I need advice...

Hi,

This is my breeder enchi male;

http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/f...aleEnchi01.jpg

Not a stellar example but an absolute bucket and all round friendly chap. Also he is unrelated to any of my other snakes.

My problem is this year he produced two offspring - one much like him and one much lighter.

http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/f.../14-E-0108.jpg

http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/f.../14-E-0106.jpg

My dilema is do I keep him as a backup, use him to replace his father, or sell him?

And if I keep him do I breed him back to his mother to see if there is an extra gene in there somewhere?

Help. :confusd:

To be honest, I'd sell all 3 and pickup a really amazing example of the Enchi gene. He's a good looking snake, but I've seen much nicer. If you plan on working with Enchi's in the future, I'd start by investing in an A+ enchi instead of using a B- if ya know what I mean.

Are you in the hobby for money, or because you like snakes?

I would keep the brighter baby. If you want to breed him back to Mom once because you think something is going on, have at it.

If the sire is worth keeping as a pet and backup breeder then keep him, it's not like BP's are expensive to feed. I have a mohave male that in addition to being a solid breeder (he'd lock a stick if I let him) is just all-around friendly. He's the one I pull out to show to people who are apprehensive about touching - never mind holding - a snake. He's more like a boa or king snake than a BP, but he's not quick or flighty when handled, so he's ideal for a newb. Plus he's pretty, though not a super-stellar example of the morph. All that said... if he sires a BEL or nice 2-3 gene male he'll eventually be retired from breeding, but I won't sell him, I just like him too much to send down the road.

Although not bright, the sire is clean and not spotty at all. Both the hatchlings are way too spotty for me to use as breeders.

Keep the sire till you find a clean double gene Enchi morph.

PM me....

I would keep the male not the offsprings they are way too busy for my liking.

OP I would personally not keep this offspring if you are looking for a textbook example of an Enchi.

My other question is has anybody been able to dial the Enchi gene in consistently? I mean with line breeding to the point that they are getting almost all banded, spotless animals most if not all of the time. I understand what it does with certain combos and why it is popular, it just seems like such a wonky thing if animals with spots are undesirable, it looks likie it's a 50/50 thing.

It really did get to the point that I decided against using the mutation in the future and sold my original het albino Enchi female. I recently got the gene back in my collection with a triple gene animal that I thought looked great, probably because of the Enchi gene, lol. I really think I am only going to use it in pattern mutation animals like, Leopards, Spiders, Spinners, Pins etc.

I like the sire more than the babies, much much more. Sell the babies and keep dad for another season.

Id keep dad, IMO the hatchling is pet quality. I definitely wouldnt breed him.

The answer to this question depends on a few things. Do you have the space and funds to keep him and a male to replace him? Having a backup, proven breeder is never a bad thing. Hell I've kept single gene males for not only to use as a backup but also because I kind of feel like they're part of the pack.