Quote Originally Posted by Jay_Bunny View Post
You can't really compare mammal genetics to reptile genetics. Humans have so many genetic problems as it is. We are a species that spans the globe. We number in the billions. Ball pythons, however, exist naturally only in one area of the world. They have no choice but to inbreed from time to time. That is how we end up with such fantastic mutations.
Just to clarify: Inbreeding doesn't cause mutations. It just preserves them in a genetic line, and exposes recessive characteristics. The initial mutation can be caused by a lot of things.

Quote Originally Posted by Jay_Bunny View Post
I think it is up to the individual breeder to decide what is right for his or her animals. If a breeder can successfully inbreed their snakes I say go for it. As long as no animal is suffering I see no problem with it. If it gets to a point that the breeder begins to notice deformities or health problems with their animals, only a moron would continue the practice with those individual animals. Now, I also believe the breeder that does inbreed their animals should give that information to any potential buyers, so that people like yourself TessadasExotics, would know if you are purchasing an animal that is directly inbred or not.

I plan on inbreeding my snakes. If I see any problems down the road that I suspect are due to inbreeding, I'll stop, but until that time I will make decisions for my animals as I see fit. I will not hide this fact from any potential buyers and make the information available. "I want to buy this spider male." "Ok, here are his papers showing his mother and father, who were mother and son." Simple.
I agree, and keep records on my website so when looking at a snake you can click to see the sire or dam, then their sire or dam and so on as long as the breeding occurred in my collection. Right now this is just a couple of layers deep, but expands in depth every year and includes feeding, weight, and breeding histories for all the animals. I'm trying to be a completely transparent breeding operation, so anyone can find out anything about any of my snakes, but I'm not 100% there yet.

When I have a day-job, I'm a software designer, so the gene tracking system was part of the fun of this hobby for me.