Are they almost ready?

On another thread I started, somebody suggested Mona's eating strike might be a sign she's ready to breed - especially since her temps have been a bit cool lately. She is a proven breeder, about 3-4 years old, and weighed over 2000g before her feeding strike. So I know she's good to go, but I'm not sure when her mate (Toby) will be ready. He weighed 444g today, after a HUGE meal two days ago & no recent poops... he eats like a machine, and has gained nearly 100g in the last month. Do you think he'll be ready for this fall/winter? If so, when should I introduce them? I haven't seen any sperm plugs that I'm aware of, but he's almost at the "magic" weight! :gj:

Here he is, looking a little fat from this week's meal (he got 2 extra mice from Mona's refusal)
http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p...s/DSCF0340.jpg

For perspective - this is a standard-sized acoustic guitar
http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p...s/DSCF0325.jpg

Some males breed at this size and some won't. Just give it a shot!

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Originally Posted by Nordinho

Some males breed at this size and some won't. Just give it a shot!

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How soon? Asap, or should I wait until he's over 500g and it's officially fall? Temperatures in this area are constant (cool) year-round, so it doesn't make a difference in terms of the weather... ;)

Like I said, just give it a try!

Put the two together and wait :gj:

I'd give it a shot. If he doesn't try this season, he should be ready by the next. I'm in the same position you are, most of my males are in the 450-500g range this season. If all else fails I'll throw my BF's normal in with the breeder girls, he's about 900g right now. This will be my first season breeding, so I'd be happy with all normals :)

Thanks! :) Now, could somebody please explain the whole courting/introduction process to me? I've tried doing searches, but nothing gets specific enough... for instance, how long does he spend in her tub? I read something about 3 days on / 3 days off, so is that 24/7 during the "on" days? And should I remove either (or both) of the hides? Mona's tub is pretty crowded with two XL caves, and there may not be enough room to get busy. :oops: In the pictures I see of snakes locking, it always looks like they have plenty of space - are they moved into a larger tub for the breeding season? Sorry about all the questions, but I want to make sure I do everything right!

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Originally Posted by Lolo76

Thanks! :) Now, could somebody please explain the whole courting/introduction process to me?

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http://ballpython.ca/gallery/breeding.html

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Originally Posted by Wh00h0069

http://ballpython.ca/gallery/breeding.html

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I've read through that quite a few times, but it still didn't answer everything... mainly, my question about the hides. Seems like a minor thing, but I don't want to stress either of them out, since they're used to having 2 hides in their tubs. And will Mona's 41qt be large enough to accommodate them? TIA!

I removed the hides when breeding. This has worked for me and I will do this everytime I put 2 snakes together.

Some people leave the hides in the tubs when breeding, this also works. There's not really a standard for this.

Some people remove hides, some don't. I don't provide my snakes with hides at any time except when they are little and are moving up in tub size. He is a small male but could go this season. My het pied male was around 600g when I bred him. This season I have one male that is almost 500g and one that is around 450g, and I plan to start pairing them as soon as the female is ready (she's 2000g with a meal in her belly!)

Some people do different breeding schedules. I do one week on, one week off. During the week off I attempt to feed both. If the female refuses food 2 times in a row, I stop feeding her for the season. The male will sometimes eat, sometimes not.

He's a beautiful male! Good luck!

You could remove one of the hides. What size tub is she in? I have my girls in 41qt tubs and a hide box on the warm side, though none of the females actually use them.

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Originally Posted by HerpKeeperVA

You could remove one of the hides. What size tub is she in? I have my girls in 41qt tubs and a hide box on the warm side, though none of the females actually use them.

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She's in a 41qt, with two hides she used almost equally until recently.

I put Toby in with her last night, without removing the hides, and left him in until this afternoon... then I removed the hides (Mona was in the cool one, Toby in the warm) to observe their behavior for a while. Mona was definitely interested in him, but he seemed terrified of her! He tucked his head under his belly, and just stayed like that while she checked him out. I felt bad and put him back in his tub, but maybe that is normal behavior? :confuzd:

I think all good men start out very shy... :D

All three of the males I introduced this week stayed away from the female at first, but later came out of the hide and crawled all over her. My normal male is still rubbing and tail wrapping with his girl, and the pin is just sitting on his, lol. Give him a little more time and he may come around if he's ready.

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Originally Posted by Danounet

I think all good men start out very shy... :D

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LOL... I've always been impatient with human men, and apparently I'm the same with snakes. :P

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Originally Posted by Lolo76

LOL... I've always been impatient with human men,

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Haha, I hear you on that one. And for some reason I adopted another one anyways, who after almost 4 years together, is still shy about certain things. :weirdface

Gotta love men.

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Originally Posted by HerpKeeperVA

... I adopted another one anyways, who after almost 4 years together, is still shy about certain things. :weirdface

Gotta love men.

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They can lift heavy things... and make life more interesting. ;)