Beginner in need of help and advice.

So im new to breeding and i have a nice quality Pastel Ball python male but hes only 95 grams and hes about 7 months old so I need to get him to breeding size as soon as possible. So any advice on how to do this? Also i will be at an expo shortly and i plan on getting him a spider ball python wife. Any ideas on what age/grams i should get her so they can be the optimum breeding pair? also im breeding them for bumblebees of course and pastel. Thanks for the help i appreciate it.

You probably have atleast another 400 or grams before he's ready. Concerning the spider female 2.5 -3 years for maturity unless you get lucky enough to find an adult or sub-adult

don't most new born bps weigh in at the 65-85 gram (when born??) to weigh 95 at 7 months?

You have awhile to get there....

btw, don't rush the good things.

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Originally Posted by 4Ballz

don't most new born bps weigh in at the 65-85 gram (when born??) to weigh 95 at 7 months?

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Yeah...that doesn't sound right...

If he's really 7 months old and only 95 grams, worry about getting him healthy first. Breeding should be low on your priority list for now. Why don't you post some info/pics of your setup & your snake, info about what you're feeding & how often, etc... Maybe there is an issue with husbandry. If so, solve that, and the weight will take care of itself.

Yes hes is 95 grams at 7 months im sure of it he was born in january. Also there is some shed that hasnt come off around his neck and a spot on his face. What sould i do see what happens next shed? its been a month since the last shed. I recently worked with him for an hour and got his eyecaps off so no worrys about that. how many grams should he weigh at 7 months?

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I will post pics along with information. it will be up in about 10 minutes I appreciate you looking at this.

you're thinking of breeding??

your bp needs more care first

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Originally Posted by PaulNStubbs

Yes hes is 95 grams at 7 months im sure of it he was born in january. Also there is some shed that hasnt come off around his neck and a spot on his face. What sould i do see what happens next shed? its been a month since the last shed. I recently worked with him for an hour and got his eyecaps off so no worrys about that. how many grams should he weigh at 7 months?

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I will post pics along with information. it will be up in about 10 minutes I appreciate you looking at this.

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Usually by a year they're around 1000 grams...so maybe 5-600 grams?

my spider is just shy 400 grams, they are about 1-2 months apart. I feed her every 4-5 days (15% of what she weighs)

Pics coming up in a few, thanks.

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Originally Posted by PaulNStubbs

Yes hes is 95 grams at 7 months im sure of it he was born in january. Also there is some shed that hasnt come off around his neck and a spot on his face. What sould i do see what happens next shed? its been a month since the last shed. I recently worked with him for an hour and got his eyecaps off so no worrys about that. how many grams should he weigh at 7 months?

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I will post pics along with information. it will be up in about 10 minutes I appreciate you looking at this.

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These are all very basic questions for beginners, I strongly suggest getting some knowledge and experience under your belt before you even think about breeding. 95 grams is small for that age, but if he's being fed too small of meals and/or not as frequent then that would be the reason, other than some other underlying health problem. PLEASE for future reference, don't EVER mess with the eye caps again, you can severely injure your snake doing that. Fix your husbandry, double check with this caresheet and hopefully sheds shouldn't be an issue any more.

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Originally Posted by 4Ballz

don't most new born bps weigh in at the 65-85 gram (when born??) to weigh 95 at 7 months?

You have awhile to get there....

btw, don't rush the good things.

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I agree with 4Ballz. Definitely do not rush into this, there is a lot to consider when breeding ball pythons. First i will start with the questions that you have brought up in your OP. A lot of breeders will often feed their snakes when ever they show signs of hunger. Some people who are just in it for the money will power feed, which i don't recommend doing. I'm not the going to tell you the best way to feed your male ball python as some people feed bi-weekly and some feed weekly. When it comes to his weight i have heard of males breeding around 500 grams, in my opinion i would like to wait long enough that i know the snake has enough fat content, is feeding regularly and overall is very healthy. You always need to keep in mind when the breeding season starts a lot of the time they will go off feed and loose a significant amount of weight. So in short, i would say your male snake is not ready to breed as of now. I would love to give you an estimate on how fast he will grow to that breeding mark, but in reality all snakes are different and it could take months or even over a year.

When it comes to breeding females, as some one has already previously mentioned, they need at least 2-3 years to reach sexual maturity (Not saying this is true for all snakes). Also a lot of breeders tend to believe that a female should be at least 1,200+ grams to breed. Personally my female pastel is around 1600+ grams and ready to breed but i know i need to do a lot more before i can take on the responsibility of incubating eggs and then taking care of them afterwards. Which leads into my next topic.

As i said before don't rush into it! Consider the items you need to take care of these eggs and the snakes once they hatch, also consider the prices.

• An inccubator.
• An additional rack or aquariums to keep the babies in.
• An additional thermostat to regulate the incubator.
• An additional thermostat to regulate the new hatchling rack or aquariums.
• Additional heat pads or flexx watt heat tape.
• Additional substrate.
• Additional food
• ect....

try photobucket

Here is my Ball Python photo link. I feed him a frozen thawed Fuzzy every 7 to 10 days. Twice it has been 2 weeks, due to shedding. Thanks for any input.
http://s1267.photobucket.com/albums/jj552/PaulNStubbs/

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Originally Posted by PaulNStubbs

Here is my Ball Python photo link. I feed him a frozen thawed Fuzzy every 7 to 10 days. Twice it has been 2 weeks, due to shedding. Thanks for any input.
http://s1267.photobucket.com/albums/jj552/PaulNStubbs/

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What do you have heating the enclosure?
What do you have keeping humidity in the enclosure?
What are the temperature levels on the hot side? The cold side? and what is the overall humidity?
Also do you use that florescent light for a day/night cycle to heat the enclosure or just for looks?

It seems that you may need to work on husbandry before taking on breeding.

I have a heat pad under the hide for the tank. And i spray the water bottle for humidity I only keep the light on during the day its a 60 watt.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by PaulNStubbs

Here is my Ball Python photo link. I feed him a frozen thawed Fuzzy every 7 to 10 days. Twice it has been 2 weeks, due to shedding. Thanks for any input.
http://s1267.photobucket.com/albums/jj552/PaulNStubbs/

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He should be on adult mice or rat pups...maybe even weaned rats...fuzzies, whether mouse or rat, are too small...

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Originally Posted by PaulNStubbs

I have a heat pad under the hide for the tank. And i spray the water bottle for humidity I only keep the light on during the day its a 60 watt.

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With a ball python that small i would almost say that he would be really comfortable in a ten gallon tank. Often the hide that you are using is good for lizards and other species of snakes. Ball pythons really like tight hiding spots and never really like to be out in the open. I would suggest getting smaller hides that will fit him nice and snug and provide one for his hot side (over the heating pad) and one on the cold side.

Also do you know the temperature that your heat pad is at? Also do you regulate this heat pad with a thermostat? An unregulated heat pad can fluctuate in temperatures as well as burn your snakes, not saying that your will but its often the case with unregulated heat pads.

Also i noticed that you are using gauges to measure what i presume is the air temperature and humidity. Often DIGITAL devices have a error range of about +3 degrees and even 5% in humidity, so using gauges only introduces more error into the enclosure. I would also suggest that you run to walmart and pick up a cheap thermometer and Hygrometers, often they are sold in one unit and are only about 10 US dollars.

Answer some more of the questions i have put forward and i am sure the community as well as myself can help you out!

The temperature usually is in the range of about 80-82 degrees. I do not have a regulated heat pad it is the one reptmart told me to buy this is where i bought my snake.

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I need to get him to breeding size as soon as possible.

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Why? I fail to see where there is an emergency to get a male up to breeding size asap :confusd:

I hate to be a downer here but you are not ready to breed Ball Pythons! You still have much to learn from proper husbandry to proper feeding. Since your BP is underfed the thing to do ASAP is to feed him appropriately.

The good new is that this forum is full of resources that will allow you to become experienced and once you have experience as a successful keeper you can start thinking about breeding and doing the proper research on the matter.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by PaulNStubbs

The temperature usually is in the range of about 80-82 degrees. I do not have a regulated heat pad it is the one reptmart told me to buy this is where i bought my snake.

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The temperature range for the ambient air is in a pretty good range, most people suggest about 78-83 degrees. Then again a lot of people do things their own way and will tell you differently. When it comes to that unregulated heat pad though, everyone will tell you the same thing i have already said. Get a THERMOSTAT (i type that in bold because often people just by a thermometer and watch the temperature and think that it is fine), this will regulate the temperature to the desired hot spot that you need. Most ball python keepers also keep their hot spot between 88-92 degree, again others will do and tell you differently.

I highly recommend you check out the CARE SHEET found here. http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...s%29-Caresheet

Also i will provide a link to the thread i started WAAAYYY back when that pertains to my ten gallon setup for my juvenile/hatchling ball python. This work wonders for me and i am sure it will help you out some what!
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...7945-New-setup

You can see all of the tools that i used to set up her enclosure.

• A Heat lamp (Regulated by a rheostat)
• A Heating pad (Regulated by a Thermostat)
• Also the jimmy rigged screen top to keep in humidity.

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Also i found this image, JUST TODAY, on these forums and it is pretty accurate. Some people slightly vary what this information says but regardless it is a very good starting point.

Note that i did not create this image but i would definitely support a lot of the information within it. The sizes for the enclosure seem accurate but i would even recommend possibly feeding larger. I usually go for the 10-15% body weight method.
http://i351.photobucket.com/albums/q...ging_chart.jpg

Sadly, you really can't trust what pet stores tell you. Read this caresheet: http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...s%29-Caresheet

You're going to need to make a lot of changes with your setup & general husbandry. The really good news is that you're asking questions and seem to want to understand how to take care of your pet. Keep asking questions!

Oh, and welcome!

Edit: DOH! Ambien22 beat me to the caresheet!