Which pastel female to choose?

[missmary]

I've got a male spider bp that I hope to pair with a female pastel. He's somewhere between 350g-400g at the moment (digital scale went out and I have yet to buy another) and I'm hoping to breed him next season.

As for the female pastel, I have yet to acquire her! I'm doing a bit of shopping around and am trying to figure out what would be the "best deal". So far, the most economical finds I've come across are a female pastel hatchling (~70g) for $100, a 300g female for $200, and a 350g-400g girl for $250.

What do you think is the best buy? Is there any possibility of any of these girls being ready by next season? I've been told that females are determined "ready" according to weight and reaching that 1000g-1500g mark typically takes 2-3 years... if none of these pastel girls would be ready by then, I'll probably just pair him up with a normal female next season while the pastel is still fattening up

But back to the question at hand... which pastel girl would you choose? Do you think it would be more cost effective, taking into consideration the cost of food), to start off with a 300g-400g female at a higher price or a hatchling and grow her out myself?

Thanks in advance for all of the replies!

[A.VinczeBPs]

Since none of the listed above will be ready by next season I'd personally get whichever pastel looked the best so I could produce better quality bee's.

I can't comment on the cost part, as I've never worried about how much it costs to feed them except to keep a log of it to add to my annual amount spent.

What you do is up to you, but that's what I would do.

Good luck.

[98bcobra]

I would pick a female that has nice coloring and the most blushing. I would also pick a female that eats well. Like I have a pastel female that is around 18months and 2000gram range she eats small rats every 7 days and never misses unless in shed sometimes even then shes a pig. Eatting habits is one of the most important things in females after looks if you ask me.