HELP! (Only very knoledgable keepers, please)

[Emily-Fisher]

This week I am having the new leo s hipped to me. When she is older, I am ging to breed her to my male but I have a big question. With mice, if you try to breed a 9 month old mouse to a 2 month old mouse, they will fight and it can be fatal. Do leos do this also? Sinnce I will only have one female, I will only keep her with the male for one day at a time so that she will not be constantly harassed by him.
1.WIll they fight on the first day?
2.Will they fight for one hour and then mate?
3.Will the male hurt her badly since he is at least 6 months older?
4.Is having that age difference safe?
5.Do you think there might be any other problems?
6.If they do fight, will the wounds be severe? What would they be like?

thank you soo much!! I am really paranoid about thes kinds of things and I would hate for one of my leos to get hurt or even die!

[Leo-Land]

1. It all depends on the leo. If she is almost the same size as him then there might be a little tail wagging and that's all. If she's too small, you might get a fight.
2.I've never heard of courtship lasting an hour. The male usually moves in, bites the neck, and mates.
3.If the female is around the same size, he probably will just make a few superfical cuts on the head and neck.
4.Again, if the size is around the same, the age doesn't matter too much.
5.Make sure you quarentine your new leo for atleast 2 months, some say 90 days.
6.If it's normal mating biting, there should be two little cuts of about the same size on either side of the head and/or neck. There also might be some bruising. Just make sure the cuts heal normally.


I hope that helped!

[SnowSnake]

Since there is a big size difference between 2 and 9 months if I were you I would wait until the female get to about 10 months or + so she wont be attacked by the male or she wont get gravid and refuse to lay.

[eldadevoz]

When I first introduced my male leo to my female there was a little tail wagging, then my female bit the male to let him know she didn't want to be bothered. But that was it and they've gotten along ever since. I think your female is young and maybe just old enough to breed. I would keep them seperated till you know she is healthy and eating. Also, you will want to fatten her up before you breed her so that she has the stores of fat she needs to lay healthy eggs. Once they are gravid....they often stop eating completely...I know mine did. Also, make sure you have more then one hide so that they can keep their distance if they need to. Also, since it's being shipped...make sure it's a female! lol

[Clownfishie]

You definitely need to wait until they're approximately the same size -- the female should be at least 10 months old, preferably over a year. Breeding her too early could result in egg binding, which can be fatal if she can't lay the eggs or have them surgically removed...
There shouldn't be much in the way of fighting -- a little bit of biting on the part of the male maybe, but that's about it. Tail wagging is pretty common too... if you notice actual fighting between them, I'd separate them immediately...
Any bite wounds shouldn't be severe at all... just superficial wounds. If anything looks a bit worse than that, putting polysporin on them seems to work well.

Any other questions, feel free to ask :)
Jen

[Zoe]

1.Maybe, maybe not. It depends. If you have 2 placid leos of about the same age then probably not, but if the female is much smaller and then they may fight.
2.Probably not. The female won't be ready to mate just after being shipped and placed in a new home - she'll be stressed. If he forces her to mate, he will hurt her when he bites her.
3.It depends how old he is. If she a year old and he is a year and a half, I don't see a problem. But if she is 3 months old and he's 9 months old, don't keep them together
4.^
5.Sicknesses... You should quarantine all new animals in a different room for a few months first. Get a fecal exam and a vet check done and so on, until you're 100% sure your leo is healthy, so she doesn't transmit any sickness or parasites to the male.
6.The female would likely have many bites on her neck and back, and be stressed. But no not too severe.

[jpaulson]

A small amount of fighting is normal, and it varies depending on the personal attitude of the leo. When I introduced my male to two females, he mated the first one with no troubles at all!! I think she wanted it, lol! The other female was not as receptive. She would fight him off at every chance! I watched closely to see if any damage was occuring, but it was not. After a few weeks of this, she finally gave in, I guess, because she gave me some eggs! There is minor cuts around a females neck from the male biting her to hold on to her, but that is about all.

[Tim and Julie B]

Hi Emily!
1.Will they fight on the first day?-I would never suggest putting leos with that age difference together because the bigger one can and probably will hurt the smaller. I have seen first hand what one leo can do to another, and it is horrible!
2.Will htey fight for one hour then mate?-They should not actually fight. The female should only put up a little resistance and it should not last long. If she constantly tries to run away and does not allow the male to get close, that's her way of letting him(and you) know that she does not want to mate! Mating only lasts a few minutes,although they may mate several times.
3.Will the male hurt her badly because he is at least 6 months older?- You should only place a female in with a male when she is 10 months or older, unless they have been housed together as babies or are the same age. He could even kill her if they fight.
4.Is having that age difference safe?-No. It would only be okay if she were 10 months or older.
5.Do you think that there might be other problems?-Yes. If she is kept with him she will become intimidated if she's so young. When they are intimidated they become stressed, when stressed they can stop eating. It can be very difficult to get them to eat again and sometimes they just simply won't.
6.If they do fight will the wounds be severe?what would they be like?-The wounds can be bad enought that she could die. I've seen a leo be attacted and eaten by cage mates because it was half the size of them(not my own leos). Normal mating often results in pinches on the females head and neck, areas that look like tiny shed pieces of skin that are stuck. If there is ever blood drawn then you should seperate the male. When this type of bite occurs it needs to be cleaned and treated. I have found that polysporin(at any drug store) applied with a q-tip works very well. It's very safe for reptiles.

I also agree that you should quarantine all reptiles before placing them together. Many suggest 60 days, 90 days, and even 120 days. Personally, I go 30 days for leos. You could take the leo to the vet and do a fecal exam which tells you if there are any other illnesses to watch for. The longer the better though, you want to be sure that they are happy and healthy and eating all the time. Also be sure that they sre drinking fresh water. But, they should only drink about 2-4 times a day. If any more than that, then that is a sign that something may be wrong.
I hope that this helps, and I feel that I am a knowlegable keeper, as I breed leos and have most of them as pets! Take care Emily and good luck with that beautiful new leo:D

[Emily-Fisher]

I am planning on housing each leo in a seperate enclosure and only introducing the male into the female's tank for one day of the breeding season at a time. So in a way, she will be in quarantine for her whole life :p Thanks for your help everyone, I am saving this page as a file to my computer for reference :) Thanks!

[SnowSnake]

but dont do that before the female is <u>at least</u> 10 months old.

[Emily-Fisher]

I am waiting until she is 14-16 months old.

[HQReptiles]

Emily,

As long as both are mature and of good body weight you shouldnt have a problem. Notes above about wound treatment should work fine.

Matt.

[Emily-Fisher]

Thanks everyone! Ithink that in a year, I will be ready to breed :p