 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Ball PythonEnclosure Selection Health Feeding BreedingThe Decision to Breed Selecting a Pair Mating Gestation Incubation Hatching Juveniles The Decision To Breed... Ball pythons are very easy to breed, however there are one or two things which you should consider before embarking on a breeding project. The pair, eggs, and hatchlings need extensive care and attention to ensure good health and ultimate success. Gravid females need to be well cared for, eggs will need an appropriate incubator and all hatchlings will need separate enclosures. The long term costs are great and there is little money to be made in re-selling them. Unless you are considering full scale commercial breeding you are almost certainly going to lose money. Breeding is more about the love of reptiles than the money. Things to consider before you start: - Do you have the money to offer proper care to the hatchlings? - Can you commit time to feeding and looking after multiple snakes? - Do you have the necessary experience to deal with anything that might happen? - What are you going to do with the babies? If you’re still willing to give it a go, let’s get started! Selecting a Pair Gender can be hard to determine in these snakes, however there are a couple of indicators which can help, but are not perfect. The anal spurs of the males are often more curved, and the tails are usually thicker. When selecting breeding partners it is often best to select three females to two males. This prevents fighting between the males. The five should only be kept together for the duration of the cycle, afterwards they should be housed individually. It is possible to pair one male to one or more females however, and this is considerably cheaper. The only downside is there is less potential for offspring. Mating The entire cycle takes about a year, from introduction to hatching. They should be housed seperately all year until late Autumn, and feeding should be stopped about November or October for approximately 4 weeks. Introduce the breeding animals to each other in a 30 x 18 x 18, then resume feeding. They should be housed in here until March or April then separated out again. Gestation If a female has become gravid, she will stop eating in the first instance. You may see her basking and turning her belly upwards towards the heat. After a while they will shed then lay 7-10 eggs approximately one week later. You should provide a laying box filled with a mix of moss and vermiculaite, lightly dampened, for her to lay in. Once she lays her eggs she will remain with them however you should move them to a suitable incubator as soon as they are discovered. Incubation Incubation temperatures should remain between 88-90Fat all times, and the only realistic way to achieve this is to construct an incubator. These can be simple home made affairs, such as the one described here or here or you can purchase one made for chicken eggs such as the Hovabator. It is not yet known for sure whether it is possible to incubate for sex, which is the process of selecting specific incubation temperatures to yield mostly males or females. Incubation will take approximately 60 days. Humidity plays an important part in the incubation process. Too low a humidity will result in the eggs drying out, while too high a humidity can induce mould. Use a reliable humidity gauge, preferably digital. The ideal range would be somewhere between 60% and 80%. Incubating eggs in a suitable container such as a margarine tub, with small holes punched in the top or sides. The incubating medium must be kept damp to prevent the eggs drying out, as the growing embryo in the egg will draw water from the surrounding air as it develops. The most popular medium seems to be Vermiculite mixed with moss, both are commonly sold in garden centres. Eggs must be monitored carefully for drying out, mould, caving in and, nearer the end of the incubation period, hatchlings. If they start to collapse slightly now then you just need to moisten the medium a touch and put a damp paper towel over them for a few days and they should pop back out again. Hatching After around 60 days the hatchlings will break the shell, known as pipping, however they will remain inside and consume the contents of their yolk sac before emerging 24-48 hours later. Once the eggs are pipped, you can place the hatching container into a heated 10 gallon aquarium which will be suitable as a rearing container until they get a bit larger. They should be separated out as far as possible soon after hatching but if total separation is not a viable option try to group similar sized animals together. This will reduce bullying. Juveniles For the first few weeks they will be living off the yolk they consumed in the egg. after about a week they will shed, and approximately one week after that you should begin trying to feed them.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Contact us | References | Disclaimer |