the color change, or 'glow' as it relates to egg laying, is the first visible sign that your breeding is paying off. it doesn't happen out of the blue, there are other clues you can watch for. after you have done this for awhile, you will notice females that get 'puffy', just a little soft and a little fatter than normal. if you pick this up correctly, there is a mid-body bump when you slide her through your hands. this is the bb sized follicles, bunched up like grapes. the snake is probably still feeding well at this time. the next shed is key, she should come out of the shed with 'the glow', a noticiably lighter color, and in a few days, small pea sized follicles strung out past her midsection. this is the time, if you are still breeding, to pour on the male. those small follicles might grow quickley or slowly, so more breeding can't hurt. as the follicles grow, the snake will become less interested in food, a good clue is killing but not eating the rat. the follicles swell up to the size of ping pong balls. at this size they are easiest to count accurately. the snake will rarely reabsorb the follicles at this point, but the next sign seals the deal. the snake will develop a midbody lump, the pre-ovulation swell. at this point, i have never had a snake reabsorb follicles, or eat again until after the eggs are laid. after this is textbook, ovulation, 3 1/2 weeks to prelay shed, 30 days till eggs are laid. but paying attention to the smaller signals and understanding what they mean is good stuff to learn. hope that helps, kurt d.

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