Need Help ASAP!!

[SnowSnake]

Hi!

I was cleaning my leo tanks and when I finished cleaning the bigger one (15 gallon) I decided to put my male (living in a 10 gallon tank) in the critter keeper and put the critter keeper in the 15 gallon tank to see how they would react. I dont know if I remembered right but isn't the male supposed to lift his tail and wiggle it? My male (i clearly see the testicular bulges) seemed interested in my female and looked at her closely. but my female was as interested in the male only that she (no signs on testicular bulges and no visible pre-anal pores) lifted her tail in the air and made it move like a snake. Is this normal interaction???

Plz answer me ASAP!

thank you,
SnowSnake

[SnowSnake]

update:

I finished cleaning the 10 gallon tank and I put the critter keeper back in the 15 gallon tank. They seemed interested in each other at first but after 30 secs. the female started to walk around the critter keeper and didn't look at the male inside it.

What should I do? Place them together?

thanks,
SnowSnake

[reptilez]

If they are old enough; sure.

[SnowSnake]

the female is supposed to do the tail wiggly thingy and the male isn't supposed to do it?

[scott hough]

Originally posted by SnowSnake
update:


What should I do? Place them together?

thanks,
SnowSnake

How old are they? After the two are together, they'll likely breed. It's better to decide they need more time to grow before putting them together, rather than after.


Good luck!

Scott

[SnowSnake]

yea, i already did some research on this and they are old enough to safely breed.

But what I want to know is if: the female is supposed to do the tail wiggly thingy and the male isn't supposed to do it?

[fr0glet]

Tail-waving is a defense mechanism, from feeling threatened. It's normal. A mating response would be tail drumming on the floor by the mail and then biting the female on the neck or sides.

They're hemipenal bulges, not testicular. They don't have testicles, they have two halves of 1 ***** (hemi - penes). hth.

[fr0glet]

I can't believe P E N I S is blocked. JEEZE! That's not a dirty word!!!!

[SnowSnake]

thanks for the information!! :)
So do you think I should put them together?

[SnowSnake]

2nd update:

I tried to put them together, result: failure!!!
They were both in the same tank but when they came close the male attacked the female. He he bit her on the head twice, I immidiatly removed the male from the tank and let the female alone. She looked traumatized at first but 2 mins later she was walking in her tank. The male is alright but the female has 2 tiny teeth marks on the top of the head but this should heal in no time.

What happened? Why did the male attack the female?

thank you,
SnowSnake

[Tim and Julie B]

Hello there. I have been breeding leos for a while now and the biting is very normal. Although you should not allow the male to draw blood, if it's a slight mark it is usually because the female is struggling hard, which is likely if they've never been put together! One way to help curb his biting is to feed them seperately then place them together, it makes them a little bit sluggish and the female will become more receptive to the male's advances. Plus the male is less likely to chase her around. This doesn't work well with all leos but I've had quite a bit of success with it myself. The female will often lift her tail and wiggle it to show the male that she is just as dominant as he is, afterall, she isn't used to having her territory invaded! If your female is at least one year old you can safely put them together, and don't let their fighting scare you too much, just make sure he isn't breaking her skin, and if he does(which does happen)go to a drug store and purchase polysporin-it's very inexpensive-and apply a small amount on her wound. Good luck with your leos!:D

[reptilez]

Thats normal, thats how the male keeps the female still so the can breed. only really start to worry when you see blood.

[SnowSnake]

he didnt grab her head to restrain her, but he bit it and shook his head to do more damage. she was in her hide and she was freeking out! she was moving her tail on the ground and looked scared as hell!

Should I wait a few days before trying again?

[reptilez]

My Leo has scratch marks all over her back and teeth marks on her tail. It may look 'scary' but just keep an eye out for the first couple of minutes and if you see blood then seperate them emmediatly.

[SnowSnake]

But it didnt look like a restraining attack, it looked more like something to get ride of the female or at least injure her.

[Tim and Julie B]

Believe me, it is very normal. I know you're probably quite worried but the shaking is only to let her know that he's the boss and she just has to have his babies, or else. Typical manly stuff!Hehehe...just kidding guys! At the beginning of the breeding season all of my males were VERY excited and a few of my females had the marks to prove it. Don't worry. Just watch that he doesn't break her skin or grab her tail and they will be quit okay. LOL

[SnowSnake]

lolllll, ok!
I will feed them like you said tomorrow and try to put them together again. Do you think I should remove the hide so she doesnt get caught by the male in one?

[reptilez]

Search for pics over the internet and you may see the male biting the nape of the leo.

[Tim and Julie B]

It may be best to add another hide. I always use one for each leo per cage. That way they can all hide if they're stressed without being bothered. Hope oyu have good luck with them, the babies are soooooooooooooooooooo cute!

[SnowSnake]

thank you!! :D I'll have to get an incubator soon! hehe

[Tim and Julie B]

Just use a ten gallon fish tank. Place a submersible heater into a large deep bowl of water (I use a pickle jar) and put it to one side of the tank. Buy a cheap thermometer($10 at Revy or Crappy tire!) get a piece of styrofoam from your local pet store(they use it for shipping fish) and place it over the tank, turn on your heater and keep adjusting the heater until you have it where you want it. The water in the jar really helps maintain humidity. LOL

[SnowSnake]

thanks for the incubator plan! Doesnt it get too humid? How do you keep your temp. stable but your humidity higher or lower?

[reptilez]

Thats a problem i had....so i got a Hova-Bator. Check the classifieds, ppl are always selling them.
-Reptilez

[Tim and Julie B]

I haven't had any problems with humidity, ever, and I've been using the same set-up for three years now. If you like I can pm you with some other tips on ibncubating and humidity and stuff. And if you need any answers to anything you can do the same. Julie.

[SnowSnake]

ill post again tomorrow when i'll have put them together, then we'll discuss incubator. :D

[Alicewave]

Yup the biting is definitely normal. I like to have Chris around when combining leos. With two of us it's easier to pull them apart when they get too rough. When we put Diggy and Aurora together, Diggy (male) was clearly not happy to have to share his territory so they has a rather aggressive fight. We pulled them apart and took Diggy out for a couple minutes where he bit at chris's hand repeatedly for several minutes. When he calmed down we put him back in and he bit Aurora again but this time she didn't stuggle and a couple minutes later they were mating. What helped for us is for a couple minutes, every time Diggy got close to her we'd pick her up and pull him back a bit. I think this gave them time for the hormones to kick in and whatnot.

[Leo-Land]

My female had two perfect little bite marks on her head. That's how I knew they bred (They both live together, always). They healed up perfectly in no time. Plus, I got looks-to-be-fertile eggs outta it :).

Good luck!

[SnowSnake]

I can't wait t'ill tonight!!! :D I'll try what you said Alicewave, when it gets too rough i'll seperate the male so he calms down and put them back together.
After how much time passed together with no sever aggression can I leave and let them together?

Thanks!!

[reptilez]

15-30min or so

[norman]

Thanks all...we were wondering the exact same thing