7/7/07 Lucky Day

Well yesterday was a lucky day as my girl Hestia started giving birth (ok it was at 11:59pm but whose counting :) ) This morning I woke to find her sitting on 4 nice big eggs. (422 grams total)
http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j2...s/IMG_0734.jpg

She is a Poss. Het VPI Axanthic bred to my 100% Het Axanthic - so here to hoping to odds like Tim got :D (Note to Tim: feel free to send the gods my way)

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j2...s/IMG_0732.jpg

I do have a question for the experienced breeders. I really didn't think she took when bred (she had a very none descript pregnancy) . She never balloned out when she ovulated, she ate right up to her pre-lay shed (she did lay at 37 days ), she coiled around her water dish once and layed on her side (sort of) twice, and when looking at her you really couldn't "tell" she had eggs in her...but here is what I thought was strange. I bred her at 1582 grams (jan) , I weighed her 2 weeks ago and she was 1362!! Do they normally lose weight while being pregnant? The eggs were 422 so she is a tiny 912 grams now.

I had a couple girls that lost a massive amount of weight this season. Yours seemed to do a lot of eating. Most of mine stopped by the mid point of breeding season and didn't eat again until they layed. Feed her light the first couple meals. Smaller prey size then you normally would. Nice job!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by jglass38

Feed her light the first couple meals. Smaller prey size then you normally would. Nice job!

---

Thanks Jamie...I will go light on her next meal (Thursday). She had a bath and and got her tub cleaned and new bedding so she is all relaxed.:)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by lord jackel

Thanks Jamie...I will go light on her next meal (Thursday). She had a bath and and got her tub cleaned and new bedding so she is all relaxed.:)

---

Sounds good! Glad to see she made it through fine...

Wow, Sean, that's awesome! Congrats on the eggs, I hope that poss het proves out for you! :D

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by SarahMB

Wow, Sean, that's awesome! Congrats on the eggs, I hope that poss het proves out for you! :D

---

Thanks Sarah...Me Too...I have my fingers, toes and ears crossed. :)

Congrats Sean. We have a couple of females we aren't sure took or not, so maybe there's hope for us too. She looks lovely and her eggs look great. Crossing all my crossble bits that she proves out for you.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by frankykeno

Congrats Sean. We have a couple of females we aren't sure took or not, so maybe there's hope for us too. She looks lovely and her eggs look great. Crossing all my crossble bits that she proves out for you.

---

Thanks Joanna

*sends Joanna some late season luck* :)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by lord jackel

(Note to Tim: feel free to send the gods my way)

---

Note taken. I have dispatched them your way. However, they wouldn't tell me if I have used up all of my Axanthic luck yet. I hope she proves out for you Sean.

Congrats,

I've had a couple of females this year that didn't do any of the usual "I know it's gravid because it ______ (fill in the blank)" things before they laid. Stange year.


Here's hoping that the ball pythons gods that Tim sent your way stop at your house. Good luck!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by muddoc

Note taken. I have dispatched them your way. However, they wouldn't tell me if I have used up all of my Axanthic luck yet. I hope she proves out for you Sean.

Congrats,

---

Thanks Tim - she is technically a 66% Het so my odds are better but we will have to wait and see...

I will keep an eye out for them. :D

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Alice

I've had a couple of females this year that didn't do any of the usual "I know it's gravid because it ______ (fill in the blank)" things before they laid. Stange year.

---

Tell me about it...especially when (as a new ball breeder) you are REALLY looking for those signs :) The emotions were on a roller coaster - she is :) . she isn't :mad: , she is :) , she isn't :mad: , she is and did :carrot:

Thanks Alice.

Very nice! Glad the male worked for you!:D

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Bradford Cole

Very nice! Glad the male worked for you!:D

---

Yea he is a stud...I offered him a cigar today but he passed.

I meant to ask you do you hold/mess with your snakes alot. He is by far the friendliest ball I have. As soon as I open his tub he crawls out on his own, into my hand and then sits around my neck while I go about checking on everyone else...he is just a really friendly snake (never skittish or aggressive).

Thanks again.

Sean,
The poss. Het females that I proved last year were 66%'s. I hope you prove yours too. By the way, I have plenty of animals from Cory, and they are by far the best animals in my collection. Eat like horses and are friendly as can be. Well I do have two that were mean as can be, but one is nice now, and one is a Het Albino female (they are known to be nasty.)
Congrats again,

Quote:

---

one is a Het Albino female (they are known to be nasty.)

---

:confused: :confused: :confused: please elaborate.

It has been said that Het Albino females can be mean, and also be bad eaters after 1000 grams. I have three females, and two of them were meaner than any snake in my collection. One of them, after reaching adulthood, did calm down, but the other still tries to take my arm off every time I open her cage. As for the weight thing, my first female made it to breeidng size by her secon winter. The other two did not, and the mean one might not make it to size by her third winter. Some believe that these traits come from some of the original Hets that Bob Clark made from his original Albino.

No excessive handling but I do find that most of my VPI Axanthic stock is very calm when handled. However, they also eat like horses and are easily trained that when a cage is opened it is feeding time.


I am glad he is working for you. Hopefully she will prove out for you!!!