From 1863 to 1866 he studied at the Bergakademie Freiberg, then worked for a year in a chemical factory in Frankfurt am Main.

Boettger had agoraphobia and rarely left home, never setting foot in a museum from 1876 to 1894.

Also, he was co-author of the herpetology volume for the third edition of Alfred Brehm's Tierleben.

[3] During the latter stages of his career he taught classes at the Wöhler-Realgymnasium in Frankfurt and also engaged in some foreign travel.

[1] A number of herpetological species/subspecies are named in his honor, including: Boettger was also a conchologist or malacologist, and an entomologist who specialized in Coleoptera (beetles).