argentine boas

[Mark]

I recently got a 5 foot female argentine boa that is becoming my favorite boa. She is more brown in color than black, and very light on her sides. She is very slow and deliberate in her movements,checking everything out and paying no attention to the fact that I am holding her. I'm wondering if this is normal for argentines or if I have an unusual one? I think I like the brown color better, and she has a lot of white on her face too. Awesome!

[Mark]

Can anyone comment on how their adult argentines act compared to columbians?

[Gofer]

:o Hello, I don't have an adult Argentine, but I have a juvenile who just hates me. Even if I'm just cleaning and walking around her tank she hisses and strikes. She has not bitten me yet, but I really try not to give her any chances. I've been told they settle down with some age, I hope so!!! Compared to ALL the columbians I've had, she is very aggresive. None of my columbians, peruvians, etc. were close to her temperment. I like the Argentines, so hopefully she settles down with a little handling and age.
Don't know if this helped any, but thought I'd share my experiences.
Have a good one,
Gofer cwm11.gif

[Gofer]

Here is a quick picture I took of her, she was not happy about that either.

Gofer cwm11.gif

[isosatori]

Hey, Gregg-
Don't feel bad! My two Argies hissed and struck for all they were worth (and, IMHO, somewhat MORE than that!)-and, lo and behold, with regular handling over a month or so, they seemed to realize that while they were indeed small critters in a big world, I wasn't personally out to get them. It seems that sudden movement and quick advances freak Argies out, so I just move slowly and call their bluffs-i.e., if we're having a hissy fit, it's the towel over the head treatment. If I move slowly and have no prey smell on me, I won't be struck at. They ARE extremely smell-sensitive, though-any hint of rodent and all bets are off. So I guess I'd advise daily handling (with hooks at first, if need be) and to differentiate their feeding environment from their 'normal' one. Just MHO.
K

[isosatori]

Argies are far more hissy and temperamental than RTBs, IMHO. But 90% of that attitude is just posing-as far as actually striking, I haven't had much of a problem unless I had rodent smell on my hands-and that, as you know, is MY fault.