I'm sure this is a lame newbie question but...

[equinebeing]

what is the difference between a gold blush normal and a normal? Like looks and genetically as well. For example if I were to breed a gold blush normal to something what would I get differently than if I just breed a normal to that same thing.

I hope this question made sense...

Thanks in advance.

[Serpent_Nirvana]

Where did you hear the phrase "gold blush normal?" If it's a normal, in terms of discreet genes, it's just a normal. "Gold blush" sounds like a descriptive term that someone made up to describe a normal (non-morph) ball python that looks pretty, but doesn't carry any mutation genes and whose appearance most likely can't be duplicated all that easily. (And by adding the "normal" part to the name, it seems they weren't really trying to pull one over on anyone ...)

Now, it IS possible that, by breeding a high-gold normal animal to various morphs such as pastel, you can selectively breed for lighter, brighter, nicer-looking morphs ... There is still a lot to be done with the careful selection of non-morph ball pythons, IMO.

[equinebeing]

ahh okay thanks your answer really does help. I suspected that it might be a term that a specific breeder was using because when I googled it I didn't get any results. I heard it here btw:

YouTube - Brian Gundy Is Selling 2010 Male Gold Blush Normal For $100

[equinebeing]

nevermind darn it the breeder sold it. I really wanted that snake too haha.

[Serpent_Nirvana]

Aaah ... Yeah I don't know too much about him (maybe someone who does can chime in ) but I believe that from what I have read and seen, Brian Gundy is one of the few breeders working with selectively breeding "normals" for high-color, etc.. (Not a very common practice with ball pythons -- yet -- but it's the basis of quite a bit of blood python breeding.)

I'm sure if you were to breed one of those high-gold normals to, say, a nice-looking pastel, you'd get some phenomenal-looking pastels, but just breeding a high-gold normal to a plain, dark normal is going to get some pretty normal looking normals.

Basically, a couple of generations of poor breeding choices can undo what it takes many generations of careful selection to obtain. That's why (from what I know of Mr. Gundy) that animal was $100 for a normal male -- not because he was trying to pass it off as some "new morph," but because it was the result of probably several generations of carefully selecting high-gold "normals" for breeding.

[Matt K]

Yeah--Brian Gundy is a local guy here in Central California. He has a really nice line of Mojaves that he calls Gold Blush Mojaves, that all stem from a "Normal" female he acquired a few years ago. He hatches some incredible Mojaves from this line, but I don't think he has explored breeding his Gold Blush line of normals to much other than Mojaves. I'm sure though that they will impart the same genes that make his Mojaves stunning to other morphs as well. Don't feel bad that he sold that guy, he has a lot of Gold Blush breedings going on every year--and still more from this year that have yet to hatch! He's a really nice guy, just e-mail him and I'm sure he can help you out!

Cheers,
-Matt