| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| SexyBear77 |
Posted - 02/06/2011 : 20:33:49
Firstly, stay calm. Leave her a period of time to ensure she has laid all the eggs- any still to come should be clearly visible as lumps towards her back end. If you disturb her too soon she may decide to hang onto them, which can cause problems.
You need to decide whether the eggs are fertile or infertile- fertile eggs should be white, plump and slightly soft under a very gentle touch. Infertile eggs are normally yellow or brown, misshapen, hard and small. Have a look at the photo below (not mine)-
The infertile egg is the bottom right one, the rest are good.
If the eggs are fertile, read on for what to do with them. If not, put the eggs in the bin and keep an eye on the female for further eggs or problems. Treat her the same as if the eggs were fertile.
If you are not sure about your eggs then post up a picture, or incubate them anyway. Infertile eggs will soon go mouldy and start to smell.
Now, you have a few choices as to what to do with the fertile eggs-
1. put them in the freezer. This will "kill" them. Don't worry, the unborn snakes are barely more than cells atm and will feel no pain.
2. take them to a local reptile shop and see of they will take them from you to incubate themselves
3. see if you can find a local keeper willing to have them and incubate them
(both the above options can result in total handing over of the eggs, you getting a share back or you getting all back- depends on the person)
4. incubate them yourselves.
Whatever you choose, when moving the eggs, make sure you don't turn them! This can cause the yolk to suffocate the embryo. If need be, mark the eggs very carefully with a pencil line so you know which is the right side up.
For making an incubator you will need-
a polystyrene box, available from fishmongers or nice reptile shops
a suitably sized heatmat, ideally to cover the base of the above box
a stat, on/off will do
digital thermometer
some sort of egg box with lid (tupperware is great) with a few small holes in the lid
a medium for the eggs- sphagnum moss or vermiculite, both from garden centers
hygrometer for measuring humidity (optional)
Put the mat into the bottom of the box.
Attach the stat, plug in, set to around 28c.
In goes thermometer.
Whilst heating up, half fill the egg box with the moss or vermiculite, which should be dampened, but not wet. When squeezed, it should not yield too many drips of water.
Put the eggs in the box, in a clump if need be, pushed slightly into the medium.
Put the lid on the box. If need be, stick the box into the viv on a heatmat for the time being. The incubator wants to be at around 28c with the lid ON- bear in mind that polystyrene is very insulating, and the temp inside the box may exceed by far what the stat dial says. Play around to get it spot on. Temp should not exceed 30c.
Humidity should be around 90%+
When happy, put the egg box into the incubator on something to raise it up- a cake rack, polystyrene blocks, whatever. You don't want the box directly on top of the mat. Put the lid on the incubator, take a deep breath and have a cup of tea.
Eggs will take around 60 days to hatch, sometimes more and sometimes less. Usually eggs take longer to hatch at lower temps. Once a week open the egg box to allow an exchange of air. The eggs should remain plump, white and the box should be showing condensation.If they are starting to dry and shrivel up its probably too dry. Wet the medium, not the eggs, with water at the same temp of the incubator- this will stop the embryos being shocked by cold water. If the eggs start to go mouldy its maybe too wet.
Offer the female something small to eat a few hours after she has finished laying. Offer a small food item more frequently than normal until she regains her lost condition.
If the female is living with a male, or another cagemate of any sex, I strongly recommend you split them up. Always leave the laying female in the existing setup to avoid stress and complications- set up a new load of equipment for the other snake, and move that one.
Any probs, get back on here.
Good luck. |
| 10 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Cuddles |
Posted - 01/11/2015 : 16:18:00
Hi guys I'm new to the forum and keeping snakes, firstly I have 3, kings which I will post photos when I get used to the site. I also have 4, corns again I will post photos later. I had 5 corns but lost 1, the female who laid 17, eggs late June, I got 9 babies, first hatched 1st October, but they have not fed yet, I have tried changing the heat, offering food every few days. The oldest 1, looked like it was going to bite but after 4tries give up, is there any suggestions please |
| Lee |
Posted - 28/07/2013 : 21:32:46
Separate as soon as you know and keep apart. They should not be living together unless you want more but the females health would be of concern to me, I think one clutch a year would be enough, she would need to rebuild her strength and fatten up again. She may drop another clutch anyway even if kept separate.
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| kelly x |
Posted - 28/07/2013 : 21:16:31
Out of curiosity,how long would you have to keep the male away from the female? and would you keep them together up until the female is about to lay the eggs or separate them as soon as you know the female has started to develop the eggs? thanks x |
| Sw1fty84 |
Posted - 11/06/2013 : 17:35:01
Well they dnt look fertile to me but ill get a thread up with a pic of them all |
| ScalySituation |
Posted - 11/06/2013 : 16:25:27
I was under the impression that slugs didn't stick to the rest..?
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| Sw1fty84 |
Posted - 11/06/2013 : 13:53:25
Rite I've got a clutch that has infertile eggs mixed in but some of them are in the middle of the pile! How do I remove these without damaging the good eggs?? |
| gingerpony |
Posted - 02/06/2011 : 21:34:05
beat me to it G 
nice one SB  |
| SexyBear77 |
Posted - 02/06/2011 : 20:51:13
Cheers!! |
| gmac |
Posted - 02/06/2011 : 20:46:11
nice one Sexybear
stickied |
| Newbie |
Posted - 02/06/2011 : 20:40:38
Very informative SB, great guide |
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