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Leasha
Hatchling
Netherlands
246 Posts |
 Posted - 07/05/2014 : 15:38:37
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Hey! My eggs should hatch this week!
Is there anything I need to know about hatchlings / what to do when they hatch?
I have little snake tub thingies ready with snakebedding and a tiny bowl for water in each tub (should be getting 20 hatchling if all the eggs hatch)
What im expecting is to find baby snakes in my incubator and im planning to just take them out and place them in their tubs?
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SilverWings
Yearling
United Kingdom
740 Posts |
Posted - 07/05/2014 : 16:06:16
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Once they pip they can take up to 24 hours to actually come out of the egg, so don't rush them. When they do come out you will most likely find an empty shell and no initial sign of the baby. It will burrow it's way down into your incubating medium to hide in the warm. The first thing I did was pick them up (very carefully, they were so tiny), weigh them, and put them in their container with their hides and water. They will shed within a week, then you can think about offering a first meal. Some of mine struck right away, some had to be left with it overnight, and others proved a lot more difficult to get eating and I had to get creative. In fact one of mine (now 9 months old) has only started eating in the last month.
You might find some of the babies come out of the egg with the umbilicus still attached. I freaked out when I first saw this, but do not worry. Put the baby in it's box with some moist kitchen roll, and the umbilicus should drop off by itself within a day. I would suggest keeping all babies on only kitchen roll until you are sure they are pooping as they should, then if you want to give them bedding (not essential, it is easier to clean them out with only kitchen roll), I personally would recommend chips over shredded aspen. The aspen is easier for them to accidentally swallow.
They will grow very fast once they start eating, so make sure you have a contingency plan if they don't all sell right away. I have had to upgrade mine a few times, one at about 6 weeks old (from a 0.75 litre box to a 3 litre box), and once at 6 months old (from the 3 litre to a 10 litre). Two of the larger ones I still have have been given a 11 litre box now because they're getting huge.
Make sure you keep good records. As soon as mine hatched,their box was labelled with their number and genetics, and a matching card was labelled with their number, genetics, weight and date of birth. This is also where I keep shedding and eating records. These are useful for giving to new owners, you can record things like does the baby strike it's food or is does it prefer it overnight? Was the food scented with anything? |
2.2.3 Corn snakes; Red, Rosie, Liana, Checkers, Luna, Diego, Snowman
1.0 Taiwanese Beauty Snake; Aleron
1.0 Green Anoles; Doug
1.0 Greyhound; Lee |
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Leasha
Hatchling
Netherlands
246 Posts |
Posted - 07/05/2014 : 18:23:30
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Right! Thank you for the info, very usefull :)
Im head of reptiles and amphibs at my uni so thankfully space and money isnt a issue ( I get awesome funds if I presentate a good plan)
The record keeping thing is a great idea and im definitley going to make some sort of logbook for them.
Im really excited as its my first time breeding snakes and it will be good practise for when I breed with my own snakeys :D
Im a little worried though, I have been looking at pictures and my eggs look a lot more dented than the ones I see on here @.@
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SilverWings
Yearling
United Kingdom
740 Posts |
Posted - 07/05/2014 : 18:29:50
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| Apparently it's natural for them to dent a little just before hatching, but mine did the opposite, they swelled up massively. One actually burst :/ Baby was fine though. If you are worried you could spread a little damp sphagnum moss over them (not sure whta they're on at the moment, I found vermiculite by itself wasn't good enough, so I had vermiculite as a base then a thin layer of moss on top). |
2.2.3 Corn snakes; Red, Rosie, Liana, Checkers, Luna, Diego, Snowman
1.0 Taiwanese Beauty Snake; Aleron
1.0 Green Anoles; Doug
1.0 Greyhound; Lee |
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Leasha
Hatchling
Netherlands
246 Posts |
Posted - 07/05/2014 : 18:43:00
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They are on vermiculite at the moment. Its at 85-90% humidity within the incubator so im sure its fine :0
I wonder why some swell up and others do the opposite o.o |
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Hatching soon! Anything I need to know?
