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In my limited JC experience I have experienced problems with a couple of JC specimens that I would consider to be birth or genetic defects. In both cases the specimens were Albino JC's from JC to JC breeding. The one was quite obviously deformed & had to be euthanized as it would not eat & was really "hooped" physically. I was surprised that it was alive still. The other was eating but would "regurge" 4/5 meals, sometimes 3-4 days after ingesting them. After I got it to start keeping them down I thought it may be alright, but then a new problem arose. The poor little sucker could keep a pinkie down, but now it's stomach quit working. It had ate & passed meals before but now it couldn't "pass" food. The meal was observed going down, but stayed in the gut area & didn't appear to digest at all. The snake was not "bunged up" with anything as it was housed on shop towels & didn't ingest anything other than the pinkie mouse. As the second week approached the snake appearred all fine & dandy except for the large, undigested bulge in it's gut. I tried a second pinkie in hopes it would push the first thru, or maybe the snake would puke them both up. I knew the meal left sitting in it's gut wouldn't be good for it much longer. Unfortunately the snake puked the "new" mouse, but the orginal "stuck" meal remained. Despite handling, massaging, bathing the specimen repeatedly, the meal remained, unmoving in her gut. Over the period of a couple weeks the "meal" that "didn't move" was affecting the snake's health (obviously!) I couldn't bring myself to euthanize her, as I had contemplated it before when she kept puking, but decided againest it once she started keeping them down, that is until the new problem arose. She was getting thinner & lethargic & was beginning to suffer so I decided to do it. I waited too late though because she was dead that morning. I wish I would have done it sooner now to have prevented her suffering, but I was still hoping to save her life. As usual hindsights 20/20 & I feel I made her suffer longer than she should have. Deciding to euthanize is a hard decision & I won't do it unless I'm 99.999% sure that the snake is going to suffer before it "dies anyway". Back to the thread topic though, there may be some truth to genetic malformities in hybrids, but the same problems the specimens above had, have been recorded in "pure" corns etc. also so who knows. I do think that it was worth mentioning though as both specimens were Albino Jungle Corns, but this will not deter me from my JC breeding now or in the future though as I feel that the same can happen to specimens from any clutch, but I do beleive that the Albino specimens, no matter what species, are genetically "weaker" than normals of the same (just my opinion though). Hopefully this offers some additional insight to the topic (be it for either side). I myself love the JC's & hope to produce lots of healthy specimens this year. Mark IsBell - GONE SNAKEE!
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Mark's GONE SNAKEE! working with select Colubrids (Corns, GB Kings, EIs) and Woma Pythons
All stock parasite free and established on F/T prey. No PMs please email at gonesnakee@shaw.ca
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