Collection Update

I haven't been on her in a long time and a lot has changed....I moved out of my mom's house to live with my SO, and she had to leave her trailer because the roof was collapsing (which is also why I left when I did, otherwise I would have waited longer). I wanted to leave my snakes with my mom because our current roommate is uncomfortable with snakes, and we don't have much room for them. This worked for a few months, until I learned that not only did my mom let Crona (anery motley boa constrictor) escape - she found him quickly, but put him in Homura's tub (hypo BRB) and Homura is now gone. Whether he ate her, or she escaped, I have no clue. He had a large bulge when I saw him and he was the only one to defecate when I was finally able to bring some of the snakes to the trailer.

I realized I had to do something once I saw Homura was gone, and after my mom told me she wouldn't feed or water my snakes. I was feeding and watering them until my car broke down, and it wasn't until ~2-2.5 months later my mom texts me out of the blue that she hadn't been feeding or watering them and wouldn't do it in the future. I guess her watering the snakes is how Crona and (maybe) Homura escaped, and she just didn't want to deal with that afterwards.

Everyone is doing fine now, so no worries. :) A few snakes have gotten prey size upgrades (Nymeria is on small rats, Crona on weaned rats, and Sanji should have been upgraded to small rats as well), and should regain any weight they lost during their time without food. No one weighed in any lighter than the last weight I had recorded, but a few were a bit visibly thinner.

A user on another forum was kind enough to temporarily take Bud (ball python), Draco (albino checkered), and Sanji (BRB), and I have 6 of the others with me. Cloud and River are being housed by a local acquaintance, and I'm going to be getting at least one or two T8's so I can shift some snakes around and bring Cloud over here as well.

RIP Homura....
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...23f0552e_h.jpg

Dominika is one of the ones with me right now, she wasn't worse for the wear, though she was a bit dry. I struggled a bit with the humidity on just aspen, so I switched to EcoEarth, and she's looking better after a shed, but she's definitely always been my most sensitive boa to lower humidity. She always sheds whole pieces, but she always has those lines and dry scales.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...6e6e580b_h.jpg

She got some odd white spots where her scales were damaged from being dry. Hopefully those will be gone next shed.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...1ff75b61_h.jpg

Howl is also here.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...d6626f1a_h.jpg

And Crona.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...f0916a06_h.jpg

Tirel as well.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...33ebff15_h.jpg

Nymeria (with a shed underneath her).

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...8dde59cf_h.jpg

Demigod is the last of the ones currently with me. He went through a period where he rapidly lost weight, got lethargic, and developed spots on his head. I put him through a short brumation period, and he improved drastically after just a few meals when I took him back out of brumation.

His condition before (notice the dulled colors, spots on his head, and thin body tone):

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...750365de_b.jpg

After maybe 3-4 meals:

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...7a41cd1d_h.jpg

And the most current photo I have of him:

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...24cc4fe7_k.jpg

Sorry to hear about your brb, Really glad to see the rest all doing well cloudtheboa, all looking and growing on really well, fingers crossed you got the humidity settled now and I’m sure that last bit of dry scales will shed out next time , good luck


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Originally Posted by richardhind1972

Sorry to hear about your brb, Really glad to see the rest all doing well cloudtheboa, all looking and growing on really well, fingers crossed you got the humidity settled now and I’m sure that last bit of dry scales will shed out next time , good luck


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Thanks! Considering everything wrong with that house, I'm glad the only snakes that have shown issues were River, Cloud, and Demigod, and they all seem to be mostly back to normal. I'm going to be mildly power feeding Cloud and River to make up for their downtime, but I think now that we're out of there, the worst of the issues are done with. :) Cloud normally eats every 4-5 weeks and River every 2-3 weeks, but I'm going to feed them weekly until they look 100% normal. I'm not really worried about anyone else.

With any luck, me and the SO will find affordable housing with more room, and I can get the others back again, for now I'm making do with what I have. :( I'm trying to focus on having money for the move, so I may have to wait on the enclosures, but I want to buy at least 1 or 2 T8's while we're here, though my original plan was to get 3 or 4 T8's. I don't like the height of the T8's, but I was going to upgrade them to T12's or T25's later on, and use the T8's as garter or hognose housing, or for grow out cages for future bigger snakes. But moving is also important, so I may have settle just for one or two for now. Only 2 snakes are in any immediate need for larger digs, the rest could probably go another year before they're big enough to need an upgrade.

Glad to see and here you and the gang are back in the saddle....Grats and welcome back.:gj:

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Originally Posted by Albert Clark

Glad to see and here you and the gang are back in the saddle....Grats and welcome back.:gj:

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Thanks Albert! I was pretty downtrodden when things first started going down, but I'm glad everything is settled for now. So long as no more issues pop up, I think we're in the clear, and I'm looking forward to getting the other 5 back. :D

Plus, once I have more room, I should be able to breed Dominika. I didn't want to risk moving with her being gravid, so I've been holding off on breeding her, even though she seems to be going into breeding mode on the nights I turn off the heater. If I let the temps drop at night, she goes from docile and lazy to an absolute beast, striking at everything in front of her and wanting to eat anything that moves. I fed her a colossal and a large rat to try to satisfy her hunger (which is 3x what she normally gets), but that didn't even lower her feeding response. As long as I keep nighttime temps up, she's fine, though.

Now that the weather is warming up, I may also have more room for the snakes, but it all depends on how ok the roommates are with having a snake(s) in the living room. XD I have the room now for everyone minus River, but I have to have stacking enclosures, which is why I wanted to order a bunch of T8's. I'd even have room to get the 3 I sent out of state back. There's plenty of wall space, not so much floor space, if that makes sense?

awww, RIP Homura, I'm so sorry for your loss! I'm also sorry to hear about all the issues, I'm sure it's very stressful. I'm glad you've got a plan going and things are getting better though! Hang in there!

welcome back Cloud. glad to hear somethings are going good like starting a new chapter w/ your SO. :) sorry to hear about Homura, she was a really, really pretty Hypo BRB. anyway sending u and your snakes good vibes.

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Originally Posted by Albert Clark

Glad to see and here you and the gang are back in the saddle....Grats and welcome back.:gj:

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u to Albert. welcome back.

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Originally Posted by AbsoluteApril

awww, RIP Homura, I'm so sorry for your loss! I'm also sorry to hear about all the issues, I'm sure it's very stressful. I'm glad you've got a plan going and things are getting better though! Hang in there!

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It has been stressful...I'm in my early 20's and I already have a few gray hairs. XD Everything is pretty stable now, so no stress, but we are in need for a bigger place if we can find something in our price range in the area we want to move to. I've been debating moving out of state, but the SO is a bit uneasy on that front right now, so we'll have to play it by ear.

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Originally Posted by Ax01

welcome back Cloud. glad to hear somethings are going good like starting a new chapter w/ your SO. :) sorry to hear about Homura, she was a really, really pretty Hypo BRB. anyway sending u and your snakes good vibes.

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Thanks!

I've had absolutely terrible luck with BRBs, but they still remain one of my favorites! After Morzan and Guin, I don't think I have the heart to try with another Picasso stripe...though there are quite a few tempting me. :( But, I had issues with both of mine, and I've heard of others with the same morph having similar issues, so I'm just going to avoid them. Then of course, Homura went missing...I have half a mind to make my mom pay for another hypo, but I know she'd never be able to afford it. I will get another one eventually though, when I have the room again, and one catches my eye.

As an update on River, I don't have any photos of her since she isn't here with me, but she has improved leaps and bounds with just a few meals! I've been having constant dehydration and shedding issues with her for about a year now, but her scales look 100% healthy. Her last shed was still in pieces, but the pieces were much bigger, and may have just been because I didn't get to it before she shredded it up crawling over it. So fingers crossed I get a whole piece next time. :) All her dried out scales look normal now, and there isn't a chip anywhere on her belly. She's also gotten markedly heavier and a tad thicker, so yay! I can't believe she's improved so much on her own...I gave her some parasite medication just in case, but she didn't really improve much for several months, not until I got her out of that old house did she start to improve any. Cloud continues to look dark, but he's getting better. I haven't held him to see if the bone popping issue has cleared up, but once he gets done shedding I'll take him out for a bit. Especially now that it's pretty much spring here in western NC...

So glad everything worked out and most of the clan is back with their mommy! They’re looking great!

They look relieved to be back with their food dispenser...I mean mother lol:D sorry for your loss healing ~hugs~ from across the miles. Wishing nothing but smooth sailing from here on :P

I'm definitely not their mother, I prefer a more gender-neutral term like caretaker or parent (snarent if you're not against baby talk lmao).

Everyone is doing well, except Cloud. :( He continues to look very dark and still has the weird bone popping issue...every time I pick him up, I feel a popping like when you pop your knuckles, all down his body. Usually he's a pale, yellowish color, but his whole body is a dark brown now. He's getting paler, though, so maybe with some more time with more food, he'll come around. I've taken him to the vet a few times, but they have no clue what could be causing it. X-rays come up normal, he has good sized feces after he eats, his organs and skeleton *look* normal, but the vet hasn't really heard of this happening before. Our best guess is maybe his power feeding when he was younger is causing problems, or he isn't getting enough exercise. Which would be weird, because he's 6.5' in a 6'x2'x3' enclosure with climbing, so surely he's exercising enough? I don't take him out as often, but none of my other snakes show issues. All fecals I've done so far have come up negative, too. For now, I guess it's just a waiting game.

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Originally Posted by CloudtheBoa

I'm definitely not their mother, I prefer a more gender-neutral term like caretaker or parent (snarent if you're not against baby talk lmao).

Everyone is doing well, except Cloud. :( He continues to look very dark and still has the weird bone popping issue...every time I pick him up, I feel a popping like when you pop your knuckles, all down his body. Usually he's a pale, yellowish color, but his whole body is a dark brown now. He's getting paler, though, so maybe with some more time with more food, he'll come around. I've taken him to the vet a few times, but they have no clue what could be causing it. X-rays come up normal, he has good sized feces after he eats, his organs and skeleton *look* normal, but the vet hasn't really heard of this happening before. Our best guess is maybe his power feeding when he was younger is causing problems, or he isn't getting enough exercise. Which would be weird, because he's 6.5' in a 6'x2'x3' enclosure with climbing, so surely he's exercising enough? I don't take him out as often, but none of my other snakes show issues. All fecals I've done so far have come up negative, too. For now, I guess it's just a waiting game.

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Hang in there! My thoughts are with you and Cloud and hoping everything works out. Waiting and not knowing exactly what is wrong is the worst though. I sympathize.

Best of luck!

So I haven't been on here in a long time. :O Not much has happened here. Everyone continues to be healthy and growing, and everyone, including Cloud, seem to be improving more the longer they're out of that trailer. Cloud still has some bone popping issues, but is lightening up and gaining weight. He's getting a bit sluggish and his old wounds from a cat attack during his baby years are getting more obvious. I'm going to see if any of the vets I've been to will be able to take a look at him and see what's going on, it almost seems like arthritis.

I'll probably update everyone's threads with current information here in a bit, but I figured I'd put the important stuff here all together.

Howl dropped his first sperm plug last week, so maybe he'll be ready to breed when I decide to pair them! I want to try to PCR test everyone, but if I can at least do Dominika and Howl, I can start pairing them if they both come back negative on the panel.

Bud and Draco are still out of state, but we've tentatively scheduled to have them shipped back in the spring. I've been told both are doing well, and Draco continues to mellow out with age. :)

River pushed her face about a month back, only the second time in the ~3 years I've had her. One of her teeth got irritated and stuck out somehow, and when she pushed she actually managed to get the lip covering that tooth pierced onto the tooth and pushed up to the root. I was not able to do it myself, so I took her in to the vet's to have them put her under and free it for me. I was super worried about having her under anesthesia, but she did good and healed up no problem. She did drool a bit on the round of anti-inflammation meds she was given, but about a week or two after the meds were over, she went right back to normal. She's gained quite a few pounds, and I believe put on some length. She was quite the sweetheart at the vet's, and even with her painful tooth, she let us poke and prod without even a hiss. She was a bit moody for a few weeks once she got home, but she's back to normal again after healing up and getting a few meals in her.

Both of my big 6'x2'x3's are out for the count, so Cloud and River will have to be downgraded, but at least that way I can get them out of my mom's house and back with me. Cloud will get a 4'x2'x1', and River a 6'x2'x2'. I want to build some more cages again once I'm in larger accommodations. We're having a hard time finding somewhere affordable locally, so we may have to hang out here until we're ready to move out of state. I was hoping to at least find somewhere with more room in the meantime, but what can you do?

Cloud and River have been in their new enclosures for awhile. Cloud seems pretty cramped, but hopefully I'll be able to upgrade him again soon. First things first is to find a bigger place. I could have big cages in the living room, but it wouldn't stay warm enough in the winter, so I'd rather find another place with a large room.

Cloud has actually grown some! Last month, I weighed him at 10 lb 3.5 oz vs his previous weight of 8 lb 8.8 oz back in March 2017. He also measured in at 6'7" vs 6'5" back in April 2016.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/NI3pZM6.jpg

I also weighed Dominika for the first time I got her in Dec 2016. The breeder said she was 13.5 lbs, and she weighed in at 14 lb 4.5 oz last month.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/MmW54DG.jpg

Nymeria is somewhere between 4.5' and 5', and weighed in at 1,080 grams. She's been moved up to medium rats and 3 week quail every 2-3 weeks. She's become super faded out, which I've heard could be due to her poss het anery gene, but I'm not sure how reliable those signs are.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/FQVwvdA.jpg

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/anRqWZI.jpg

Crona last weighed in at 600 grams last month, and is just over 3.5'.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/zrIbzyU.jpg

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/5OxsRuF.jpg

Tirel needs a new weight once she's out of shed, but last weighed in at 1,168 grams last Dec, and is estimated to be 5'.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/3QSmUvK.jpg

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/ueQwJ87.jpg

Not much has changed with Howl, and I don't have any updated pictures yet (he's in shed so hopefully it's warm when he's fresh and digested the meal I'll give him once he's shed). Demigod is also doing about the same, he'll be 6!! years old this year, so he may not be around for more than a few more years. :tears:

River is estimated somewhere 10'-12' but I don't really have a way to measure her. Her last weight was 21 lbs last month.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/GGjoeAi.jpg

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/CAY2nuS.jpg

I'm currently in the middle of coordinating the shipment of Bud and Draco back home, so hopefully by end of April or May they'll be back. :)

Glad to see u stick in there when things got tough! Glad everything is looking up!

Oh yeah and don’t think I don’t see the slipknot shirt in ur avatar pic

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Originally Posted by Danger noodles

Oh yeah and don’t think I don’t see the slipknot shirt in ur avatar pic

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Thanks! It's been pretty hard, between losing 4 snakes in the span of ~3 years, and the chaotic moving situation, but I'm glad things have stabilized. I've been working on slowly curing myself of my anxiety around my animals. I've been spending the better part of the past year fearing that every time I walk in I'll find someone else dead or ill, but as time goes on and nothing happens, I feel much better. Plus, I wonder how much of a coincidence it is that all the snakes that passed away came from the same breeder...

lol Yeah that pic is super old, it's almost 10 years old! I still like Slipknot, though. :P Just don't listen to them as much anymore, I like Ministry, Rammstein, etc. a lot more nowadays.

Slipknot and ax7 got me through a lot when I was down. Funny how people think it’s the devils music. Lol they put rammstien and marlin Manson through the ringer with columbine.

Collection is looking really good cloud and it's nice to see you back around on the forum and that your getting yourself well and back and your feet,
good luck and hope to see more pics of the crew when they out if shed

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Originally Posted by Danger noodles

Slipknot and ax7 got me through a lot when I was down. Funny how people think it’s the devils music. Lol they put rammstien and marlin Manson through the ringer with columbine.

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Yeah, but they use that argument for any band that makes them slightly uncomfortable, and have since the beginning. lol

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Originally Posted by richardhind1972

Collection is looking really good cloud and it's nice to see you back around on the forum and that your getting yourself well and back and your feet,
good luck and hope to see more pics of the crew when they out if shed

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Thanks! I'm pretty spotty overall with my activity, I've tried a number of times to become active again, but ultimately my hermit nature overcomes my desire to engage. lol

Definitely expect more pictures! I hope to grab more backyard pictures before the mosquitoes start overtaking it. They swarmed so much last year they made mini black clouds...and mosquitoes looove me.

So bad news is that Draco and Bud both perished in a flood while being cared for by a fellow herper. Losing Bud was absolutely crushing, I had him nearly half my life now. I'm just glad he had a place that was warm and secure during that time.

I also lost Demigod last year when I went to go see my family in WV. I was not given contact info for the person babysitting the snakes, despite constantly bugging my SO for said info every single day, he now doesn't doubt me (hopefully) when I worry about the snakes going out of town. Due to lack of communication, I came home to a snake room well above 100F. The babysitter assumed since they needed to be kept warm, they didn't want to mess something up and turn down the heat. They also fed Demigod...twice...despite my explicit directions not to do so. I came home to see some neurological issues in Demigod, Howl, River, Dominika, Nymeria, and Cloud about a week or two after (leaving only Crona and Tirel unaffected), but most of their issues all cleared up on their own without need for a vet. Demigod and Howl however....had some major issues, especially Demigod. I took him to the vet, they gave me the clear to try to feed him a very small mouse pink (he usually gets 3) a few weeks after the visit, but he regurged again and passed away a few days later. Howl had such bad muscle tension that his entire back half was squeezed into a tight knot that the vet could not untangle. He was given some anti-inflammatory and I was told to wait several weeks to feed him again, keep him hydrated and cool, and keep meals small for as long as I felt the need to do so. Howl made a perfect recovery after a few months, and then a few months ago I was comfortable enough to put him back on regular prey. Everyone has continued to do fine since.

It seems every single time I let someone watch my animals, SOMETHING happens. But there have been no issues since that happened, and everyone is doing great.

I started up a breeding colony of rats back in August, and I'm now full to the brim with holdbacks and litters. XD I really need to thin through the herd, or move ASAP. I'm producing at a good rate, I'm just really bad at letting cool rats go. lmao I plan on adding a 1:3 or 1:4 colony of mice soon, or ASF if I can find any. Or both, idk.

Nymeria was last measured at 4'8", and is 1,700 grams as of December. She's eaten a couple of times since then, so I'll need to weigh her again once she defecates.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...59cad3af44.jpg

Howl is looking a bit lean, but still healthy. Very glad he's no longer knotted up and is doing well.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...b0bd26a41f.jpg

Crona was weighed in at 825 grams last month, and is right around the 4' mark. He still sometimes bites me when I first take him out (I think it's a balance thing as he still flails a lot until he settles down), but he's overall calmed down a lot. He doesn't bite me randomly at least. lol

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...63f8df179a.jpg

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...793adc9036.jpg

Tirel really needs to be weighed and measured again. She was 1,600 grams back in November. So she may have broken the 2,000 gram mark now. Still visibly larger than Nymeria.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...33d41f1c88.jpg

River being River. Really crossing my fingers we find a house soon, I want all the snakes to be able to stretch out and see the sun again. And be able to get some pictures of me holding River a little easier.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...2e4d3e9e67.jpg

Not much has changed with Cloud and Dominika.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/TT9rN6r.jpg

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/S30kzsH.jpg

Cloud. Sounds rough. Thinking of you and the lost ones as well as the current collection.

Hang in there.

Sorry sorry to hear that cloud. Fingers crossed everything improves for you this year
Snakes looking great saying what they all been thru

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So I got Howl when he was 6 years old and 4'3", assuming he wasn't going to grow any more, or at least no more than a few inches. When I got him, I could tell immediately he'd been underfed to stay small. He gained a few hundred grams pretty quickly under my care, eating just a small rat every 3 weeks. He's been on that schedule pretty much the past 4 years, with the occasional medium rats to help him gain weight after the 2019 overheating scare. I measured him the other day...and he's grown at least 5" since I got him. :O He's 4'8" now, but I'll need an updated weight on him. Wonder how much this "stunted" snake will grow in the future.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/7zVFXXr.jpg

I also measured Cloud again yesterday, and he's grown another inch since last year. 6'8"!

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/sWDO1Y5.jpg

Nymeria and Tirel are due for another weighing, but considering Nymeria's last weight was just over 2,200 grams, I'm assuming Tirel is at least 2,500-3,000 grams by now. I don't know if Nymeria has reached 5' yet, but Tirel has definitely broken it. Last time I measured her she was 5'2". I try to limit the length measurements to every few months, mainly because Tirel (and Crona) can still be a bit touchy. Nymeria, however, is due for another length measurement soon.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/3pVRqC8.jpg

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/sEUoTUv.jpg

Tirel gets the occasional tiny large rat (no more than 150-170 grams), since she's historically always been a thin-bodied fast-growing girl. Most of her meals are medium rats and breeder-sized ASF, though. She's been getting girthier since she broke the 2,000 mark, but she's definitely built different than Nymeria and Dominika, who are both thicker girls.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/4NitTtO.jpg

Crona is now at the same length Howl was when I got him, 4'3", but he's overdue for a weighing. He still has his days where he bites, but generally I can avoid it by giving him more support picking him up than I would the other snakes. It's when he starts whipping his head and tail around like he's falling when he bites me, and even then half the time he doesn't break the skin. I don't really see any sort of defensiveness from fear anymore, not since the first year or two. With any luck, next fall him and Nymeria will be paired up. She's nice and chunky, but I want to see if she can get more size on her. He's been getting a lot of ASF lately, and he just packed on the girth in a short amount of time. I expected him to have grown lengthwise, too, but he only grew 1" in that time. -.- Maybe he's just building up for a growth spurt. lol

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/ijluQHr.jpg

River is hovering right around the 40 lb mark now, and is almost too big to fit in her usual holding tub. I really want to get her out, probably at someone else's house, to get some updated pics on her before the weather turns cold. She continues to be a sweety, and despite being somewhere in the neighborhood of 12', she's easy to move between holding tub and cage. I'll need to get her out against the wall again soon. I have also gotten cleaning her cage down to a science, and can now have the cage cleaned and bedding changed in 30 mins instead of like 3 hours. lmao

Not much has changed with Dominika, but fingers crossed she's expecting come end of Nov or beginning of Dec! This is the first year I've felt comfortable trying to breed her, and I waited until Howl seemed fully recovered. I had him in there for a good 3 months, and he didn't appear to lose any body tone. I have the racks already set up and ready to go, and even if she didn't take, I can use them in the future. But breeding her seems to have helped her with her food response. She went from striking at the doors every fall/spring, to just stopping dead in her tracks as soon as Howl started courting her. She continues to behave now that she's hopefully gravid. The new thing she's doing is hissing, but it's all a bluff. Last time I reached in to check on her she was quiet though. (Three cheers for dusty aspen bedding...eventual plan is to change to coco chips closer to birthing time.)

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/7XWoE8N.jpg

She's taking food still, but being very hesitant about it. For now she's getting mediums instead of larges, but further along I'll probably drop down to smalls before cutting her off right before birth, as that seems to be the typical approach.

All looking great cloud , glad they all doing well[emoji106][emoji106]

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Originally Posted by richardhind1972

All looking great cloud , glad they all doing well[emoji106][emoji106]

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Thanks! I’m glad things have stabilized for the time being. With any luck, I’ll be getting some cage upgrades here soon, too. Move a few snakes out of the tubs.


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Finally figured out a way to video tape River while inside, though it was a chore to wear her out for the video and keep her on my body. lmao She has short bursts of energy, which is nice, and she's always been that way. She gets really really hyper, wears herself out, then as soon as she gets any kind of breath she gets all hyped up again and then has to rest quickly since she didn't give herself a chance to recover. :rolleyes: Kyle took a turn with her to see how heavy she was, and was quite surprised how easily she drug him back towards me. Trying to get him used to maneuvering her so he can get more comfortable. I just wish we had a private yard or a nice big area indoors to take her out in. I only really trust handling her in the hallway so she can't get into any furniture or knock anything over.

The length of the wall between the bedroom door at the back, and the hinges you can see at the front door is right at 12'. She still does not reach those two points stretched out, but there's less than a foot difference.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FlwgqLwTZxY

Wow. River looks amazing. I'll stick with my boas though! She's a big girl!

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Originally Posted by dakski

Wow. River looks amazing. I'll stick with my boas though! She's a big girl!

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Thanks! And I don’t blame you, I don’t know if I want a second snake this size. But having her around will be useful when I begin breeding rabbits, as she’ll be able to take larger rabbits the boas can’t. Rabbits are so hard to come by, especially for a good price, I’d like to get a pair or trio just to support my snakes and maybe the household.


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I have unfortunately moved more animals out. River and Tirel have been moved out. I have sold most of the baby garters, and am trying to move out the adult garter snakes. I had a couple breeding colonies of ASF, and I culled all of them and am feeding them off. I'm trying very, very hard not to get rid of any more animals, but I may possibly have to move more out. Who will go next will be an extremely hard decision, but so far things are holding out steady. We still have not really been able to find another (affordable) housing situation, so I've been working on moving out the hardest to home snakes. The average pay rate has been jumping up and up and up the past few months, so maybe with some job hunting if I can land something paying more than I've been making thus far, we'll FINALLY have some options. So for now I'm sitting tight and trying to ride it out.

Dominika didn't end up becoming gravid, which may be for the best considering all our best efforts to buy a home fell flat. I was told to stop feeding her, and she ended up going 130+ days without food by the time I called it and said there's no way she's gravid and finally began feeding her. She never slugged out, despite the fact she started building, which is really interesting. She is only half a pound lighter than she was before I began even pairing her, though, so she's doing well and gaining weight fast eating 10-12 oz rabbits or a large rat every 3 weeks. And I will begin pacing her feedings back out to normal soon.

Top pic is after 3 meals weighing in at 14 lbs, bottom pic is her from a few years ago when she was weighed in at 14.5 lbs. Definitely a noticeable difference in weight, although the actual weight difference is small. I'm not sure I want her as chunky as the bottom pic but rest assured I am working to get a liiittle more weight onto her, and trying to take it slow so she builds muscle at the same time. She is currently in shed.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/E4LLKGy.jpg

And some other photos during a more recent handling session.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/6cTo2EK.jpg

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/2fzMgFj.jpg



https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/bxRh3sB.jpghttps://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...ur.com/E4LLKGy

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/CitHYKt.jpg
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...ur.com/E4LLKGy

These photos aren't very recent, but Nymeria is still very much in the same condition and may have gained maybe another 1"-3" max at just a couple inches over 5'. Excuse the bent scales, unfortunately I've had to switch most of my snakes to aspen as the upkeep is much easier with a full time job. They all still shed full sheds, but I no longer have to do weekly bedding maintenance or keep a close eye out for mold etc., and it's also less damaging to the PVC cages as far as scratches. My dream is to move everyone to plywood cages with nice deep dams and then switch back to EcoEarth. Nymeria is right on the cusp of taking large rats now, she's getting rats that overlap both at 150-180 grams, and still at the usual 3 week frequency.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/Yu0xCVH.jpg

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/8luaUx2.jpg

At some point I want to get more recent photos, though I'm not sure how long it will take to get around to it. I only work 40 hours a week, but between that and making sure all my animals are taken care of, it's just hard to find time. I do take lots of photos of the rats, as they fit in my little photo booth, whereas my snakes need a lot of space to set aside for them and indoor photos just don't do them justice.

I wanted to make a quick check in and let everyone know I haven't died and my animals are still doing well. :) I cannot wait to have a nice at least semi-private yard to get prettier photos again. :D

Glad to hear from you. I hope things improve and you find a better living situation soon.

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Originally Posted by dakski

Glad to hear from you. I hope things improve and you find a better living situation soon.

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Thanks! I hope so as well, but I'm preparing myself for the worst, and hopefully once all the garters are finally gone, the remaining animals will be easy to rehome (if need be) considering how quickly Tirel was able to be placed. I really miss sharing my animals, and I hope being able to relax will help bring my enthusiasm back up and I'll become more active again. I really have no excuse not to be, I just feel so bogged down by day to day life I mainly want to focus my energy on the animals first.

Crona's kinda getting chunky, or he's holding a big poop, but he's hard to get photos of as he's gotten big enough now it's hard to take one handed photos now. lmao With any luck I'll have more updated photos of everyone soon, I want to try this week as OT is going to be starting next week and I will have even less free time...we're supposed to be getting like 6 days off in July (hence the OT) but with any luck I won't be at my current job anymore by then, and I'll have more time off of work again.

Not much changes with Cloud and Howl as they're adults, but I should really measure them both again soon and see if they've grown any more.

The young boas keep trucking along, Crona is on the cusp of moving onto mediums, but despite being bigger/heavier than Nymeria was when she made the switch, I still haven't fully switched him yet. He's doing quite well on the smalls, and the smallest mediums still leave a noticeable lump, so I'm just offering them every few feedings atm. Plus, he's still getting left over adult ASF from when I culled all my ASF, and those ASF are really pulling their weight as far as his growth and girth. With any luck, I'll be getting either more ASF or some mice soon, now that the animal room has gone through major rearranging. Even if I had unlimited funds, there's just no homes available where I live, so trying to make the best of what we've got.

Some pics of Crona out on the back deck to show how he's looking.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/9uiTngB.jpg

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/AKfHV5L.jpg

Dominika has been doing pretty well over the summer gaining weight back, and I've been feeding her jumbos for a few feedings now to see if that gets her into a breeding mood. I'm not totally sure it's necessary to pump her with food, but being a newbie, and considering my luck last season, I figured I'd see if a bit more food leading up to pairing helps anything. Trying not to go too far with it, though. Once I actually begin pairing, I'll probably drop down to smalls and mediums like I did last season. I'm hoping to begin pairing next month, or even in Nov, depending on how things look.

I don't have any suuuper recent photos of her, but here's a few more recent than the last photos.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/TGzicXX.jpg

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/tZjBYLk.jpg

Nymeria continues to grow, she's super deceptive about it though. lmao It seemed like she hadn't grown at all last year, but looking back at her records, she grew her usual 8" in the past year, and there are some barely noticeable differences in size between photos. She's barely past 5', but with how thick she is, I've been feeding her rats right on the cusp of mediums and larges for awhile - at 150-180 grams. I'm still not sure she'll be moving fully onto larges by this winter's fasting period, but should be able to move up pretty quickly next spring/early summer.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/u0Vuh4o.jpg

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/oX1eKRI.jpg

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/zh6ACLj.jpg

Howl is being Howl as usual, I haven't measured him again yet, I want to give it some more time. Last time I measured him was 8/20, but I think I'll wait until next summer to measure him again since growth is so slow at this point. See if he's grown any more then. :D

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/RVYtJTc.jpg

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/9gFTXGv.jpg

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/XXd3JNA.jpg

All your collection are looking great cloud [emoji106]

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Nymeria has grown another few inches. :D I haven't weighed her yet, but she's gotta be pushing 3,000 grams by now. 5'4" as of yesterday. Still not quite at the point I want to put her on larges, but I expect by summer she should be there!

I am attempting to pair Howl and Dominika again, seeing lots of action but no locks yet. Fingers crossed for better results this season! I'll be pulling him soon to feed some small feeders.

Good luck[emoji1696][emoji1696][emoji1696]

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I guess maybe this is the thread I should have posted Cloud in. Haha

But Crona became a dad yesterday. [emoji3059] Still a bitey little *******, but he bred really well and didn’t lose any weight at all. Nymeria may have refused to eat, but he sure didn’t.

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https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...d221a0b123.jpg

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...aceee44487.jpg


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Howl was easily the grumpiest about the move. He got dark from lack of heat during the drive, and struck at me the day after settling in. [emoji23]

Took the chance after the drive to clean his cage as I didn’t have a chance to during the move.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...e9b9d1cd20.jpg

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...47d0e10770.jpg


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The day Dominika got to move, it was nice and warm, so she got a chance to bask and warm up while her cage was cold. She was unusually agreeable. Lol

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...1a5e25f894.jpg

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I still want to put a little bit of weight on her, but since switching to rabbits, her ribs are no longer visible or palpable. 600-800 gram rats every 2 weeks, and she wasn’t really gaining any weight. Put her on her usual 10-14 oz rabbits once a month and after just 3 of them, she gained noticeable weight. I was considering multiple 300-400 gram rats if that didn’t do that trick.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...b7e3cc2d42.jpg

She beelined straight for a tree across the yard, then decided it wasn’t fit for climbing. [emoji1787]
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...37692ad26e.jpg

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...678ea3b42e.jpg


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Well you don't update very often, but when you do, wow! Your boas are looking great- that's hilarious about Dominika's reaction to the tree- silly sneks! Maybe it didn't smell right or something? (-too much odor of dog pee, would be my guess?)

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Well you don't update very often, but when you do, wow! Your boas are looking great- that's hilarious about Dominika's reaction to the tree- silly sneks! Maybe it didn't smell right or something? (-too much odor of dog pee, would be my guess?)

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Thanks! I post in so many places it can be hard to keep up with everywhere I post. [emoji1787]

At the time we didn’t have the dog down yet, but there are coyotes in the area and one of the neighbor’s dogs was getting in until we blocked off her entrances. I figured she just didn’t like the lack of low hanging branches. Lol She didn’t even stop to sniff it really, just went straight on past it after a quick look.


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Had Dominika out to clean. She’s doing well and basically back to where she was last time I bred her. I’ve been keeping her feeding elevated, and hopefully she’ll have another successful season this year. [emoji16]

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...d352f4037f.jpg

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...82c5dae732.jpg

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...c7cb2e897d.jpg


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