So the aggression is just with food?  Have you tried just tossing his rat in to him and letting him grab it himself or are you dangling it for him?

Is he aggressive at all when handled?

Are you feeding in his enclosure? (Which I recommend.) Have you tried hook training him? What are his temps and humidity. What sort of enclosure is he in? What size prey are you feeding him? How often? Is it F/T? Is it heated well so he gets a good read on it and can strike effectively, or is it a bit too cool, and it's throwing his strike off?

Sorry - lots of questions, but the answers to them will give me a better feel for what could be going on and what might help. 

It might take a while and a lot of work.  I'm not really clear on the risk to your children... are they sticking their faces in it's enclosure during feeding time?

I do not feed him in his enclosure, I use a seperate feeding tub for that. He is not aggressive when held, but if he doens't want to be held he will hiss at you(hence his name) and let you know he doesn't want to be touched. He is in a 40 gallon tank. I have tried just tossing the rat in, but he has gotten bit several times and I have had a rescue badly injured by doing that and do not like it. My kids are no where near the snakes when they are being fed and are only allowed around them when there is me or there father there to supervise. I have always fed him live and wondering if maybe I should switch to frozen. Thank you all for weighing in.

I think it would be in your best interest, including the boa, if you were to feed f/t. That should be the very first thing you do. I could see a huge difference with his behavior when transitioning from live to f/t. The only reason you should feed live is if the animal absolutely refuses f/t. I've always had luck switching my snakes that were on live from previous owners to f/t. It is safest for the snake so he doesn't get bit from the bored rodents, most humane for the rodents so they aren't suffocated to death (assuming they were humanely euthanized when killed), and safest for you too, not hvaing to deal with a rodent that doesn't get struck at the first time. Sorry, I guess we all already assumed you are feeding him f/t. Good luck!

No, all of mine are fed live, and he is the only one we have had problems with. I will try him on frozen. He refused to eat this time because he got very aggitated and was striking at anything that moved just to strike. He wasn't striking to feed and has refused to eat the rest o the day. What is the best way to feed frozen? Do I need to warm them in some way?

I thaw mine within a ziploc in a tub of hot water - empty and add hot water a few times, and then dangle. It should feel warm to the touch for best results - especially to make the switch to F/T. I've honestly never had a Boa that hasn't switched over easily, so I think it'd be a good thing to try... and safer overall.

Is he entering into a shed cycle or has the humidity level jumped recently? Those are two things that can cause my Boas to be more agitated and do more of a defensive striking - wanting the rat to not be there because they aren't wanting to eat.

ok, I will try that in the next few days. No he is not about to shed and his humidity hasn't changed. Nothing really has changed except the placement of his tank, but I was having problems with him before that.

Try adding dark colored paper to 3 sides... he may be stressed with additional activity in the new location.

Personally I prefer feeding in the enclosure, but that's because I worry about regurges.  I also would switch to f/t, boas are known for being good about taking f/t, so I would give it a shot.

I have never liked feeding them in their enclosure just because I don't want them thinking that everytime I open the lid it is going to be feeding time. I have had that problem in the past. I do n ot move them right after feeding, I let them sit and digest for about 30 to 45 min to make sure they got it all down before I put them back in their tank.

That's a myth, I feed all of mine in their enclosures and never been bit going to get them out, I've been bit a handful of times, but it was always me doing something stupid (fishing for a wild caught bp behind a water heater, trying to touch a snake right after she got out of the shipping bag, etc.)  They actually shouldn't be held for 72 hours after feeding, otherwise you risk a regurge.  I know some people who prefer to, which is fine, I've just never liked it.

I'm not sure how big your boa is, but also make sure once he gets to 4-5 ft you move him into something bigger, some say 4x2x2, I think 6x2x2 is much better though.

Definately switch to F/T.  Much safer for the snake and much easier for you because you can stock up and not have to make a trips to the pet store.  Not to mention WAY cheaper.  Also, I feed all of my snakes in their enclosures without issue.

The way to keep him from thinking that it's feeding time everytime you open the cage is to take him out and handle him when it's NOT feeding time. Regular handling should cure that potential problem. 

All good advice.  Feed him in his own enclosure, feed F/T, drop it in and let him at it.  No fuss, no muss.  Problem solved.

Sorry to seem so short, but this really will solve the problem.  He won't become more aggressive if he's fed in his enclosure and boas are garbage disposals - he should eat f/t just fine.  If he's not disturbed during feeding time, he should settle down noticably... 

He is handled on a regular basis, at least every other day. Thank you all for your adivce, it is all appreciated.

You could also hook train him, only tap him with the hook when you plan to handle him, not when feeding and he won't expect food as you're coming in. Boas are known to be a bit food aggressive anyway, at least in my experience... I see it as a good thing! I wish all of my snakes had that great of a feeding response :p but I'd switch to f/t. If that doesn't work, start clipping the live rat's teeth before feeding... Doesn't hurt the rat, but makes feeding safer for the snake. I use regular human toenail clippers to trim the teeth and it works perfectly. I was nervous about it at first but once you do it you realize it is super easy. My pied ball python getting bit on the neck was the last straw for me.

Was he always fed live?  If he used to feed on f/t, perhaps he is feeling threatened by the prey, and that's why he's going kind of overboard with it.  After having been on f/t for a long time, some snakes will even lose the "killing" behavior altogether.  My oldest girl doesn't take from tongs, and doesn't constrict her rodents at all.  She doesn't strike at the rats or anything, just comes up to them, openes her mouth, and starts swallowing it.  I think just switching to f/t will help, and it will probably be easy.  Good Luck! 

I thought about hook training him, just was unsure of how to do it. The other two red tails we have habe not shown any agression at all. He was a resuce and we were unsure of how he was treated before we got him. My boyfriend use to work at a pet store and someone just brought him up and dropped him off. He took a little coaxing when we first got him to be able to be handled, but he has gotten so much better. Except for the past few months.

We were told he was always fed live. He didn't start having issues untill 2 feedings ago.

I am a bit confused with the timeline. His cage changed locations, but you said there were issues before that and he was fine except for the past few months, and in your latest post you stated it has only been the last two feedings.

How often is he fed and what size?

He gets a med rat once a month. so the past few months has been the last 2 feedings. his tank changed locations about a month ago, put it on the opposite side of the room.

He could very well just be hungry. I feed my adult male Boas a medium rat every 2 weeks. I'd decrease the time between feedings, and I bet it will make a significant difference in his temperament.

i can try it, but he doesnt seem very hungry two weeks after a feeding. he seems kind of uninerested and bored. but i can try again.

I agree with Sonja, definately needs to be fed more.

I have two other red tails that are about a foot longer than he is and I only feed them once a month and they are no where near as aggressive as he is

Different animals have different personalities, they might be hungry as well, but not show it through aggression.  I would consider feeding at least every 2 weeks.  When I had a hog island boa mix I fed him a medium rat once a week, but when I got him he had a really bad RI and with the strong meds he had to take the vet told me not to feed him until he was over his RI which took about 2 months if I remember right, but I didn't feed him at all during that time and he never became aggressive, but he probably just had a different personality, it's worth a try to feed a f/t rat once every 2 weeks to all of your snakes.

They really need more than one meal a month.  Every two weeks is what I and most others feed our boas of that size.  The others that you have and feed on that schedule that are not as aggressive could just be that they are less aggressive by nature and have nothing to do with their feeding schedule.  Try switching to F/T and feeding every two weeks.  Good luck! 

Not only do personalities differ, but the rate at which they metabolize their food can also differ between individual animals... also the temperature of their enclosures may be different. Cooler temps = lower metabolism.

You have been offered a lot of excellent advice / suggestions. I hope you take some of them into consideration.

there are just so many things wrong withh this I cant start to come up with a comment  .. Oh shit  did I say that out loud ??  Oh yeah I did .....

One thing that may have already been said that I might have missed was the temps.  What did you say the temps were for the hot and cool sides, plus ambient?

There is alot of good advice, and we will take some of it. I wouldn't have posted the question if I wasn't hoping for some kind of help:)

This is normal boa behaviour.... there is NOTHING to "rehabilitate"   

Keep in mind   this is a predatory reptile... not a kitten....   contrary to popular belief,... you cant "tame" your boa.....    you can get your boa more aquainted with human interaction.... but it will never "enjoy" your company.... "like" to be held.....   etc.. it is an eating machine... that wants to reproduce every once and a while......  but they are not "pets"   you are doing nothing more than housing a wild animal

Well now that would depend on your definition of "tame" I think you can tame many species of animals, but can you domesticate them?  That's more where I find a big disagreement.  I think many reptiles do enjoy human company to an extent, if you look at Sonja's blog hers seems to enjoy her and follows her around.  Now my WC ball python I think hates me, I can probably tame her down and she'll learn to tolerate me, but I doubt she'll ever like me.  Now Arana my spider ball python will raise her head straight up and stretch to try and reach up to me whenever I'm above her and she seems to like just hanging out with me.  Now keep in mind I am never very warm and her cage is definately much warmer than my hands.

I think you can keep any animal as a pet, but not in the same manor as you keep other pets, for example, I would not keep my horses in the same manor as my cat or dog, just as I would not keep a tiger like a horse, but if I call it my pet, who cares?

Tiki108, I agree with you 100%. I know that he is a wild animal and will never be completely domesticated, but they do enjoy human contact. We have 3 red tails, 3 balls pythons and 2 bearded dragons, and all of them enjoy being in our company. We take them out to the stores and in the sunshine and they are active, affectionate and calm. They are our pets, we know the potential for the danger, we know that they will always be wild, and we have a respect for them and their abilities, but they are still our pets.

Hey I just met you. And this is crazy. But award some points. Close this question, maybe?

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