Recommendations for an aspiring breeder

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Originally Posted by brock lesser

Just because you can put two snakes together doesn't mean you should.
Whats your budget, are you ready to keep every baby you hatch,
incubator, racks, thermastats and other equipment.
Do you want to just dabble or do you want to be a breeder?
Whats your living situation, live with parents, apartment, rent or own?
I'm not trying to be mean just want you and others to think long term,
it's about the animals wellbeing and providing the best care for them.

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This just it!


Many people do the bare minimum for 1 snake, let alone 2, Then say those 2 give you a very good clutch of 6-8. now you then have 8-10 snakes, you have to care for! Make sure your ready for the long haul. As you may have to sit on 50+% of the offspring you breed for quit some time, not everything sells! Always have a net of $$ for the BP's in any worste case scenario.

I am glad I see threads like this and the reminder to people breeding is not easy, cheap or a quick turn of a buck. I plan to dabble and have no aspirations to be a "breeder". There are so many people slinging their snakes on CL cause they thought snakes are easy. i mean how hard is it to have an animal in a tank right. What is a thermostat? But I cant put in a large rat with my 88g ball? I feel bad for some of the snakes that people are trying to unload cause they either cant take care of the 1 they have or are a backyard breeder. I hope the voice of reason echoes in all potential breeders.

Maybe one of you (30+ breeding sized) breeders could post a monthly bill breakdown. That might change the mind of some of these soon to be breeders.

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Originally Posted by ElliotNess

I am glad I see threads like this and the reminder to people breeding is not easy, cheap or a quick turn of a buck. I plan to dabble and have no aspirations to be a "breeder". There are so many people slinging their snakes on CL cause they thought snakes are easy. i mean how hard is it to have an animal in a tank right. What is a thermostat? But I cant put in a large rat with my 88g ball? I feel bad for some of the snakes that people are trying to unload cause they either cant take care of the 1 they have or are a backyard breeder. I hope the voice of reason echoes in all potential breeders.

Maybe one of you (30+ breeding sized) breeders could post a monthly bill breakdown. That might change the mind of some of these soon to be breeders.

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I would like to see that bill as well actually...


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Maybe i worded the title wrong... I dont plan to make breeding my occupation... I just want to do it as a hobby 5-6 snakes thats all ...


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I will give you some of my limited insight. My friend breeds balls mainly for himself and he is of the mindset of many others. Holdbacks and sell the rest. He has in excess of 30 breeder quality and as a result a while back started breeding his rats. He now has an excess of rats that cost him 30-60 dollars a month to feed.He sells what he cans. He has slowed to the minimum amount of rats he needs but still has excess. Everything cost money, and as such needs to be evaluated. I am looking at the following just to be able to have this as MY HOBBY
Cost
Space
Feeding
Cleaning
Time - Time - Time
Food Source
Vet bills
and the list keeps on going...

I think that you should take a lot of time looking into all the requirements for breeding; emotional, financial and time factors, consider them all. I spent 7 solid months researching only ball python breeding. The morphs, the care needed, the technique... and I am still unbelievably lost in comparison to a professional or experienced breeder. Does that mean you shouldn't invest in a few snakes and produce some beautiful babies? Not at all. It just means you need to take serious time before you try so that you have your checklist met. And always make sure to put the animals first.

I think that breeding your mojaves to other animals would not only be rewarding, but amazing to someone who fancies it as a hobby. Just make sure you know what you are getting into before hand. With that said, all the luck and best wishes to you. After spending the 7 months researching and gaining some family members, I myself am going to give breeding a shot this upcoming season. But I still have innumerable amounts to accomplish before everything is ready. You can achieve anything if you set you heart to it. This includes your mojaves and what they may potentially breed.

P.S I love jigsaws. Pinstripe x Mojave- fairly simple genetics. Good luck!

-Ph.