My First Clutch and I Messed It Up :( Help!

Between college and RL, I haven't been on here in a while, but I need help.

Over the winter, I paired my fire male with my pastel female a few times and saw copulation, but never saw ovulation, and didn't think she'd taken.

I went out of town on Monday, and got back yesterday to find my girl sitting on a pile of 7 (!) eggs, no slugs. Unfortunately, I think it was way too dry in the tub for them (she had them right over the heat tape for 1-3 days), and they're in bad shape. I've got them set up in a tub with perlite/vermiculite and I moistened it to where it formed a clump in my hand, but even after sitting in the tub all night, they're not looking any better.

Here's a pic:

http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/f.../June11020.jpg

Is there anything I can do?? I don't want to lose these guys. :(

I'm no expert, but I don't think there's much you can do except wait. People have had some pretty nasty looking eggs hatch perfectly healthy babies, so don't give up on them just yet.

It might take them a few days to inflate again. If there is anything I have learned this season is that ball python eggs are very forgiving and can bounce back from a lot. I'd candle them to make sure they are fertile and then just let them be. As long as they keep their veins, they have a chance at hatching.

Did you candle them yet ?

Only the top one looks really poor, just keep the humidity high (without getting the eggs wet) and hope for the best.

I hope it works out, because that would be some awesome babies right there !!

Good luck :)

They should be fine in the long run, if you pair bp's theoretically act like it will happen and keep monitoring the females daily, I dont always see and ovulation but the females typically will give signs in their behavior that they are gravid. They can also retain sperm for many months.

Thanks for the quick replies. I candled them, and they all have strong veins, so I guess there's still hope!

I really hope they make it...they're out of my favorite girl, Valentine. She's a bright, beautiful pastel and puppy dog tame. She didn't even hiss or strike at me when I took her off the eggs. And 7 eggs her first time around with no slugs...I'm so proud of my girl. :)

How often should I check on them? As worried as I am, I know I'll probably try to check more often than I should. :oops:

I agree with most of the post above. Usually if you can get them into some humidity the eggs will fill back out and soon will look much better. Keep us updated on the progress. Good luck

It could take them a week to reinflate. So try and give as much humidity as possible without them getting wet. They should be fine.


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Candle them once a week, make sure humidity in the tub is high, and that medium doesn't get dry, add water as/if needed to medium farthest away from eggs.

Besides the deflation due to low humidity, they look okay. Get the humidity boosted and they should plump back out. I wouldn't expect them to become fully plump but I've seen much worse (nearly flat) eggs go on to hatch. ;)