Looking for helpful tips for first time breeding!

[Gio]

I appreciate your concern though I have kept Boas and Retics for 3 years now, I always thought of Ball Pythons as the weenie snakes until I got my very first one a little over a year ago. It made me realize little potato snakes werent that bad compared to big monster snakes that come out striking thinking theyre getting fed then pooping anytime they make a bowel movement. After my first ball I was facinated and immediately jumped on board. I spent weeks and months studying how to care for them as pets as well as for breeding. I have an excess amount of time as well as disposable income

Each are kept in proper sized tubs with herpstat 2s on each pimped out FB rack
25% ventialation
Guages to monitor ambient temp and humidity
Weekly water changes and waste cleaning
Lightly misting twice a week
Monthly substrate changes

I scale food and never handle within 72 hours of feeding.

As for flooding the market, I try to only purchase powerhouse combos/Visuals. Anyting produed aside form powerhouse combos i told myself i would let go for just under market value in order to compete in the reptile market. I also have the PROPER space, food and thermostats to hold plenty of more, like im talking i can easily produce 60 yearlings and house them ALL for well over a couple years if needed.

THE ONE THING you can call me out on is 15% weekly feedings which I max out at around 150g-200g prep items for the bigger females otherwise it can trigger a fast.

As for my 1600g (with meal) 13 month old, I had purchased her at 800g at 6 months old on MM. How she managed to put on 100g a month I have no clue since she was fed extremely similar to an entire group of females in my collection, same age and feeding response. I wasnt sure if she was by chance a Volta locality or if she just kept hitting major growth spurts simply because my yearlings averaged 800g by the time they're first birthdays came along.

And as for the unexpected complications such as vet bills, I have dealt with long before my journey with Balls. My largest reticulated python had gotten a small cut on her lip from water bowl (only item in her enclosure) she ended up getting an infection that led to a moderate case of mouth rot. Her emergancy vet bill ended up being almost 3 times her worth so i can indeed say I am aware of the unexpected complications that may arise.

Like I said I appreciate the concern though this amount of conern is nowhere near what i was looking for, this sounds like you're actively looking for red flags and just plain looking for a reason to talk negative.

Actively looking for red flags?

Nope, you presented them and I'm willing to bet I'm not the first person to notice, just maybe the first to comment. I had no intention of making you defensive.

I stand corrected on the "first year" part of my response. It appears you have 3 years in the hobby.

There is no reason for anybody to talk "BS" or whatever your quote implied. You have 4 posts and appear to have very little experience in the hobby. Your collection list is large. Keepers that have 30 plus years in the hobby often don't have that many animals in a lifetime. People that have been at this a while get concerned when somebody comes in full steam ahead with very little experience. This is a chat board and you will get advice that you may or may not like.


"I spent weeks and months studying how to care for them as pets as well as for breeding"

Keeping and breeding is not something learned in "weeks and months", while it is admirable that you did some research, it appears the intent here is to get the animals up to breeding size as quickly as possible for profit whether you have disposable income or not. Maybe a more practical approach is to see how it goes by breeding one pair at a healthy age and going from there slowly. Its possible I misunderstood your post.

"I try to only purchase powerhouse combos/Visuals."

Just based on the words you are using would lead one to believe the actual interest and fascination with the animals and their intricate biology is taking a backseat to breeding and turning a profit.

If I were going to recommend a breeder, I would point folks in the direction of people like Gus Rentfro, Vincent Russo, Nick Mutton and Justin Julander. They have spent years and years researching and studying the various species they keep.

There are others specific to royal pythons but those particular breeders, in general, go above and beyond and see reptiles as something other than a profit.

To each their own though, hopefully things work out for you and the animals.

Apologies if your feelings were hurt.