Eyeless snakes

Just wondering from a veterinary stand point, can ball pythons live and thrive if they hatch without eyes, or do most of you cull them? Also, when breeding a pair that produces them, does it make you question breeding those particular snakes again?

If it was more than one snake without eyes, I'd for sure not breed that pair together again.

I've never dealt with any snake with no eyes..."special needs" may survive as pets OK since they rely on scent & heat, but seeing motion sure helps them...I dunno
what I'd do, I'm glad I never had to decide. :confusd: (I had one parthenogenetically-produced rosy boa some years back, with one eye & other defects that I kept until
she passed at 8 mos. of suspected internal irregularities, but up until that time, she ate & shed well...I was rooting for her, 'cause I'm a "chump" I guess? And
incidentally, that's how I got into breeding rosy boas for 5 years...I didn't want that female to produce more such babies that broke my heart. When she had a
mate, she made very robust & feisty neonates with no defects whatsoever.) Good luck with your decision...

Brian from BHB has Helen, that was born with no eyes. It took months to get her to eat on her own but she does eat on her own now. He is keeping her and raising her. So it is possible. And Helen is very cute!

They can live fine without eyes they rely on heat peat and tongue to move around and strike their prey.

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Also, when breeding a pair that produces them

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I would breed them again once to see if it is genetic or a fluke.

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Good luck with your decision...

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Luckily I don't breed so I won't have to make that choice either! I saw some hatchlings recently that had no eyes at all, just scales where they should have been and was wondering about the likelihood of survival. I know my male will rarely strike without witnessing the zombie dance lol

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Originally Posted by Crowfingers

Luckily I don't breed so I won't have to make that choice either! I saw some hatchlings recently that had no eyes at all, just scales where they should have been and was wondering about the likelihood of survival. I know my male will rarely strike without witnessing the zombie dance lol

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When it comes to breeding snakes (or other reptiles) in captivity, I think we have an obligation to consider what would actually survive in nature...at least
that would be my preference.

Your male isn't alone in needing to witness the "zombie rat dance"- but I do have a hunch that a snake without eyes would just be hungry enough to go by
scent & warmth alone, as it wouldn't know what it was missing as far as vision? (-assuming it was otherwise healthy- defects don't always occur 'alone')

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Your male isn't alone in needing to witness the "zombie rat dance"- but I do have a hunch that a snake without eyes would just be hungry enough to go by
scent & warmth alone, as it wouldn't know what it was missing as far as vision? (-assuming it was otherwise healthy- defects don't always occur 'alone')

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I know dogs are quite a bit different than reptiles but I have a double merle gene Great Dane that is completely blind. Her eyes did not form. The breeder was breeding irresponsibly and producing double merle gene Danes in every litter. Some of the other pups were not as lucky. Her eyes are her only defect. She has never known what she is missing and trust me, at the dog park she holds her own and people are astounded at her ability to out maneuver other dogs. Sure she gets excited chasing a dog towards the pick nick table from time to time. Sure she has to jump over it instead of going under like the smaller one she is chasing (most dogs are smaller than danes) when she realizes last minuet that there is a table there. Most of the time she does just fine. She is also well trained and obeys commands really well. Such a drama queen to boot. Love my Zelda.
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Skyrivers, your pup is adorable...and likewise, snakes with defects are adorable too. But to the question of breeding more, I sure wouldn't.

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Skyrivers, your pup is adorable...and likewise, snakes with defects are adorable too. But to the question of breeding more, I sure wouldn't.

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Thanks, Trust me, even not being able to see she is a force of nature when it comes to protecting Cloud my husky from an over zealous playful dog at the park. Don't think she would do real harm intending to but man she is fast and fierce when it comes to family! Love my pups.

I have seen small and missing eyes in half a dozen different species of snakes. Fortunately, none were mine, so I did not have to make the very painful decision to cull or not.

Nobody has figured out why snakes have these problems. As far as I can tell, there could be more than one reason. Genetics is a possibility, as in double merle dogs. But there could be environmental causes, such as a borderline vitamin deficiency in the mother. This sort of thing is known in various vertebrates from trout to humans. I would try building the female up with some vitamin/mineral supplements for a year before letting her breed in the second year. If she produced babies with bad eyes then, I'd probably not use her again for breeding.