Which incubation method should I use?

I'm officially trying to breed my female Pastel YB for the first time. She has successfully locked twice with the male, is feeding great and steady gaining weight. I have been debating on letting her maternally incubate the eggs or if I should artificially incubate them. I find the maternal incubation process fascinating and would like to see it in action but is artificially incubating them better for both the snake and the eggs?

Also if I were to artificially incubate them I would want to get a top of the line incubator because I don't want the eggs to go bad in a crappy incubator. I would feel terrible if that happened because then its my fault for taking the eggs away from my female. I don't want to sound cheap but I don't exactly have the money for a top of the line incubator but I could get some money for Christmas if you guys think its worth it.

Another reason I want to explore the option of maternal incubation is because I will only have one clutch and I don't want to buy an expensive incubator if I only have one clutch.

Make your own incubator, they are often better and cheaper than the pre-made ones. Just get a good thermostat and you are good to go!

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Originally Posted by piedlover79

Make your own incubator, they are often better and cheaper than the pre-made ones. Just get a good thermostat and you are good to go!

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I hadn't really even thought of that. Thanks for the advice I guess I have some reading to do to see if I have the right materials.

You can make a small cooler incubator for less than $150 knowing that the most expensive of equipment is a reliable thermostat.

Most people chose artificial incubation because it is easier to provide the proper environment (temps and humidity) in a small container than it is sometime in an enclosure, it also allow you to get your females back on food faster (often female incubating their eggs will not eat).

Ultimately they is more than one way to do it, you need to find the one that works for you.

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Originally Posted by Mustang5

I have been debating on letting her maternally incubate the eggs or if I should artificially incubate them. I find the maternal incubation process fascinating and would like to see it in action but is artificially incubating them better for both the snake and the eggs?

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Both ways work. I think setting things up for maternal incubation is the more difficult way to go, but that is just my opinion. Others may have different ideas. My advice is to do a lot of web searching to find out what conditions are necessary.

If you want a good incubator without paying USA $1000+, build your own.

Good luck.