Next Season

Well this ball python season is over for me. I bred two females and neither of them laid. Kind of sucks, but oh well. There is always next season. One female is 1800g, the other is 1500g. How long should I wait before pairing them up for next season?

I start November the 1st.

How are you sure they aren't still building? Did you stop putting your males in with them? Do they eat if you offer? If they eat then I'd start planning for next season.

One female had me thinking she was going to lay but I don't think she's going to lay. She had a weird shed cycle (shed and then 2 weeks later was in another shed cycle) but its been a month since she shed and she's not giving me any indication she is going to lay. I've stopped pairing and both are eating every week.

This season I began pairing in November. I have another female that has to gain another 400g before she is ready. So for next season I hope to have 3 girls going. (another female has 300g to go but she refuses to eat)

I had my first clutches(3) in 2008.
2009 --- only one clutch.
I had hoped for 5 this season but only 2 so far and waitng on the third to drop.
I pretty much consider myself as a hobbyist breeder, so I am happy and am enjoying the snakes and this hobby. The snake sells from the past seasons were used to fuel(help with the expenses) my hobby.
With ball pythons it takes time! I think ball pythons are great to work with. They are also not targeted by most of the legislation that is going to effect the big snake owners.

I recently(started in 2008) have added six boas to my collection. I'm pretty iffy about the future of that part of my hobby, because the boas are included on the "big" snake lists. I purchased high end expensive snakes to work with. Hopefully I can do what I planned as far as breeding. I know, kinda got off subject.

Anyway when you do finally get eggs and they hatch, you will be enjoying some of thew most gratifying parts of the hobby!

Emilio could be right--- you could get a surprize clutch.

Well the 1800g female surprised me last season. I saw the glow, ovulation and the pre-lay shed. Of course, we were moving around this time and on top of that we had a huge snow storm. It knocked out power at our apartment and we had to move the snakes to the new place before we could move their enclosures. 30 days after her pre-lay shed, I didn't see any eggs and figured she wasn't going to lay. 30 days after that (60 days after her pre-lay shed!) she gave me 6 eggs. Of course the clutch was a wreck and only one baby hatched. He died a few months later.

So who knows, but I didn't see a glow (not a full on glow. She glowed a little but not much) or an ovulation.

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Originally Posted by Jay_Bunny

One female had me thinking she was going to lay but I don't think she's going to lay. She had a weird shed cycle (shed and then 2 weeks later was in another shed cycle) but its been a month since she shed and she's not giving me any indication she is going to lay. I've stopped pairing and both are eating every week.

This season I began pairing in November. I have another female that has to gain another 400g before she is ready. So for next season I hope to have 3 girls going. (another female has 300g to go but she refuses to eat)

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I just had a 2400g Normal lay 7 eggs on Friday night. I had all but given up on her and was planning to sell her or beef her up for next year. No ovulation, no building and no glow. Yet here I am sitting on 7 new eggs in the incubator. Her last shed was 37 days ago.


Gavin

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Gavin Cooper

I just had a 2400g Normal lay 7 eggs on Friday night. I had all but given up on her and was planning to sell her or beef her up for next year. No ovulation, no building and no glow. Yet here I am sitting on 7 new eggs in the incubator. Her last shed was 37 days ago.


Gavin

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Was she feeding during those last 37 days?

yep i had the same trouble i got no signs that i was looking for and she laid me 6 good eggs so they will suprize u from time to time

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Originally Posted by Jerhart

Was she feeding during those last 37 days?

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Not regularly, but yes she did yet during that time.


Gavin