Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a female who is extremely gravid, and due to drop her eggs any day now. I mentioned before that I evacuated...Well, I'm still not home, and I did get the snake out of the house. She's set up, she's warm, and she also looks and is acting like she's going to lay soon. Problem is...I won't be able to get home for at least another day, maybe even not til the end of the week.

What should I do if she drops them while I'm here? I was not able to fit my incubator into my truck with the animals and my belongings, so that was left behind. I'm hoping that with some substrate between her and the heatpad, if she does lay, they won't be in direct contact with the heat. I do not have my tempgun with me (I left in a very big hurry and didn't remember to grab it), so I don't know exactly what temp my snakes are at. I'm adjusting the rheostat based on what side of the tub they stay on, and while I found an adequate setting, I don't know for sure if it's the 88-90 degrees the eggs would need.

Also...transporting the eggs, if they do come. Any suggestions?

Thanks!

~jenny
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"Polysyllabism in no way insures that what you're saying is actually worth being heard." - Blake (an e-friend of mine)

"I have never made but one prayer to god, a very short one: "O lord, make my enemies ridiculous." And he granted it." - Voltaire

I am sure you are doing all you can at this point in time. I know alot of people have said that eggs are alot tougher than we think. Best of luck. Stay safe and I hope your female maybe waits a few more days for you.

you could go to a wal mart and get a cooler, shoebox, and aquarium heater. fill the bottom of the water cooler and submerge the heater. get a small bag of vermiculite also. you can set it up pretty close to ideal until then. Good luck, and if any of you guys need anything, let us know. We can't help with much, but if you need something one of us could help with, we would be glad to.
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Happy Herping,
Jody Barnes
Royal Kreationz

>>you could go to a wal mart and get a cooler, shoebox, and aquarium heater. fill the bottom of the water cooler and submerge the heater. get a small bag of vermiculite also. you can set it up pretty close to ideal until then. Good luck, and if any of you guys need anything, let us know. We can't help with much, but if you need something one of us could help with, we would be glad to.
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>>Happy Herping,
>>Jody Barnes
>>Royal Kreationz

I like that idea...get an indoor/outdoor thermometer and set/maintain your temps with it.

Good luck Jenny,with everything.These fires are of a biblical proportion,and we all hope you will still have a home to return to!
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Charles Glaspie

I hope she waits for you but one option is to let her incubate them . Her cage temp will need to be 80-85 so she can regulate temps. High humidity will be needed if you elect to do this, You have to come up with a thermometer of some kind! These animals have been reproducing for a long time without our help! I hope everything works out!

Jenny,

Keeping mom & her eggs from over-heating, over-cooling, over-drying, and overly wet conditions sound like the goals here. I would have to agree that maternal incubation sounds like your best bet. What are you keeping your gravid female in while you are evacuated from home? A sweater box?

As for your concern that she might lay her eggs directly over the heat source, is there any way you could rig the heat source to a side of her enclosure? It isn't as nice as belly heat, but you can prevent her from cooking on it a little easier.

I really think that if she should happen to lay now, the most complicated thing you could do to yourself would be to separate mom from eggs & try to manage temps and humidity for all your reptiles PLUS a clutch of incubating eggs.

Best of luck to you and your entire menagerie!
~Rebecca
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1.0.0 Dumeril's Boa '04
1.1.1 Ball Pythons
[1.0.0 '05 Orange Hypo (Specter)]
[0.1.0 '05 Het Orange Hypo (Sylvia)]
[0.0.1 '03 Normal (Sue)]
0.2 American Pit Bull Terriers (40lb darling lap dogs:Brandy&Mara)

Very good post!

I would agree with you here 100%, the last thing shre needs now is to complicate things even more.

~np

Thanks for the responses, everyone!

I think, should the need arise, I'll let her incubate them. I have her in a sweaterbox right now with some coconut husk bedding that stays moderately moist, but not wet. I brought my heat pads and heat cable, so if she does lay, the suggestion to rig the heat to the side is a good one, and I'll just use some electrical tape to tape cable to the side, instead of her heat pad.

So far, so good. The day before I evacuated, she was coiling perfectly with her tail in the middle, and she was thick by the vent... She's actually stopped coiling like that, and is mostly just hanging out in a loose O shape on the warm side. I think I'm going to luck out and not have to worry about moving mom and eggs when I go back home.

I might be able to go home tomorrow, got word from neighbors that our house/street is still standing and in comparatively good shape. We were right in the middle of three fires, but it looks like all the ones around us except Witch Creek are under control. Phew!

Funny anecdote - I'm staying at my boyfriend's house, along with a couple of his friends and one of his mom's friends, who evacuated from Fallbrook. In the rush to get the animals out, I forgot my snakes' water bowls, so every morning I've been giving them all a quick soak for the chance to drink. The best part?
Picture this: A nice, lavender themed bathroom, with a huge claw footed bathtub and old-fashioned faucet. The bathtub is huge and elegant...and that's where my snakes get to take their morning dip. My boyfriend's mom suggested that tub because it's actually used the least for bathing.
It definately makes me giggle.

Hope everyone else is doing just as well!

~jenny
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"Polysyllabism in no way insures that what you're saying is actually worth being heard." - Blake (an e-friend of mine)

"I have never made but one prayer to god, a very short one: "O lord, make my enemies ridiculous." And he granted it." - Voltaire