Cohabitation No Nos

Hi all-

I am in the process of updating Reptilian Rescues website and would like to add more pages to it. I want to add one on the downfalls of cohabitation. Here is what I have so far. Is there anything else you guys can help think of?


Premature Pregancy- Male and Female reptiles will breed even if the female is younger than the recommend breeding age. This means your female may be at greater risk for egg impaction or other complications

Unwanted Pregancy- As mentioned a male and female will breed, which can result in distress to the female, complications during pregancy, and unwanted (by the owner) offspring

Spread of Disease thru Fecal Matter and Contact- (What types of diseases can be spread thru fecal matter?) Mites can be passed onto other reptiles by simply jumping to a new host. They can also get onto human clothing and skin and be passed on that way. It it important if you come in contact with a reptile with mites to follow proper procedures to prevent your collection from being infested.

Unnecessary Stress- Most reptiles don't live in a community type systems and are better off on their own, only coming together to breed. Having more than one reptile in an enclosure can cause stress for territory, food, and a mate.

There's the possibility of cannibalism, as well as making it harder to keep track of records like who deficated/urinated/regurged/ etc. If you didn't see it, you don't know which snake it was.

Hope that helps! :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by MedusasOwl

There's the possibility of cannibalism, as well as making it harder to keep track of records like who deficated/urinated/regurged/ etc. If you didn't see it, you don't know which snake it was.

Hope that helps! :)

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Cool beans! Cannibalism due to....? The fact that after feeding the scent of prey might still linger?

I know it happens, but not 100% why. Probably depends on the species, I believe that it's usually stress related unless of course we're talking kingsnakes which just eat snakes naturally. Here's an older post on the subject. The scent of food on them would probably contribute too, I imagine, but I'm really not sure.