Ovulation or still building?

[piedlover79]

So last year this gal sort of surprised me with a clutch of eggs. She had locked with the male many times, but she never show any of the classic signs, no real cold side seeking, no bowl wrapping, she did do a perfect coil after shed and that's when I started to suspect her...but she didn't go off feed until two weeks before she ended up laying. So I was of the mind that if she didn't lay eggs I would have not have been surprised, but when she did I was like...awesome. I didn't catch her ovulation that year, at least not in an obvious sense.


On Feb 14 I woke up to this, suddenly looking nice and fat, she has shown no interest in the male since this day:



Today she has gone into blue for a shed and was doing this around her dish that I keep sphagnum moss in to help with humidity.




I want to say she's just doing the building thing except when I came home she was curled in a strange ball on the hot side like this:




Once she sheds I'm just going to go ahead and start my 27 day count down and turn the incubator on and such.

I'm going out of town for the next five days...so if she decides to do a proper ovulation in that time I'm going to miss it. But do they tend to go into shed like this when they are still building?

Thoughts?

[Albert Clark]

Congrats first of all! That female is really amazing. But yeah, if she is seeking the heat at this point and preparing to shed out. My inclination would be that the ovulation may be over. Especially if you don't see it within the next couple of days. I think the heat seeking occurs post ovy and thru the pre lay shed. Incubator time is what I feel. Best of luck and can't wait for these. Lol.

[piedlover79]

Thank you! This snake is my *gem* I do not regret the insane price I paid for her five years ago (heehee). I'm not going to be home for the next few days so I can't watch for a 'bigger' ovulation (sigh)...but I was thinking that the Fed 14th was probably ovulation since she's in shed, lost interest in the male, looking very angry when I peek in on her, she never really looked like she was doing the 'build thing' but she didn't do it last season either.

The incubator is all set up and I'm going to turn it on when I get home on Saturday (figure that's still plenty of time).

I'm holding my breath on this clutch! I lost her first clutch to an incubator accident (I've since thrown that one out and built a new one that has tested well).

[Albert Clark]

Maybe I missed it, but did you say she's off food also? Haha.

[piedlover79]

She basically *never* goes off food. She had eaten a small rat a few days before Feb 14, Usually I would have offered today...but she went into shed so I didn't offer anything. She will eat during any stage of shed so I just don't offer when she's blue. Like I said last season she ate right up until two weeks before lay. I have to be careful not to over feed her to keep her from getting fat because if I wanted her to be I bet she'd be 6,000 grams by now...or rather if I let her eat the way she wants to she'd be that size.

[piedlover79]

Well she shed exactly 14 days after the 'ovy' pic was taken...so that all seems right on schedule. Turning on the incubator just in case.

[AbsoluteApril]

good luck! Is this the girl that was bred to your pixel (gold dust) pied?

[piedlover79]

Yup! This is the gal bred to the pixel pied...hoping against hope to get a black pastel pixel pied (a male would be great, but I won't get that picky).

[Hannahshissyfix]

Sounds like little noodles on the way to me! Looking forward to seeing what your pixel pied produces!

[Albert Clark]

Wooooo! Can't wait to see these little pieds pipping. I know it's going to be monumental. Congrats pl.