Warning on breeding! ~attn: graphic pics~

Matt · 01-23-03, 06:26 PM

well. I got this female rootbeer cornsnake from a breeder in the states a little while back.
She was sold to me as an adult, but when i recieved her, I realized she was too small to breed, so i didnt pair her up.

BUT, aparently, he had already bred her this season and when it was time to lay, since she was too small she became egg bound.

I contacted him and appartently he negelected to tell me she had been bred. I guess its a loss i have to take!

This was the first egg, she never got it out past this point.

Over night, she had died, so i decided to try and save the eggs. I got them all out ok, and they looked good. But unfortunately, they didnt make it past their first week.

Anyways, just wanted to put this up as a reminder to be patient to breed, wait 'til your snakes are of good size and dont push it....it'll do more harm than good!

cheers

BoidKeeper · 01-23-03, 06:39 PM

That truely is tragic. I agree with you this post does serve as a warning and a deterent to those who are thinking about pushing there luck and try to breed before the snake is ready. I've read that eggs that are removed and not laid never hatch because they are lacking a coating of bacteria that they receive while being laid naturally.
Good pics.
Trevor

Simon · 01-23-03, 08:16 PM

Yes this is a really really true warning. This is such a tragic to a beautiful snake like this. But remember and MAKE SURE YOU ARE NOT PUSHING THE SNAKE TO BREED FOR YOU!!!

Besides breeding all these little snakes out, you might not even be able to sell these snakes out. So remember not to breed snakes too early!!!!

Matt I do feel really bad for you. Sorry about the loss!!!

Tim_Cranwill · 01-23-03, 10:37 PM

That is truly sad

Thank you for posting though. I'm sure it will be a heads up to many of us 1st time breeders to take it nice and slow.

Can you tell us any more info about the snake's age, weight, length and etc?

Thanks,
Tim Cranwill

eyespy · 01-24-03, 06:20 AM

Thank you for giving us such an eloquent warning. I am very sorry for the loss of such a beautiful girl, and quite angered at that breeder. He should have known better! and now everyone suffers the results.

Dom · 01-24-03, 06:32 AM

sory to hear Matt..

Very tragic loos but I got to say .. they make for interesting pictures..

Take
care

Matt · 01-24-03, 09:42 AM

Trevor, ya, I heard the same thing about being coated when the eggs come out, Im not sure if anyone has had any luck with cutting them out, and I certainly didnt expect anything, but I gave it a shot anyways

Cranwill, This happened relivitely soon after I got her, so i never got a chance to weigh her, and not totally sure of the age, but i expect she was a little under 2 years old (probably a little too young for most corns to breed). as for length, she was close to 24", maybe a little more.
here is a pic of her full size, use the tools as a size comparison.

thanks for all your condolences

Dino · 01-24-03, 09:44 AM

Thank you for sharing your your hardship. I hope that your loss serves as a warning for others.

Truely Sorry
Dino

MidnightIris · 01-24-03, 09:57 AM

This should serve as a warning to others. It's selfish and not worth a corn's life to breed them too soon just to try and make more money.

Very sorry for your loss, she was a very beautiful little snake.

vanderkm · 01-24-03, 10:00 AM

So sorry to hear about the loss of this female, she was very lovely. Just wanted to mention that it is not only snakes that are bred too young that can have problems with egg binding. Females can produce eggs and have problems with egg binding even if never exposed to a male. We had it happen with a two year old corn and other people have had the same experience so it pays to keep tabs on your females - we handle ours at least weekly to make sure we notice if there is egg development and we can be watching them. In some cases the eggs will be re-abosorbed, but it is better to be aware of the potential for problems.

mary v.

gonesnakee · 01-24-03, 01:44 PM

As Mary V. has already mentioned a female does not have to be with a male to produce eggs & become eggbound. They do it all on their own sometimes. In this case judging by the eggs, I would say that she was bred though, as the eggs look like they could have been fertile if not for being retained too long. This does not mean that it was an intentional breeding. Most people don't hesitate to keep corns together. OK for babies, OK for adults, bad idea for adolesents. "Teenage" snakes are like teenage boys & they start having sex at the first chance they get. They cannot be trusted "alone" with young females. There have been many breedings that have taken place as a result of the snakes owner not housing adolesent snakes seperate, as in my opinion (& many others) all snakes should be seperate other than for breeding purposes. Many people house a bunch together not realizing that they are putting the young females at risk. The males will breed them & the possibility of egg binding a smaller female is very real. Most pet owners don't realize the risks they are even running by keeping young males & females together. I hope my input helps save somebodys snake because I know whats its like to lose one from eggbinding & I don't want to have any one else (or their snakes!) have to go thru it for no reason.
Mark IsBell - GONE SNAKEE!

Katt · 01-24-03, 02:10 PM

In my opinion that breeder murdered that corn.

snake_lover · 01-24-03, 02:30 PM

Sorry to hear about the loss man..

Linds · 01-24-03, 03:29 PM

Sorry for your loss. Poor little girl

So sad someone would even condsider putting the animals welfare at stake like that, all for a chance at producing babies a year earlier...slow and steady wins the race...

Kathy · 01-24-03, 03:50 PM

From what it sounds like she probably wasnt bred intentionally. Had she bee, then he wouldnt have wanted to sell her until she had laid her eggs, so that he would get the clutch. Why else would he risk the snakes life just to turn around and sell it, and not even mention that she may be gravid?