Female Size Difference

[bigballs]

ok so two of my female balls were hatched at the same time from the same clutch so they are sisters.

i have had them since sept 11 2005 and they both weighed in around the same weight; 145g(yellow) and 130g(brown) <---those where their names at first...

ok so now its over a year later and their growth rate and current weight differs a lot from each other.

yellow is not shy at all and is a very agressive feeder and has never missed a single feed. she would even eat the f/t rat that brown didnt eat if she refused to eat that feeding.

brown is very shy and has missed a few feedings here and there but her feeding response has improved much in the past few months. she hasnt missed a feed in months.

their current weights are 1200g(yellow) and 725g(brown). so yellow has been eating much better then brown but this is a big weight gap for two females from the same clutch.

think that yellow would be a better breeder than brown because of her weight gain and size. they're only over a year so im going to wait until next to breed them anyways.

it's not a problem or anything i just wanted to talk about it and see if anyone else here has experiences like this.

[tmlowe5704]

Whoa that is a lot of weight for one year. I would be surprised if you got any good eggs out of her. How often did you feed?

[bigballs]

weekly feedings. but shes crazy though. always ready to eat, even a few days after her feeding she wants more. some times if brown didnt eat i would give her the f/t rat and she would take it right away. but this is like maybe once a month or two.

[joepythons]

ok so two of my female balls were hatched at the same time from the same clutch so they are sisters.

i have had them since sept 11 2005 and they both weighed in around the same weight; 145g(yellow) and 130g(brown) <---those where their names at first...

ok so now its over a year later and their growth rate and current weight differs a lot from each other.

yellow is not shy at all and is a very agressive feeder and has never missed a single feed. she would even eat the f/t rat that brown didnt eat if she refused to eat that feeding.

brown is very shy and has missed a few feedings here and there but her feeding response has improved much in the past few months. she hasnt missed a feed in months.

their current weights are 1200g(yellow) and 725g(brown). so yellow has been eating much better then brown but this is a big weight gap for two females from the same clutch.

think that yellow would be a better breeder than brown because of her weight gain and size. they're only over a year so im going to wait until next to breed them anyways.

it's not a problem or anything i just wanted to talk about it and see if anyone else here has experiences like this.

Welcome to the headaches ball python females will cause you to have .This is perfect evidence on how each snake differs from there own clutch mates.I would veiw them both as good breeders in the future,the reason is they are gaining not losing weight.If they were picky eaters and only ate every other month and were losing weight they would be sold as a pet to someone if they were mine.Its possible brown could start eating better and pass up yellow .

[bigballs]

well they have another year to get ready and both eat very well. im pretty sure brown will catch up and hopefully become a wicked breeder.

but its amazing how snakes from the same clutch, both female and same feeding schedule can have different personalities and growth rates.

[SatanicIntention]

I have 2 '05 girls and the difference in weight is amazing. One girl is reaching 1000g and the other is "maybe" 350g. The first girl eats, eats and eats some more, then asks for seconds. The other girl might take one mouse per week... Won't eat anything else or anymore than one... Little snots!

[Adam_Wysocki]

I would be surprised if you got any good eggs out of her.

Why?

-adam

[ChrisL]

I have several circumstances like that now. I have an 04 female that likes to go off feed for weeks at a time for no particular reason, and is just now reaching 1200g's. On that same note, I have 2 early 05's, 1 is at 1000g, 1 is at 780g. Then I have 1.1 05 het alb...female is at 980g, male is at 570g. I even have an 03 female I bought about a year ago at 1300g, who's at 2050 now...with laying a clutch, going off feed 2 times for several weeks. So growth just differs.

[tmlowe5704]

Why?

-adam

I may have just misread some posts, but isn't a 1000 g in one year's time a bit much?

[Adam_Wysocki]

I may have just misread some posts, but isn't a 1000 g in one year's time a bit much?

No, if that's how much the female wants to grow in a year, it's fine.

-adam