New male not breeding

[HSM]

Hello,

This is my second breeding season with my ball pythons. I have a male leopard who is being shy about breeding. I can't remember how old he is but I had him last winter (2015) so this is his second winter with me and he is 865 grams. I have been pairing him with females but I have not seen him lock with one yet. My male killerbee I used last year in my first season is doing just fine. Is there anything I can do to get this shy male to start breeding or is it possibly too soon for him?

My night time temp is about 76F and my daytime is 83F. My thermostat that controls the hot spots is set at 95F so I haven't checked it lately but I am guessing that translates into about 90F in my tubs.

Any help with him would be appreciated, because I was ecstatic to include him this year.

[Albert Clark]

Well, to me I think you should consider pumping him up a bit more to the 1000 gm mark in weight. Sure males breed at lower weights. Breeding is instinctual but is prompted by external factors that need adjustments at time to trigger responses. Remember also some females may reject a particular male. Try putting the killer bees freshly shed skin in with the leopard male and the female you are pairing him with and see if that triggers a response. It's the rival male phenomena to stimulate him to become a little more aggressive. Hope this can help. Lol.

[Bigfish1975]

Sometimes the boys need a little more time than people think. I've had a few males that breed great in the 700-800 gram range. typically I only pair the newbies up with proven females and just a one to one ratio with them. Experienced males see up to 3 girls here. Like Albert said, you could try to throw in the Killerbees fresh shed. You could even try to put both males in together for 10 minutes or so to get the "Competitive juices flowing" so to speak. However, if you're set on particular pairs, this may not be the best option. There is also the possibility that you're just missing it. I have an Albino "ninja" I like to call him. The first 2 seasons I bred him I never saw a single lock. Over those season I had 4 albino clutches fathered by him. Be patient, there's still time for him to figure things out. Good luck.

[Stewart_Reptiles]

First re-check the sex of your animal

Here is what you can do.

Pair him with 2 female a once

Use stuck shed and or sperm plug from another male and place it in the enclosure when pairing.

Pair on rainy days, cold front.

etc

And most importantly be patient and keep in mind that because YOU want him to breed does not mean he will at least not on YOUR schedule, and also remember that because you don't see any lock does not mean it is not happening , I used to have a male from which I NEVER so a lock, yet he sired multiple clutches.

[HSM]

Thank you for the suggestions. I will try some of those if I do not see him breeding in the next couple of days. I did pair him with my only experienced female (I just bred one pair last year), but as I told my husband, if a snake could run screaming, he did from her. I suppose it wouldn't be the worst thing to have some more killerbee combos. All 5 of his offspring from last season were female. Probably just luck, but you never know.

[fatSNAKEs]

Sounds like you're doing all the right things. Suffice to say, we've all endured the same. And its quite frustrating as you invest the time nurturing him/her to breeding weight, and suddenly one just doesn't want to cooperate. I've had projects last five years, my longest going on seven. Certainly try all the suggestions, a veteran once told me adding leaves was like magic. I tried everything and none of these seemed to work for me personally. IMO its only when they're ready. And watch the weather, storm fronts, low pressure systems, etc, definitely help. If you're patient and persevere, it will happen. It also helps to breed multiple pairings so you spread your bets, have some success and gain experience every season. I love the Leopard morph, and hope things work out for you. I'd back off a month and then give it them another try. Best of luck, stay positive and keep us posted!

[Galaxygirl]

I also have two Leopard 2014 males that wont breed. I've tried switching between multiple females, taking them for an hour car ride (which just stressed them), rubbing a sperm plug on the female, exchanging male sheds, keeping the males together for a short time, cooling, putting the female into the males enclosure and vice-versa, uhh yeah, not sure what else to try. I don't think they're "ninja locking" as every time I check the male is far from the female and has no interest.