Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a pair that I started breeding earlier this season. I pulled out the male when I noticed he has the start of an RI. The female is still perfectly healthy a month after I pulled out the male, and the male was only in with her for a week and showed no interest.

Although the female looks fine and the cage is clean, would it still be safe to put a different healthy male in with her or could she carry the bacteria and I am putting another male at risk by doing this? If it were any of you, how long would you quarantine the female for before feeling it was safe to breed? (the female never showed any signs of RI)

Thanks,

Mat

I wouldn't be as concerned with breeding as I would "HOW" one of my animals acquired RI.
Maybe I have different priorities or something ??

>>I have a pair that I started breeding earlier this season. I pulled out the male when I noticed he has the start of an RI. The female is still perfectly healthy a month after I pulled out the male, and the male was only in with her for a week and showed no interest.
>>
>>Although the female looks fine and the cage is clean, would it still be safe to put a different healthy male in with her or could she carry the bacteria and I am putting another male at risk by doing this? If it were any of you, how long would you quarantine the female for before feeling it was safe to breed? (the female never showed any signs of RI)
>>
>>Thanks,
>>
>>Mat
>>
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TnK

The male with the RI is my friend's snake which I borrowed only to pair up with my female. The snake had just recovered (or it never went away) from the RI prior to me pairing them up before showing symptoms again. It had nothing to do with my care or husbandry, and my female never caught the RI. So, the main question is about my female, not my friend's male, and thoughts about one of my males being introduced to her.

Thanks,

Mat

That makes more sense
There was no mention of treating/treatment of the RI,it appeared to be breed at all costs,be damned with the sick snake.

Good luck with it !

>>The male with the RI is my friend's snake which I borrowed only to pair up with my female. The snake had just recovered (or it never went away) from the RI prior to me pairing them up before showing symptoms again. It had nothing to do with my care or husbandry, and my female never caught the RI. So, the main question is about my female, not my friend's male, and thoughts about one of my males being introduced to her.
>>
>>Thanks,
>>
>>Mat
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TnK

I would still wonder why the friends snake was put in with yours shortly after being sick. And no quarantine? I realize they were a friend, but any animal entering or re-entering a collection should be quarantined.

The stress could have killed the male, and your female may have gotten sick.

Personally I'd say you got lucky this time, and I would take it as a learning experience.
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I understand I should have quarantined the male longer before introducing her, but we all make mistakes.

My main question is how should I feel about the female? It has been almost two months and still seems perfectly healthy. How long should I quarantine her (since she did come in contact with the male) before I can be certain she is 100% fine and not a carrier of the bacteria? My vet said it is a personal preference and there is no set time/garantee so I am wondering everyone else's opinion on it.

Thanks,

Mat

I think what TnK is getting at is that ALMOST all RIs are husbandry related in some way or another, whether it be inappropriate temp/humidity or direct stress. Practice good hygiene, cage cleaning, and quarantine of new ones and I think you'll be fine. I think it's entirely possible that the male may not have been ready to breed and became stressed by the female, just a thought. I don't see why you couldn't try a different male in with the female, just continue with good hygienic practices as always.

I agree with the above. I'm pretty sure they're (captive snakes)all latent carriers. It's just a matter of stress factors, whether environmental or psychological, that compromise the immune system, allowing for the latent pathogens to rage out of control.
Without seeing the snakes and the situation its hard to say.
My unqualified opinion is that it's probably OK, if you keep a close eye on things.
jsc
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"As hard as I've tried, just can't NOT do this"
John Crickmer