I am new to this but need advice

So i just got a female about 4 to 4.5 foot lovely female today. And i got her home and noticed she looked prego and sure enough she has eggs in her. So i asked the person i got her from if she paired her at all and said that she forgot to mention that she paired her. So february 26th she should be laying them. Problem is i do not have an incubator! We were planning on breeding but not untill next year so im kind of stuck and its basicaly the end of the month and only have 100 bucks to my name at the moment. Any advice on what i can do would be greatly apreciated thanks

If it were me, I'd return the snake to the previous owner for a full refund. Then I'd find somebody else to buy from. Somebody "forgetting" they paired an animal isn't somebody I'd be doing business with.

Sounds like maternal incubation is your only option other than freezing the eggs and toss them.
Make sure your husbandry is spot on.

If you are on Facebook join a local reptile group and see if there is someone nearby who can incubate the eggs for you.

If you put your location in your profile you may find someone here who can do it.

I've incubated plenty of colubrid eggs successfully but not BPs, so I'll leave that advice to others here.
Just want to welcome you here & wish you good luck, whatever you decide to do about this snake...................:welcome:

And btw, that's very ODD that the seller didn't mention that this BP is gravid...it would normally be a selling point. :confusd:

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100 bucks to my name at the moment.

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Let's hope that snake does not need a vet all of the sudden.

I will be honest here even if what I say is the opposite of everyone else because if I only had 100 to my name at the end of any given month breeding or even owning a snake would be the last thing on my mind. Why because I know the cost of breeding especially when you first get started.

So if I were you I would freeze the eggs because caring for 6 to 12 additional mouths for who knows how long is gonna be costly (housing, bedding, feeding etc, breeding cost money and most people will rarely make a return within the first 2 years but instead go in the hole.

Something you need to seriously consider.

All good advice above. I would consider seeing if you can find someone locally to help out. I'd assume the person who sold it to you has the means of incubating eggs considering they paired her up, however like what was said above, not sure if I'd trust a person like this. There was also a thread made recently about making an incubator out of a cooler. It'd be cheaper than buying one, but still cost money to make and maintain.

As Deborah just suggested, this is exactly why it's very irresponsible of the owner to sell this snake & not tell you her real condition.

Being in a new home is scary & stressful enough on a snake...let's hope that she doesn't end up being egg-bound (-needing a vet's help!).

And I agree: if you're that tight on money, a new pet (gravid or not) is truly not a good idea. You need to plan for vet bills...you never know when a pet
may need medical care...it's just like any other family member, or should be...:rolleyes:

It's not hard to make an incubator, but you'll need to heat & regulate it...those things do cost money, and then all the snakes that hatch need
housing, care & food. Breeding snakes is a great way to lose money, lol.

That breeder really is a crappy person for not telling you upfront! IF you want to keep eggs I would demand he/she give you an incubator.

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Originally Posted by Jellybeans

That breeder really is a crappy person for not telling you upfront! IF you want to keep eggs I would demand he/she give you an incubator.

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But I wouldn't "hold my breath" until they do...:rolleyes:

Nope. Never hold your breath waiting for something to be righted....cuz more than likely you will die.

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Agreed with Deb. Incubator is only part of expense. Tubs and rack for hatchlings, possibly another t-stat, food, etc.

Some things are "too good to be true"- why would someone who is breeding/selling snakes sell one that would likely enhance their income? Unless they know
something's not right -or I guess they might be worse off financially than the OP...but again, a gravid female snake would normally sell for more? Makes little
sense to me. For example, maybe they bred her before & she prolapsed? Or maybe the "reason" she was bred was that they housed their snakes together. :(
This snake is only about a week away from laying eggs, IF the seller can be believed on this. That's cutting it mighty close.

I just wanted to add that while you may only have 100.00 to your name there are other ways to pay for a vet bill. Care credit is an excellent resource to have for emergency animal costs.


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I would be shooting all kinda questions to seller.

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I always have alot more money than this. This month was a bad month for me lots of stuff went wrong we are in the middle of moving. And i know how much it can cost we have a great supplyer for rodents that sells them. Only thing is i was not expecting this to happen i got her for next season not now! And aslo the person lives far from us and i got her in a trade. I have enough to get an incubator now that i have a family member willing to help out but localy there are no reptile incubators at any stores only a state over wich is idaho

You're kind of in a time crunch that sucks
But knowing me I would be wanting to incubate the eggs

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I have lots of ball pythons at the moment and have for a very long time i just eas not expecting a pregnant snake this season at all! I just wanted another female of breeding size for next year

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Originally Posted by Jellybeans

You're kind of in a time crunch that sucks
But knowing me I would be wanting to incubate the eggs

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Same here...I can't even ignore earthworms that need help, lol...

Thats why im stressing so bad i care about the babies not money at all!

I'm a sucker that's why I have four dogs

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Also i have a rack system. Everything exept for the incubator

If a snake breeds with another and lays a clutch of eggs does it have to breed again to produce another viable clutch, or is there some kind of sperm retention

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Lol im more of just a snake person and lizards i dont like mamlas everyone else in my family all they like is mamals and i say yuk to things with fur

Many many years ago I bought my incubator from a feed store

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Oh believe me things with scales or much easier to take care of them things with fur

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Originally Posted by Kolten2015

Lol im more of just a snake person and lizards i dont like mamlas everyone else in my family all they like is mamals and i say yuk to things with fur

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It is possible yes without breeding again im aware of this i got ready to breed last year actually have 2 rack sysems just for hatchlings just because i thought i would be doing it this year. But with us moving i decided to wait till next year. That is why did not get an incubator. And i do not house snakes together so i dont have to worry about suprises

Well I wish you the best with your unexpected surprise

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Thermostat, heat tape, water bottles and a styrofoam ice chest.

Got the thermostat digital expensive one i can easily get the rest. Thanks for the good luck wish

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Originally Posted by Jellybeans

If a snake breeds with another and lays a clutch of eggs does it have to breed again to produce another viable clutch, or is there some kind of sperm retention

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Some years ago I had a corn snake that mated once & had viable eggs for 5 years total...:O So to answer your question, you never really know what will happen-
it's a wait & see, fingers-crossed (depending on what you're hoping for). ;) And some snakes are just so compelled to reproduce they do so by parthenogenesis.

You may be able to locate a breeder/ reptile group local to you that may be able to help you out. You could maybe check facebook for reptile groups in your area (though not sure, never used facebook), could maybe make some connections with someone at your local reptile shop if there's a decent one around you. Not sure if that will be accessible to you, just trying to throw out some ideas.