Actual mating

serpent · #1 (**permalink**) 10-20-2003, 12:41 AM

I have put my 4 year old Hogs together and the male is all over the female like a bad rash

His tail is wrapped around her's almost 24/7. This has been going on for about 2 weeks now BUT I have not seen an actual copulation

As I have them on newspaper, will the male leave a "mess" (cant think of a nice word to use

) for me to see when he has done the dirty deed ?
Do I have to do anything once she is pregnant,other than turning the temp up slightly and giving her smaller food ?
Could anyone recomend a good reference book to read up on breeding boas ?
Thank you

Ed_r · #2 (**permalink**) 10-20-2003, 01:07 AM

LMAO!!!!

Well the tail wrapping your seeing is pretty much copulation. Snakes are actually fairly neat, when they do their deeds.

As far as the female is concerned, Do you know if she has ovulated? Just because they copulate, doesn't mean she will be gravid. Now as far as temps go, DO NOT raise her temps any higher than normal. Max 88 on the hot side is fine. As far as food size goes, it all depends on the female. I had one that ate like a hog through the entire pregnancy, to the point i thought she wan't gravid. I had another female that refused ALL food for almost the entire pregnancy. It is in the snakes best interest to be feed the same way through the pregnancy, if she will eat. Birth takes a tremendous amount out of a female snake. Thats why you need to make sure the female is of very good weight.

As far as a good book on the subject, look for "The Reproductive Husbandry of Pythons and Boas" by Richard Ross and Gerald Marzec. I found mine on Ebay, think i paid $25.00 for it.

Good Luck!!!

Welcome to RTB!!!

telefrag · #3 (**permalink**) 10-20-2003, 02:08 AM

if you want to be really hardcore about it, you can swab up some of that coital fluid and take it to a vet to see if it is fertile um... stuff.
but you have to do that shortly after copulation for it to be accurate.

serpent · #4 (**permalink**) 10-21-2003, 01:19 PM

Thanks for replying. I havent see her ovulating, just "getting it"....large portions of it

As for feeding ,this has got to be the greediest snake on the planet. When I defrost mice for my other snakes she is up the front wanting some and will stike at me through the glass if I come within a few feet of the viv but is like a little baby when I get her out. (Thats her name "Baby" but I must add that out of the 28 snakes that I have she is the ONLY one with a name

)I feed her 1 med rat every other week and I would say that she is slightly over weight She is/was 6ft 10 last time that i measured her. I dont want to stuff her to the limit as i have read that this can effect breeding.

Thanks again

louise · #5 (**permalink**) 10-21-2003, 04:06 PM

i have a question> if the snake strikes the glass at you how do you ever get it out without being bitten?

hottie · #6 (**permalink**) 10-21-2003, 05:19 PM

wel you could try to wiggle youre hand on one side let it look at that direction and then with the other hand you can gently grab him/her i did it like that with some snakes and they do get a little calm they will start to strike less.it could work or it wont you never know

LdyDrgn · #7 (**permalink**) 10-21-2003, 06:36 PM

Are you still feeding then while they are trying to breed?

serpent · #8 (**permalink**) 10-30-2003, 12:39 AM

When I want get her out i just open the cage and pick her up !!!!!! EXCEPT on feeding day then I open the cage and stroke her head with a hook so that she knows that I'm not food then pick her up.
I picked her up today or rather tried to, for the first time since i've had her (4 years) she tried to get away

. It was like she didnt want to leave her boyfriend

I have stopped feeding them for the moment ,I havent fed them for 5 weeks now.

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