Tonya, the age sounds like a reasonable guess, though if it's a male it could be older and if a female it could be younger, or it could always be younger and overfed or older and underfed... Anyway, I'll try to take your questions point by point(and by the way, your pet store people sound on the whole more informed than most).
* Soaking can help him shed, but you could also just mist him in his cage with a plant sprayer. A snake that doesn't know you well may not be cooperative about bathing. Really, as long as it isn't super-dry where you live, it isn't too big a deal. If it doesn't all come off in one piece, he needs to be more moist. The whole process should take around a week from when his eyes cloud up to when he crawls out of the skin.
* he probably won't eat until after he sheds. The feeding schedule sounds pretty reasonable.
* dead food is way safer -- it can't bite or kill your snake. Some snakes are a little finicky about it, but sounds like your guy takes it OK. Offer it warm, on tongs; gently vibrate it near him. If that doesn't incite a strike, just leave him it with him. Prey should be about the same thickness as the widest part of your snake.
* Don't feed him in his cage -- use a separate container, like a rubbermaid tub. This way, he won't ingest substrate with his meal, and he won't associate your hands coming into the cage with an incoming meal.
* boas don't hibernate. Some snakes do -- colubrids like rat snakes,
corn snakes, etc. but you don't need to do anything different for your boa in winter.
* don't handle him while his eyes are cloudy -- if he's ever going to get frightened and bite you, that's when.
* snakes are mostly nicer than you probably think, and boas are nicer than most snakes. He will melt your heart. You will miss him when your son goes off to college and takes him away.
* he/she isn't too young to sex. An easy way to eyeball, and probably 90% accurate, is to look down by his vent (the poop hole) and see if there are visible spurs (they look like claws) above it on either side. If so, he's a boy.
* Do you know about proper cage temperatures, etc.? I have a really exhaustive caresheet (sent it out with babies we bred here this year) I could email if you like -- I'm at
mirabelasunshine@msn.com just let me know if you want it.
Overall, boas are pretty hardy creatures, and there are only a few ways to really screw them up badly. Until your little guy sheds, though, I'd suggest just leaving him mostly alone to settle in to his new home and get used to things. He'll probably be nice and friendly again when you take him out. Anyway, welcome to RTB. Hope some of this helps. Keep asking questions, that's the whole point of this place. Enjoy your (son's) snake.
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