Do big male BP make bad breeders?

I have heard that large or old male ball pythons are lazy or bad breeders. Just out of curiosity how many of you would agree or disagree to this? Or is larger better?

In my experience... a male that is never over fed will only get to about 1,000 grams full grown... The best breeders for me have always been between 750 and 1000 grams... biggest my males have ever gotten have been 1,000 or under... They get one properly sized rat per week. that is it. The proper size for an adult male is one small rat (or one med to large asf) per week.

Now of course I have taken in rescue males that were as big as females.... but that was from a long history of over feeding... They make for lazy, crappy breeders.

Ok, well I got this male mojo about a year ago, and he is a little over 1000g's where I only feed him a small rat a week and sometimes he won't even eat it. I am worried that he is going to get too big. I just don't know why he grows so much!!

ive got a male normal that i rescued and he's over 1100g's but is actually skinny. he's just now starting to look more roundish like a bp rather then all boxy like a boa. ill prolly never breed him but if i did i would still feel he was skinny.

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Originally Posted by Kylegep

Ok, well I got this male mojo about a year ago, and he is a little over 1000g's where I only feed him a small rat a week and sometimes he won't even eat it. I am worried that he is going to get too big. I just don't know why he grows so much!!

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As long as he's not fat, don't worry about it...

I would like them to be right around 1,000 grams. My bee is about 1,300 grams and has been locking up for me. I really wouldn't want him to be any smaller, he's a big boy and not fat by any means. My other boys are about 900 grams.

This was back when he was about 1,200 grams
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t...Isis/018-6.jpg

I have a 1600g crazy yellow male pastel that locks well! He is got amazing color retention for being so big. He was 1400g when I got him tho, so I didnt make him get that big. I am excitied to see his offspring because of how good he looks being so big. My other males are around 1000g's

I have my big pewter male sitting around 1900 grams and he locks just fine from what I can tell unless my young pastel lesser puts him to shame I would say he's pretty good as a breeder. I can't imagine slowing his eating down he looks skinny even at his weight since he is really long.

I feed my boys all once a week and let them grow as they need. I have seen boys get really big and I don't mean fat and do just fine. My Sable is well over 1000g and is quite the stud. Don't overfeed and just let them grow I say. Like with people they are different sizes I wouldn't worry. Like with the femmes I saw a 5000g femme and saw 2000g femme.

He can breed 10 females without breaking a sweat, try that with a 1000 gram male ;)

http://i968.photobucket.com/albums/a...s/PICT1892.jpg

Make my males as big as possible, healthy and trim but BIG.

The biggest fattest male ball python I ever had was also the best breeder. And he never missed a meal.

I had 2 males which simply grew bigger and faster than my other males and didn't start breeding until 3 years old and 2 kilos. But then they both bred consistently and fathered a clutch each.

I have other smaller males that have been great breeders from about a year onwards and one that has taken 2 1/2 years to figure it out. He's only about 1 kilo.

I think it depends and some males just get bigger than others. :rolleyes:

I feed up my males just as I do my females. If a male gets up to 800 grams by age 1, I know he's going to be a rock star--at least, that's been my experience, so far.
Those males start breeding at age one, and continue to excel every year after that. If they're great eaters, then they hold their weight well through the breeding season, grow, and do even better the next year.

I'm not a huge fan of males that are picky eaters, and won't grow. They seem more frail, and while they can be good breeders, I'm leery of their genetic legacy. I like a snake that will grow up big and fast--to me, that says they have good genes, they're healthy, and they're well adapted to their environment.

So far this year, my expectations haven't been changed. My woma-lesser male, well over 800 grams, is breeding like a champ. My lesser het orange ghost, not quite as big, isn't really into it yet.
My mojave, a snake that was a slow grower and eater, did not breed his first year, but has bred every year since. He's really not much bigger than my woma-lesser, even though he's 3 years old now.

I don't mind a small male, if he grew up fast, but the slow ones...no, I don't think they breed nearly as well as a healthy great big male.

got 6-7 males @ 1500g+
all (bar one) are my best breeders

I like them to be 500-1000 grams. I feed my males an appropriate sized rat every two weeks off season, and once a week before and after breeding and going off feed.

2000g+ Pastel boy chases the ladies like a champion. They don't always allow him to lock, but he chases whether they're ready or not. He isn't a reliable eater during breeding season, but I don't have to worry that much about him losin weight as he is a big boy who eats well out of the breeding season.

http://soundexotics.com/img/pastel.jpg

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Originally Posted by Anatopism

2000g+ Pastel boy chases the ladies like a champion. They don't always allow him to lock, but he chases whether they're ready or not. He isn't a reliable eater during breeding season, but I don't have to worry that much about him losin weight as he is a big boy who eats well out of the breeding season.

http://soundexotics.com/img/pastel.jpg

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As long as he's a rapest, he will always be lol

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Originally Posted by KingPythons

As long as he's a rapest, he will always be lol

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I'd like to think of him as a bumbling oaf that the ladies eventually feel sorry for and give him the 'ok' except that's really not how it is. It's really more that they're so fed up with him being so persistent, I'm sure.