are my snakes *happy* or trying to mate?

[lilrosiehill]

i have a 5 year old and a 18 month old *BP*. ive heard that *BP* just *tolerate* other *BP*. well these 2 have plain ole BONDED! its touching they intertwine and *sleep* all cuddled up and so on. my question is, are they gay or just *snake sisters* ive had no eggs yet and i never did have either one sexed by a pro. im assuming they are both female. hey, as long as they are happy and healthy, im happy.. but i am curious thanks!

[AndrewGeibel]

The snakes really should be separated. BP's do much better when they live alone. If by chance one of them is a male and one is a female you could end up with unwanted breeding. What would you do if you all of a sudden had eggs and no incubator? If you managed to keep the eggs alive how would you support the extra snakes that you now have? There are many reasons that BP's should live alone. Do what you can to get them separated into their own enclosures.

[Patrick Long]

Why do you have such a large Bp housed with such a smaller one?

[ladywhipple02]

They aren't "cuddling." Snakes don't understand this term, and they don't do it. What you see as cuddling is them actually competeing... I would guess they are curled up together either over the hot spot or the cool spot? It is because they are both trying to get the best spot.

The snakes should be separated. If this continues, one will eventually win out over the other (most likely the oldest and biggest) and the other will suffer from not being able to get the best heat or best cool spot.

[rabernet]

I agree, they are not cuddling - that's classic domination behavior. I'd even guess they follow each other around too? The dominant one following the the less dominant one to make sure that they don't get the perceived "best spot".

Ball pythons are not social animals, they only come together to breed, otherwise, they are not seeking each other out.

[frankykeno]

Two ball pythons housed together isn't a great idea for all the reasons already listed. As well two unsexed snakes is just asking for trouble with unplanned matings, possibly mating too young (if the smaller one is a young female and the larger one a mature male snake). Remember too, if one snake gets sick when housed communally, you've just doubled your vet bill and believe me herp vets cost enough without making that bill larger than it has to be.

For the snakes and for yourself, it's far easier in the long run to house them seperately.

[Royal_Rodents]

The snakes really should be separated. BP's do much better when they live alone. If by chance one of them is a male and one is a female you could end up with unwanted breeding. What would you do if you all of a sudden had eggs and no incubator? If you managed to keep the eggs alive how would you support the extra snakes that you now have? There are many reasons that BP's should live alone. Do what you can to get them separated into their own enclosures.

well typically you don't really need a incubator, if she or he has eggs you could leave the eggs with the mother and moniter them. pythons are able to raise heat levels in thier body

[rabernet]

well typically you don't really need a incubator, if she or he has eggs you could leave the eggs with the mother and moniter them. pythons are able to raise heat levels in thier body

No they aren't - if they were, you wouldn't have to provide a heat source.

[Pythonman]

I have read alot of literature that says bp's can "raise their body temp above that of their surrounding area by twitching thier muscles". They will also return to the eggs after basking to transfer the heat. BP's can definitely incubate their own eggs, but we're better at it!

[Beardedragon]

I have read alot of literature that says bp's can "raise their body temp above that of their surrounding area by twitching thier muscles". They will also return to the eggs after basking to transfer the heat. BP's can definitely incubate their own eggs, but we're better at it!

Thats not true, everyone that i have talked to that has done Maternal breeding has had a 200% hatch rate, i think Rapture did it too. Im planing on doing ONLY maternal breeding, ball pythons are just fine incubating their own eggs.

Sorry for the rant, the whole maternal thing is a hugely debated thing.