Breeding

[Nate]

i know this should be in the breeding section, but there is more traffic (and hopfully more response) in this forum.

ok...I've got one ball python. not 100% sure of the sex...i am wanting to get get another and hopefully breed. Arkansas (where i live) doesn't have a lot of demand for ball pythons because people are uninformed about how they can be such a great pet. i was hopeing to change that and make a small business and inform people and sell them.

If this does work for me..where should i start? should i get a little more experianced with snakes? should I get some kind of license? how much should i sell them for? i've read a lot of housing tutorials and things like that, so teaching ppl about housing wouldn't be a problem.

any suggestions would be great.

[kraniumz]

Well for starters, you will need to know the sex of your current snake, then proceed in getting the opposite sex snake.

If you decide to breed and theres no one to take your hatclings will you take the responsibilty of caring for them ? Think about the cost and responsibilities.

Im not sure about licensing. Cant help u there.

The market price in the US seems to vary from one breeder to another. Some breeders are selling hatcling as low as $10, but few reputable breeders like Bob Clark and Ralp Davis get away selling hatcling at $100 or so. But since ball python is a new thing in your area, and theres no competition, then theres no harm setting the price, say $50.

Thats all i know, I hope others will contribute.

[Nate]

50 sounds fair. they are $79.99 at Petco...bleh

[Smynx]

The first thing you need to do is read as much as you can about breeding. Snakes have to reach a certain size and weight before they can be bred. Some breeders cycle their BPs before breeding, others do not. If you do end up with a gravid female, you need to decide whether to incubate the eggs in an artificial incubator or let the mother do it. Then you need to know how to care for the hatchlings. Pick up a copy of the "Ball Python Manual." http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...35908?v=glance It has an entire section devoted to breeding, and that's just a starting point. Read and research as much as you can before you start something as involved as breeding.

[DragonSun02]

Hi Nate,

When you sex your ball python I would NOT allow someone to POP its hemipene or vent. (A technique which has actually killed, crippled, sterilized snakes) I have a friend who acquired some blue phase rosy boas that were "popped" before he got them. He is totally against the practice especially with adult animals since he x-rayed and found his snakes to have broken spines and lost them all after they kept regurgitating their meals. The poor things wanted to survive but couldn't keep the meal down so they starved to death.

I am looking towards learning how to probe them myself. I'd rather do the job myself than have someone else hurt my snakes. It's like a car mechanic you don't know; it's hard to find an honest or careful one that doesn't skip corners.

take care and good luck,

DragonSun02

[hdalvine]

Hey Nate,

Before you worry about price I would first get a pair of Bp. Then read and learn everything you can about breeding them. O.k. now if they have successfuly breed you need to start considering what you are going to do for incubation of the eggs after they have hatched you can consider what you want to price them at but $50 does sound very reasonable.

[Brandon.O]

hey,what do you guys think of lettin rocky breed with another breeders snake, i dont have any plans of it right now and havent even talked to the breeder about it but i thought it would be cool .

[hdalvine]

Hey Brandon go for it I'm sure Rocky would not mind.

[Brandon.O]

haha, im sure he wouldent......hmm that sparks another question, does breeding a snake add more quality to its life ?? or does it just not care about all the hanky panky stuff ?

[hdalvine]

g: hey whats the worst that could happen the breeder says no and your snake has to wait another year. Quality of life HMMMMM I wander.