Monster Pieds?

[Serpent_Nirvana]

I've been hearing that rumor for many years, as well. I also heard a couple of new ones recently: one is that pieds may have somewhat weaker immune systems (heard that from a pathologist who necropsied a few pieds out of someone's collection that died of pneumonia) and one is that people used to think pied females would be infertile or subfertile like female deserts or caramels.

I have to believe that there is some grain of truth, however small, in some of these rumors that pied is a "weaker" gene. I don't know whether it came from the original founder animal perhaps carrying some deleterious genes that became concentrated in his original (inbred) offspring, or whether there is some (pleiotropic) aspect of the gene itself that can cause negative effects in some bloodlines or individuals. We do know that piebaldism is associated with aganglionic megacolon in many species (mice, rats, possibly horses). While I don't believe that it is associated with that in pied ball pythons (I have never heard of a pied dying from impaction for no good reason, let alone this happening often enough to suspect a link), it does indicate that the mechanisms by which the piebald coat/skin pattern appears can have other, unseen effects.

All that having been said -- in answer to the OP's question, my one piebald is a youngster yet, but she is one of the best feeders and fastest growing of my '11's -- and I bought her as a "runt!" Piebalds are probably my absolute favorite morph hands-down, and I think it's safe to say they are one of the absolute most popular. I've seen enough evidence to suggest that there are some really strong, hearty, robust piebald bloodlines out there and I think if you are careful about selecting your stock, you should be fine.