Emerald Tree Boa vs. Green Tree Python

[astraldisaster]

I'm seriously considering getting one of these two species of snake, once I can afford it. That will be a while off, but I figure it can't hurt to start doing research now...

Just wondering if anyone here has kept both of these species, and could offer any insight on the following:

- Which is more challenging to care for? Is one hardier than the other? I'm aware that neither is a recommended beginning snake, and that both have very specific humidity and temperature requirements.

- Which, if either, is more active or interesting to observe?

- Which, if either, is more defensive/prone to bite? Is there a difference in the severity of the bites? For that matter, I know both are recommended as more hands-off pets. Just wondering if I got a baby, if there's a chance it would be alright with occasional handling when necessary.

- I've read that Green Tree Pythons can be pickier eaters, and some won't take rats (only chicks). Is this true?

- Is there a difference in lifespan?

Right now, I'm leaning more toward the Emerald Tree Boa since I think they're more beautiful, but I certainly wouldn't turn my nose up at a Green Tree Python either. Any info or advice would be much appreciated.

 

[Mojo Jojo]

You can get alot of info by googling the phrase "emerald tree boa vs green tree python".

Here's one thread that I found. Seeing the teeth of the ETB will probably give me nightmares tonight...

 

[astraldisaster]

Thank you; post #7 on that thread has many of the answers I was looking for. I didn't think to Google "x vs. y", just each species individually.

Still thinking I want the ETB, despite the teeth. Yeah, they're scary, but people seem to be saying that CB specimens will be tame and if you get tagged it will most likely be because they confuse you with food. I'm comfortable keeping fast, venomous spiders, and I would still rather be bitten by those boa teeth and bleed a little than be tagged by a Pokie and deal with muscle cramps and nausea for a week.

 

[bravesvikings20]

Thank you; post #7 on that thread has many of the answers I was looking for. I didn't think to Google "x vs. y", just each species individually.

Still thinking I want the ETB, despite the teeth. Yeah, they're scary, but people seem to be saying that CB specimens will be tame and if you get tagged it will most likely be because they confuse you with food. I'm comfortable keeping fast, venomous spiders, and I would still rather be bitten by those boa teeth and bleed a little than be tagged by a Pokie and deal with muscle cramps and nausea for a week.

If you get bit by an ETB you will need at least several stitches.

I would say GTP all the way. More is openly known about them, so more care sheets are available. Ive seen babies going for $225 captive bred, where as ETB's are going for about 800-1000 captive bred.

 

[whitewolf]

Good book to invest in I bought before getting mine is "The more complete Chondro" by Greg Maxwell. Lot of myth dispelling and keeping advice and pointers in there. The one thing I learned threw keeping a Chondro is they are not as up and die as they are made out to be. Captive bred is a lot more but they are worth every penny. I never understood why everyone was so fascinated with my OS high yellow till I realized how much brighter her color is compared to the norm. Watching that color change from baby into sub adult is so amazing. I am just glad the person who got her is going to keep me posted over the years to come so I can see what she look like as an adult and later what her babies hatch out looking like.

Greg Maxwells website: http://www.finegtps.com/
A forum where I got mine from Kevin Kopft and learned a lot from: http://moreliaviridis.yuku.com/directory#.TjCyemHB-So
Danny (Urban Jungles) has a lot of good info as well. He keeps Emeralds, Amazons, and hybrids of both those species. He is also a member here. http://www.urbanjungles.com/

Good luck and take your time. Don't rush into it cause they are totally worth the wait.

BTW a Chondro bite is no joke either. My coworker was bleeding pretty bad after my girl got a hold of him at a year old. Anyone who says they always bite and let go is lieing. I watched her chew on him for a few minutes before she finally let go. Generally they bite and let go though. If you pull back when they bite their teeth can do some damage and tear skin. I personally have yet to be bitten in a long time by anything except a nerodia I just had to play with. Everyone says though it doesn't really hurt. It looks worse than it is.

 

[BQC123]

Until last week I had both. I personally liked the C. caninus better. My M. viridis is definitely more defensive/agressive. I found both very easy to care for, and similar in conditions. I would rather take a bite from the GTP, but would prefer not to be hit by either. My GTP is actually a very good feeder. The ETB I had was very picky and went on hunger strikes from day one. I will say however she had some mouth issues from the start. Ultimately I believe this is what caused her death. She had been doing great and feeding well, but died suddenly, and her last minutes were spent rubbing her mouth on objects in the cage, though there were never any signs of infection, either in the mouth or respiratory. She had been doing great for over five months.
If given the choice, I would go for the ETB, but either is very rewarding.

 

[astraldisaster]

If you get bit by an ETB you will need at least several stitches.

I would say GTP all the way. More is openly known about them, so more care sheets are available. Ive seen babies going for $225 captive bred, where as ETB's are going for about 800-1000 captive bred.

Yikes! Good to know. It seems both of these snakes' jaws deserve a healthy dose of respect, though ultimately if one is more prone to bite than the other that may be a deciding factor for me.

I found one link to buy CB ETB babies for less than your estimate, but you're right...they do seem more expensive and rare than GTPs overall.

Good book to invest in I bought before getting mine is "The more complete Chondro" by Greg Maxwell. Lot of myth dispelling and keeping advice and pointers in there. The one thing I learned threw keeping a Chondro is they are not as up and die as they are made out to be. Captive bred is a lot more but they are worth every penny. I never understood why everyone was so fascinated with my OS high yellow till I realized how much brighter her color is compared to the norm. Watching that color change from baby into sub adult is so amazing. I am just glad the person who got her is going to keep me posted over the years to come so I can see what she look like as an adult and later what her babies hatch out looking like.

Greg Maxwells website: http://www.finegtps.com/
A forum where I got mine from Kevin Kopft and learned a lot from: http://moreliaviridis.yuku.com/directory#.TjCyemHB-So
Danny (Urban Jungles) has a lot of good info as well. He keeps Emeralds, Amazons, and hybrids of both those species. He is also a member here. http://www.urbanjungles.com/

Good luck and take your time. Don't rush into it cause they are totally worth the wait.

BTW a Chondro bite is no joke either. My coworker was bleeding pretty bad after my girl got a hold of him at a year old. Anyone who says they always bite and let go is lieing. I watched her chew on him for a few minutes before she finally let go. Generally they bite and let go though. If you pull back when they bite their teeth can do some damage and tear skin. I personally have yet to be bitten in a long time by anything except a nerodia I just had to play with. Everyone says though it doesn't really hurt. It looks worse than it is.

Thank you for the valuable info and resources! I'm definitely not planning to rush into getting one, if only for the reason that I can't afford to at the moment. It probably won't happen for at least another six months, so in the meantime I'll spend a lot of time reading up on the care of both species.

Until last week I had both. I personally liked the C. caninus better. My M. viridis is definitely more defensive/agressive. I found both very easy to care for, and similar in conditions. I would rather take a bite from the GTP, but would prefer not to be hit by either. My GTP is actually a very good feeder. The ETB I had was very picky and went on hunger strikes from day one. I will say however she had some mouth issues from the start. Ultimately I believe this is what caused her death. She had been doing great and feeding well, but died suddenly, and her last minutes were spent rubbing her mouth on objects in the cage, though there were never any signs of infection, either in the mouth or respiratory. She had been doing great for over five months.
If given the choice, I would go for the ETB, but either is very rewarding.

Hmm...part of me wants to go with my original first choice and get the ETB, but I would really hate to end up having a similar issue with feeding. Having such a precious animal die on me would be pretty devastating. I'm sorry for your loss, by the way. I guess these things just happen sometimes, but it still really sucks. How old was she?

 

[OphidianDelight]

Emerald bites are no joke; I much prefer working with GTPs instead, but I am biased since I love Morelia snakes. Good luck on your endeavor. At least you're researching first. :clap:

 

[BQC123]

Hmm...part of me wants to go with my original first choice and get the ETB, but I would really hate to end up having a similar issue with feeding. Having such a precious animal die on me would be pretty devastating. I'm sorry for your loss, by the way. I guess these things just happen sometimes, but it still really sucks. How old was she?

This animal arrived to the original buyer in terrible shape. Mites and scale rot, in addition to the mouth issue. After treating the first two, it was determined that a broken tooth was the likely cause of the gaping, and it did clear up. Honestly I would not let that steer you away. Just be sure to buy from a reputable source. The girl I got her from has a male, which I believe I have convinced her to sell me. That one has had no issues, but was healthy when she got it. Both are awesome snakes, just do plenty of homework before purchasing.
I am still bothered by the loss, but she would have died long ago without the care she got. Age cannot be determined because the dealer lied about so many things. If she was as old as claimed, she was way small for her age, likely from improper care. I do plan on doing an amature necropsy, tanning the skin, and doing a skeletal mount, so she can still provide some educational value.

 

[Alexandra V]

The choice is obviously yours, and both arre amazing snakes so you win either way, but my personal preference is GTPs, I like their overall build, feeding response and attitude (docile snakes are nice and dandy, but bitey ones are much more fun to work with. That being said, I'd rather not have to get stitches like I would with an ETB bite)

 

[the toe cutter]

If you get bit by an ETB you will need at least several stitches.

I would say GTP all the way. More is openly known about them, so more care sheets are available. Ive seen babies going for $225 captive bred, where as ETB's are going for about 800-1000 captive bred.

Your estimate on cost for ETB's is quite a bit off, as there are 2yr old CB ETB's on kingsnake.com(also a great site for information on care and breeding) going for 400$ea. Granted that is more than a GTP CB baby. Their care is slightly more involved than a GTP but they are a more manageable size, and honestly given the sluggish nature of both I was never much a fan of either. You will effectively have a very pretty coiled lump on a branch! Also if you ever decide on perhaps starting to breed them there is the egg vs. live birth question as well. Hope any of that helps.

 

[bravesvikings20]

Your estimate on cost for ETB's is quite a bit off, as there are 2yr old CB ETB's on kingsnake.com(also a great site for information on care and breeding) going for 400$ea. Granted that is more than a GTP CB baby. Their care is slightly more involved than a GTP but they are a more manageable size, and honestly given the sluggish nature of both I was never much a fan of either. You will effectively have a very pretty coiled lump on a branch! Also if you ever decide on perhaps starting to breed them there is the egg vs. live birth question as well. Hope any of that helps.

Depends who you are buying from. If me and you are looking at the same ad, I would never buy anything from that source.

I based my quote on stock I know is captive bred. There are many on there that say its CB, when in fact, they are imported babies.

Just a heads up.

 

[astraldisaster]

Well, after Googling the exact title of my thread, I found lots of existing threads on other sites asking the same thing. I feel a bit silly for making this one, actually.

Regardless, thank you all for the input. It's not 100% decided, but I'm pretty sure I do want to go with a (captive-bred) baby Amazon Basin ETB. They may be expensive and hard to find, but to me it's worth waiting and saving for. GTPs are nice, but ultimately I prefer the deeper green, white bands, and thicker build of the ETBs. From what I've read, both have nasty bites and unpredictable temperaments, so there's an equal chance of getting a docile or aggressive specimen no matter which species I choose. Their care requirements also don't seem terribly different.

Now the only question is, should I handle the snake often to get it accustomed to human contact when it's young, or do I leave it alone as much as possible? If i choose option A, I'm bound to take a few bites early on. Some people have docile, handleable snakes of both species, though... I wonder if they just got lucky, or if it's because the snakes are used to being handled.

 

[the toe cutter]

Depends who you are buying from. If me and you are looking at the same ad, I would never buy anything from that source.

I based my quote on stock I know is captive bred. There are many on there that say its CB, when in fact, they are imported babies.

Just a heads up.

This is very true, never take anyones word for anything animal related! That being said ETB's are easily obtained as CBB for less than 500$ just about anywhere especially if you attend any of the numerous reptile shows throughout the country. And you can get a better, firsthand look at what and who you are dealing with.

 

[bravesvikings20]

This is very true, never take anyones word for anything animal related! That being said ETB's are easily obtained as CBB for less than 500$ just about anywhere especially if you attend any of the numerous reptile shows throughout the country. And you can get a better, firsthand look at what and who you are dealing with.

I agree if at all possible, try to get it at a reptile show.

 

[astraldisaster]

I would love to get one at an expo! The thing is, I've decided that I'd really prefer an Amazon Basin Emerald, since they supposedly have the best temperaments, but they're also the most rare. I might have trouble finding one at a show. I'll certainly try, but I'll also probably see if I can put my name on any waiting lists of reputable breeders online.

 

[sassysmama]

I have both and love both species. My first emerald was wild caught, but a long term captive, and she was extremely aggressive, and would strike at every opportunity (making cage cleaning quite interesting) but ate readily and never had any problems. My male is captive bred and is a somewhat picky eater, but has never struck at me. Emeralds tend to be rather jumpy and do not enjoy handling, for the most part. My chondro is very laid back, its almost comical, but he has a great feeding response. Most captive bred chondros are more tolerant of handling. With the proper set up, both species do very well, in my experience. I would definitely suggest captive bred, and the amazon basin emeralds are awesome! I personally prefer the emeralds, but it is not important to me at all to be able to handle them. I think you will enjoy whichever species you choose, they are great!

 

[whitewolf]

Now the only question is, should I handle the snake often to get it accustomed to human contact when it's young, or do I leave it alone as much as possible? If i choose option A, I'm bound to take a few bites early on. Some people have docile, handleable snakes of both species, though... I wonder if they just got lucky, or if it's because the snakes are used to being handled.

I can't speak for ETB's but I will say as a yearling my girl would snap at any heat source regardless. I do believe a lot of it is just the snake itself much like T's. As a general Biaks and Biak crosses tend to be snappy, which is what she was. Over time she settled down, mind you I don't really handle any of my snakes except to weight and clean. When I get them out some have to be hooked while other aren't. I have two corns that believe they a Gabon Vipers. Once she got about a year and a half old the snapping stopped and she settled down all on her own. So once a month on average they might get human interaction. I do know some GTP's, however, that try to take your face off every time that cage is opened. The last time she had bit was when we bagged her to ship a few weeks ago, mind you she hadn't been fed in two weeks due to delays in shipping so that was a pretty good average. I have seen some snappy ETB's, however, there is a local breeder that attends the local expos with Houston Herp that walks around with a very docile ETB. I was told that Amazon Tree Boas share a geographical range with the Emeralds so on that note much of the husbandry for them can probably be applied to Emeralds. Fauna Classifieds is another good resource for checking out sellers before you purchase anything. Their reviews are under the BOI. Another person to talk to is Kyle over at Ghost fish herps. Kyle keeps GTP's and Carpets but is very nice and studied under several people. I can vouch that he'll steer you in the right direction. Tell him Heidi said to email him and give you some good advice. I've met and dealt with him a few times and he is uber helpful. Not a big invert guy but extremely helpful in reptiles. http://www.ghostfishherps.com/

 

[astraldisaster]

I can't speak for ETB's but I will say as a yearling my girl would snap at any heat source regardless. I do believe a lot of it is just the snake itself much like T's. As a general Biaks and Biak crosses tend to be snappy, which is what she was. Over time she settled down, mind you I don't really handle any of my snakes except to weight and clean. When I get them out some have to be hooked while other aren't. I have two corns that believe they a Gabon Vipers. Once she got about a year and a half old the snapping stopped and she settled down all on her own. So once a month on average they might get human interaction. I do know some GTP's, however, that try to take your face off every time that cage is opened. The last time she had bit was when we bagged her to ship a few weeks ago, mind you she hadn't been fed in two weeks due to delays in shipping so that was a pretty good average. I have seen some snappy ETB's, however, there is a local breeder that attends the local expos with Houston Herp that walks around with a very docile ETB. I was told that Amazon Tree Boas share a geographical range with the Emeralds so on that note much of the husbandry for them can probably be applied to Emeralds. Fauna Classifieds is another good resource for checking out sellers before you purchase anything. Their reviews are under the BOI. Another person to talk to is Kyle over at Ghost fish herps. Kyle keeps GTP's and Carpets but is very nice and studied under several people. I can vouch that he'll steer you in the right direction. Tell him Heidi said to email him and give you some good advice. I've met and dealt with him a few times and he is uber helpful. Not a big invert guy but extremely helpful in reptiles. http://www.ghostfishherps.com/

Thanks very much! I've decided to go with the ETB for now, but I still might be interested in getting a GTB at some point in the future, so I'll keep all of this in mind.


General update: I've been reading up on ETB care obsessively for the past week, and have learned a lot. I think I'd like to take on the challenge of keeping one. Unfortunately, I've realized that Amazon Basins are waaaay out of my price range, so I'm going to "settle" for a Northern for now. A local reptile shop has a beautiful CB juvenile male that I've kind of fallen in love with. Apparently he will only eat live food, but he's healthy and seems to have a good disposition. When I was there, one of the employees took him out for me (with a hook), and he seemed perfectly okay with being handled. Hopefully, I'll be getting him within the next week.