC: (not including anacondas) what is the worst species of boa would u recommend for some one?
boaphile: I'm not really into recommending the worst of something.
boaphile: I think what you meant is what type would I not recommend.
boaphile: The Nebulosa are really tough. Them and Orophias are probably the toughest Boas. GA
the_night_demon: are emeralds really as hard to care for as everyone says?
if so, what goes into their care?
boaphile: I don't think so but I don't have any experience with them. They are green you know. GA
Monkee_nr: you have mentioned the leanness of your snakes several times... do you feel getting them eating rabbits is detrimental? Do you have a good feeding schedule for adults when not preparing or coming out of breeding?
boaphile: I quit feeding rabbits about 12 years ago.
boaphile: Rabbits are too lean and do not make Boas gain thickness, mostly length.
boaphile: Length is not need for successful breeding at all. Muscle mass is and rats have done a better job building that for me than rabbits did.
DIRTY_BOAS_nr: Do you plan on producing a rack larger than the Ball Room in the future
boaphile: 25 degrees today. About average.
boaphile: The Ball Room rack is as large a rack as we will ever build.
boaphile: Anything that needs a larger space needs a cage. My opinion. GA
styrsnake: Are you planning writing any updated information on boa breeding and general care to be published anytime soon?
boaphile: Hey styr!
boaphile: Next thing will probably be a video but I've been threatening that for a while. Thanks for asking! GA
Slacker6848: Hey jeff, what are some of the cool projects you have lined up in the next few years or are you keeping them a secret? and also what are the genetics of the Pearlescent boas?
boaphile: Hey Slack. If I could answer those two questions... I guess I probably would answer the second one if I had enough time. The first I would not. The Pearlescent thing is explained on my site by the way. GA
boaphile: I love secrets... GA
DIRTY_BOAS_nr: My question was answered. It was about the DVD and when it will come out. OOPS
boaphile: DVD's done Dirt Cheap!
boaphile: That should be a song...
PHFaust: On behalf of Jeff Barringer and all of us here at kingsnake.com, Thank You for taking your time to chat with us. Transcripts will be posted with in a few days. Once again, Thank you Jeff! [b]
boaphile: Thank you Cindy, Ginger for fixing my JAVA issue and JeffB for the invite! Always my pleasure!
PHFaust: Please visit Jeff's website at www.theboaphile.com
