Mona finally laid!!

Well, 41 days post-shed, I finally found Mona coiled over some pearly whites this afternoon. :banana:

Unfortunately I missed the actual laying process, which I was hoping to film... but I'm happy that she looks healthy, and the eggs look beautiful (from what I can see). I haven't taken her off of them yet, and honestly I'm a little nervous about that - she was hissing the minute I opened her tub, and this is usually the most docile snake ever. :cool: Any tips on the removal process? And when should I feed her? I'm leaving town on Thursday, so I would either feed her tonight or next week. Oh, and I'll remove her from the eggs later tonight, once I'm sure the incubator is stabilized. In the meantime, here's a photo of the proud mommy! Not sure how many eggs there are, but I imagine quite a few based on her high coil. :)

http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p...3/DSCN2796.jpg

Congratulations! I hope they hatch out some beautiful little babies for you.

Congrats!!! she looks like a happy new momma.

Congrats!
Just be careful removing her. I'd use a roll of paper towels to touch her head and keep her attention on that. Some one to help would "help". Shouldn't be too bad of a process.
Clean her tub to remove the smell of the clutch. Some peeps even clean the momma snake.
I usually wait until the next night to offer food. She'll be hungry quick.
Congrats again, I know you're excited!

Update: I used a towel to remove her, and aside from lots of hissing and clinging to the eggs she was fine. There are SEVEN beautiful white eggs, all attached except one, and they look nice and healthy... I don't know how to candle them, but assume they're viable. I put them into a 6qt egg tub with Hatch-Rite (how is that stuff?), and they're warming up in the incubator now. I weighed the one separate egg, and it was 115g - is that big??

Mona got a bath and new tub, since I had an extra empty one, and was taking a long drink of water when I checked on her. She actually doesn't look that thin, probably because she was over 2700g pre-gravid, and was back to her sweet self within minutes. I'll try feeding her tomorrow, and hopefully she'll take it! Thanks to everyone who has helped me, and I'll definitely post as soon as they hatch. C'mon Mojaves......... :please:

Photos of the clutch
http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p...3/DSCN2798.jpg

Did I place them correctly? Afraid the higher ones won't get enough substrate... and how is the glad-wrap compared to press & seal?
http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p...3/DSCN2800.jpg

http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p...3/DSCN2801.jpg

Mom after her bath - already back to sweet, gentle Mona.
http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p...3/DSCN2803.jpg

Congrats on the eggs and Good Luck!

Congrats ...........

Thanks all! :) Now I'm all nervous about my homemade incubator, and whether it will do the job. I might pick up something commercial this weekend, since I plan to attend the San Diego show... if they have something affordable, it'll be worth not stressing for the next 52 days. :oops:

Congrats! She's gorgeous BTW, she should make some lovely Mojos ;) Those eggs look nice and healthy. I'm sure your incubator will be fine though! Keep us posted :)

Everything looks great!

I think the homemade incubator would be fine. You'll just have to keep an eye on it just like any other one.

Hope you hatch out some mojaves!

Thanks for the input! Speaking of Mojaves, I'm wondering what the odds are... she was paired mostly with the Pastel (Toby), but timing just seemed right with the Mojo (Julius). She copulated with Toby multiple times from December through early April - then she was with Julius from 4/14-16, followed by her ovulation on 4/24. Whaddya think? Either way, I will be thrilled with my first snake hatchlings. :)

P.S. Incubator temp was reading a little high @ 91.1 inside the tub, so I just turned down the thermostat a notch... gotta stop checking obsessively, LOL.

Could be another one of those split clutches.
You'll have to be patient now!

Congratulations!!!
Home made incubators are terrific!!!
Most importantly remember the ball python breeders mantra: Patience is a virtue, patience is a virtue....
Happy hatching!

Congrats!!! They look awesome! Can't wait to see what you hatch!

Congrats!! Seems like you've been waiting for these forever.

Yes, I have been waiting for these eggs forever... they (Mona & Toby) started hooking up in December, and she waited until 41 days post-shed to finally lay them. Unfortunately patience is not one of my virtues, so I'm gonna have to learn it! :cool:

P.S. I gave Mona two mice tonight, and she took them with glee... I swear she said "YES!!" when I threw them in. :D

Finally!! LOL congrats! :D

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Originally Posted by Danounet

Finally!! LOL congrats! :D

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Thanks! :) Not the clutch you & I were expecting first (Nerissa x Toby), but I'm thrilled regardless... and now pretty sure Nerissa will be laying in early July. Btw, my homemade incubator seems to be working fine now - holding steady at 89.9 with nearly 100% humidity. :gj:

Congrats on the big eggs, they look good.
Home made incs are awesome :gj:

congrats homemade incubators are the best

Quote:

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Originally Posted by davidnizmo

congrats homemade incubators are the best

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Thanks guys! I was really nervous about my incubator, since I built it all by myself - and I'm sooooo not a handy gal. :oops: But so far so good, and my roommate (who's watching the snakes while I'm out of town) said they're maintaining their temps and shape perfectly. :gj:

I looked at some commercial incubators at the SD show, but was surprised at how small and expensive they are... the one I almost bought online was like HALF the size I thought (from the website photos). We'll see how things go this season, but it looks like I can't complain - considering I only paid $40-50 total, including the thermostat and flexwatt.