Really your call. There is a greater chance of defects in any that hatch, but I have to tell you that right now I have 3 lovable near-yearling Florida rat snakes from one
of my adult-NEVER-BRED females. Every year she & her sister lay dozens of eggs, many of which look good, & last year I decided to incubate the ones that appeared
to be good eggs- just out of curiosity.
Most of the eggs went "south", some almost hatched (had non-viable snakes that failed to emerge), but ultimately there were 3 tiny snakes looking back at me with
vigor.Of those 3, only one had some non-severe kinks (some bumps in her tail, plus a moderate mid-body kink that I feared might restrict adequate digestion-
but which is now very hard to even see, much less cause her problems). Their personalities couldn't be more different...one is quite feisty & still dislikes being handled-
like you'd expect from a wild rat snake, but the other 2 are excellent pets...all are eating & growing well. Wouldn't you know it, the one with kink imperfections is also
amelanistic...a pale peachy color with only a hint of pattern, with an exceptionally calm demeanor...she'll sit wrapped on my left hand while I feed her from my right...
without biting me or making any mistakes. And she climbs branches in her cage with ease, no trace of any disability. I've also been hand-feeding the other one- once
she decides to sit still, she also makes no 'mistakes' thus far, eating while held on my lap. They may out-grow this cute phase of being hand-feedable...these rat snakes
have formidable appetites & "skills", but right now they're showing their adaptability & intelligence...hate to think I might have missed it.
I must admit that while I needed more snakes "like a hole in the head", I'm delighted to know them all. Does that answer your question?
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