does this look like breeding???

[brandon0133]

i have about 8 ball pythons,,,well my two biggest pair seem to be on each other non stop,,and locking tails together,,well i was watching closely and it looked like the one snake had hook looking things stick out of its tail and moved around like a finger,,,i was thinking this snake was a female,,,but if the females i knew had something like that id freak out,,,haha,,,anyways heres some pics and u guys tell me what it is,,,also the one snake has alittle spot of blood on his tail,,,dont know if thats something to do with mateing,,,tell me what u guys think

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p246/brandon0133/100_6391.jpg
http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p246/brandon0133/100_6393.jpg
http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p246/brandon0133/100_6394.jpg
http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p246/brandon0133/100_6406.jpg
http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p246/brandon0133/100_6398.jpg
http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p246/brandon0133/100_6408.jpg

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

sure does sound and look like mating but im not completely sure, if it is u better read up on egg hatching/ caring for babies, are they het for anything?

[brandon0133]

i think they are just normal ball pythons,,and i already been reading about it,,it takes forever for them to hatch from the eggs,,lol,,and i need to get a incubator,,which is not much money,,i really dont know what het means either,,i assume u mean like albino or mixed or pure bred?

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

het is having two different alleles for a trait how large are the two biggest ones?, i would breed balls myself if the albinos and other cool morphs didnt cost like 800 dollars

[brandon0133]

over 4 ft,,,,i did not think the one would breed sense its fixing to shed,,but i guess that wont stop them,,,cause ive never seen snakes do what these two are doing,,,these are both 04 and 05 snakes

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

ya there breeding
http://www.ssnakes.com/Gballpythons.jpg

[brandon0133]

1-04 male ball
3-05 male balls
2-06 male balls
1-05 female balls (she has been locking with both 05 males)
1-07 female ball
1-06 female redtail
1-06 male redtail

[brandon0133]

im having them all sexed for sure this wensday,,friends comming over to sex them,,,,,but that list is from the breeder i got them all from,,he wanted to get out of breeding so i bought all he had left,,thanks,,that looks just like what they are doing,,thats awsome,,,,

[adamanteus]

They certainly are attempting to mate, Brandon. The 'hook-like thing' you observed is the males' pelvic spur. This is the vestigial pelvic bone found in pythons and boas, the males are able to move it, to stimulate the female during courtship. The female has these spurs also, but hers will be much smaller.

[adamanteus]

Hey Brandon. I just saw your ad in the classifieds section.... are you selling ALL your snakes? Why?:confused:

[Charlet_2007]

ok in my oppion why would one try breeding if he don't know much about the breeding process? or even less about what the snakes are het for or not? I've been raising snake for 10+ years and i myself haven't tried to breed yet because i know im not ready for it.. I myself would research ALOT before even trying to breed.. and man 8 ball pythons in a 75g is WAY TO MANY for that tank.. im not trying to be mean or anything but i think your way over your head with this.. :(

[Lulu Bennett]

i have got a male red tail and his spur came off on me the other day. he still has another underneath but alot smaller. i squished the one underneath and it had blood in it.
He doesn't seem bothered by it and it hasn't injured the surrounding scales.

[Lori P]

I guess I don't understand breeding more "generic" ball pythons... there are already so many out there, they are given away free in our local ads all day long. No offense, but unless these balls have a trait that will enhance the breed as a whole, I can't imagine there being a market for them. Even at the local expo the normals were going for $15-$20 and often that was for a female with a free male thrown in.

I worry that so many in one tank will lead to a disaster too. And out of curiosity, where did the garters and the green snake and corns end up?

[brandon0133]

i still have all of my snakes,,as for the tank its a 175 gallon not 75,,,,and i have them in there and they just started mateing so i figured why stop them? if there going to mate then ill help the eggs when they get here,,,and i figured id ask for help on here,,,everytime i ask u guys a question on here i get flamed for it,,how about understanding whats going on before u jump down someones throat. i got these snakes thinking the guy who had them did not want them anymore,,i got a good price and thought they were good looking snakes,,they started mateing soon as i put them in together,,,and now im getting flamed for it? sorry i let them have sex,,,should i reach in and smack them to keep them apart? lol,,,anyways,,,thanks for the advice. dont worry i wont be asking anymore questions. ill go to my other site for info

[adamanteus]

I'm sure it wasn't anyones intention to 'flame' you, Brandon. Your fellow members are simply answering the topics you post. Lori, for example, works for an animal rescue, so she sees these unwanted, mass produced pets all the time. My question regarding the sale of what appears to be all your snakes, is simply that... a genuine question.

You must admit though, you've acquired a barn load of critters these past few weeks...it's bound to raise a few eyebrows!:D

[brandon0133]

only snakes ive traded or sold was the albino bermese and 3 baby corn snakes,,,

[adamanteus]

only snakes ive traded or sold was the albino bermese and 3 baby corn snakes,,,

But you're selling everything now?
http://www.thamnophis.com/classifieds/showproduct.php?product=66&cat=25

[drache]

Brandon
I don't think people are jumping down your throat
please understand
in the time you've come here, you've taken on a lot of animals
and you've had a bit of a turn-over as well
it does seem that you don't plan ahead
many folks here find it disturbing that you don't sufficiently research your new acquisitions
I easily get overwhelmed, so the amount of influx and turnover in your menagerie seems dizzying
we don't know your situation and I can tell that you're willing to take on a lot for your animals
you also seem to have the flexibility to amend things
I'm just coming from my own experiences and capacities
I'm stressed enough when things go smoothly . . .

[brandon0133]

look,,i like snakes,,,i did buy some at a good deal to make alittle profit off them,,,so i make alittle money and i get to have fun with different snakes,,,does anyone not understand that? my pets basically will pay for themselves and i get to keep them healthy and in good shape,,,plus im able to help others with nice pets.

[Charlet_2007]

theres nothing wrong about liking snakes.. but having the know how before you get in over your head is a different story..i wasn't trying to be mean about what i was talking about just seems like you leap first then worry about what you have to deal with later.. sorry i was wrong about the 175g but still thats to small for 8 snakes.. with 8 snakes they will start to upset a lot of them maybe not now but later when the males come in to sexual maturity.. I don't think balls do the breeding ball like the anacondas to.. And I hope you don't feed them all in the same tank as well.. Does anyone know if to many balls in one tank will be cannibalistic to the others if giving the chance? you asked questions we've answered them the best we could.. you don't need to get upset because it's trial and error.. we've all been there haven't we everyone? I've seen you said you had 15 other tanks.. why can't you put a snake in each tank?

[adamanteus]

So, anyway..... I think the point has been made and discussed, no need for us to go on a 'witch-hunt'!:)
Like all of us, Brandon is here to learn from his peers. Although many of us clearly disapprove of what we think we see him doing, at least he his asking our opinion. But Brandon, in doing that you do 'put your head on the block', so to speak. So, moving right along......:rolleyes:



I don't think balls do the breeding ball like the anacondas do..

Natalie, I was unaware that Anacondas form mating balls..... you learn something new every day.:D If I was a 'googler' I'd go check that out.:D

[Charlet_2007]

Anacondas mate in breeding aggregations ( Also called a mating ball..) composed of one female and up to 13 males. Males find females in the dry season and court them for several weeks, up to 40 days in some cases. The low levels of water in the peak of the dry season results in high density of anacondas and increased encounter rate that must influence the large number of animals that we find in the breeding aggregations. The competition in these aggregations produces a selection pressure for an optimal size in the males. Larger males obtain benefit in inter-male competitions as they are able to push away smaller animals but if they are too large the may be mistaken for females and courted by other males which lowers the efficiency of the large male at courtship. These opposing forces produce stabilizing selection on the male size leading to an optimal size with very little variance in male size. In the breeding aggregation, females mate several times but it is not known whether she mates with several males. It is not known which one of the many males courting her is the one that sires the offspring. The best way for a male to ensure that he will sire the offspring of a female is to be the only one that mates with the female. However, with a long receptivity period of the female lasting up to one month, it is unlikely that a male would monopolize all the matings of a given female. So the best that a male can do is to mate first, stay in the ball the longest and prevent other males from mating, and mate last. However females are known to engage in sexual cannibalism so the male that spends longer time with a female is risking being eaten.

[adamanteus]

Wow! A mating ball off Anacondas must be something to see! There weren't any photos with that article were there, Natalie?

[Charlet_2007]

no but i bet i can get some.. it was on animal planet here not to long ago.. I'm sorry they call it a breeding ball.. same thing lol

Anaconda Breeding Ball Video -- National Geographic (http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/player/animals/reptiles-animals/snakes/anaconda_breedingball.html)

[Lori P]

Wow! Some cool videos there!! That one anaconda who ate the big rodent thing got quite a nasty bite. Thanks for sharing Natalie!!

[drache]

very cool
thanks, Natalie

[Charlet_2007]

welcome welcome...

[Charlet_2007]

That bite is the reason we don't feed our snakes live food and only F/T food..

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

well brandon i think the thing is that everyone has snakes more-so for fun and because we love them, and not so much for profit because you cant really make a profit off of thamnophis sp. i know you buy snakes for cheap prices and then selling them again for higher prices im afraid this will not work very well because u most likely will be buying lower priced snakes and those you cannot put up the price on. What i suggest because i see how u want to make money and at the same time have cool snakes/ have cute little babies that u can love, is save up for something like an albino ball python pair which you probaly could get for 1,200-1,400 right? and then u breed them and get 6 babies 6x $600= $3600 and with that money u could probaly get a pied ball breeding pair next year you get 3,600 from the albinos and 6x 1900= 11400 which mean your total profit that year would 15000, PLENTY enough to feed them and give them appropriately sized cages, and cover vet visits, and give them the best care possible, and even at the end of that u still would have a very good profit. The only thing i must insist if u do something like this is to read up for like a month or more on them/breeding and treat them almost like they were your own children,
just a suggestion though
o and i dont know but i wouldnt put that lamp inside the cage they might burn themsleves on it , i know i do

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

i feed live untill they get too the size of hoppers and can actually see :) and or do any damage

That bite is the reason we don't feed our snakes live food and only F/T food..

[tikichick]

well brandon i think the thing is that everyone has snakes more-so for fun and because we love them, and not so much for profit because you cant really make a profit off of thamnophis sp. i know you buy snakes for cheap prices and then selling them again for higher prices im afraid this will not work very well because u most likely will be buying lower priced snakes and those you cannot put up the price on. What i suggest because i see how u want to make money and at the same time have cool snakes/ have cute little babies that u can love, is save up for something like an albino ball python pair which you probaly could get for 1,200-1,400 right? and then u breed them and get 6 babies 6x $600= $3600 and with that money u could probaly get a pied ball breeding pair next year you get 3,600 from the albinos and 6x 1900= 11400 which mean your total profit that year would 15000, PLENTY enough to feed them and give them appropriately sized cages, and cover vet visits, and give them the best care possible, and even at the end of that u still would have a very good profit. The only thing i must insist if u do something like this is to read up for like a month or more on them/breeding and treat them almost like they were your own children,
just a suggestion though
o and i dont know but i wouldnt put that lamp inside the cage they might burn themsleves on it , i know i do

I concur :cool:

[Charlet_2007]

i agree.. that good advice there thanks reed_Kamsler (http://www.thamnophis.com/forum/../members/reed_kamsler.html)..

[Lulu Bennett]

no but i bet i can get some.. it was on animal planet here not to long ago.. I'm sorry they call it a breeding ball.. same thing lol

Anaconda Breeding Ball Video -- National Geographic (http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/player/animals/reptiles-animals/snakes/anaconda_breedingball.html)

WOW!! natalie, there are some ace vids on there. thanks for that link hun xxx

[Charlet_2007]

your quite welcome... i book marked it lol

[adamanteus]

In the video, did you notice the male using his pelvic spur (as I described in permalink #9 of this thread) to stimulate the female? Facinating stuff. Thanks for posting the link, Natalie.

[Charlet_2007]

your very wlecome..

[marty5150]

well brandon i think the thing is that everyone has snakes more-so for fun and because we love them, and not so much for profit because you cant really make a profit off of thamnophis sp. i know you buy snakes for cheap prices and then selling them again for higher prices im afraid this will not work very well because u most likely will be buying lower priced snakes and those you cannot put up the price on. What i suggest because i see how u want to make money and at the same time have cool snakes/ have cute little babies that u can love, is save up for something like an albino ball python pair which you probaly could get for 1,200-1,400 right? and then u breed them and get 6 babies 6x $600= $3600 and with that money u could probaly get a pied ball breeding pair next year you get 3,600 from the albinos and 6x 1900= 11400 which mean your total profit that year would 15000, PLENTY enough to feed them and give them appropriately sized cages, and cover vet visits, and give them the best care possible, and even at the end of that u still would have a very good profit. The only thing i must insist if u do something like this is to read up for like a month or more on them/breeding and treat them almost like they were your own children,
just a suggestion though
o and i dont know but i wouldnt put that lamp inside the cage they might burn themsleves on it , i know i do

u just gave me something to think about. i have a breeding colony of leopard geckos and am about to start with milk's. I found pet stores that i trust to sell the babys to good parents and if they can't buy all of them i am willing and able to keep them. i did this prior to starting the colony. this way i get to see the whole cycle of life. but i hadnt really considered investing in really good morph pairs. my plans for life are to retire in 6 years and move to northern Arkansas become a paramedic and go to med school i just havent decided if i am going to work with humans or animals. but the biggest part of my retirement will be opening an exotic animal rescue ( road side zoo ) that way i can rescue some of the larger unwanted animals and educate people. i got at least six more years to learn as much about owning and running a rescue (laws cost etc). sorry i should of posted this in its own thread i just started rambling. any how thank you for the idea.