... and hopefully there is a picture. If not I will post when I figure out the sizing thing. Eight good eggs dropped on the 10th. Could be a REALLY sweet hatch -- Butter X C.H. Het Red. Odds are in my favor with number of eggs -- if she is what she appears to be. She is even prettier in person. Prove out a morph and make a new combo in a single clutch? I won't know until the first week in April... but I have a good feeling!!! I'm not worried about jinxing it because I hope to be a breeder that believes not in luck, but in ODDS!!! The genotype and alleles will rule the day --you win some and you lose some.
P.S. I know there are a lot of folks with me trying to navigate our first year of breeding. I feel your pain!!! There is a lot to be aware of. My biggest problem continues to be that I don't know what I am looking at/looking for. Sheds, glowing, ovulations, cooling, building, -- all the behaviors that add up to successful breeding. I am writing a lot down and taking loads of pictures. I am sure I will look back and it will make more sense, but right now it's just a blur. Some months back I was talking with a well- known breeder relaying my concerns (O.K. I admit it -- I was freaking-out) about whether I could breed snakes. His reply was "It's not that difficult, but there are MANY things to consider. Boy, was he ever right on both counts!!!!
P.P.S. Stats on pairing for everyone who is wondering what the "numbers" are for everyone else pairng snake. I know I find myself saying "What would everyone with more experience do? That, of course, is pretty much almost everybody!!!
-Butter -- late 06/early 07 I forget his exact hatch date -- 1200 grams -- a real stud -- covering 10-12 girls this season --5 have already ovulated.
-Het Red??? 1600-1700 grams -- post birth 1070
-clutch weight 700 grams
- observed locks -- 4 over a six week period I haven't figured out palpating yet so pair 2-3 times per month until female BOTH stops eating AND refuses 3 of males breeding rotations -- ovulation is usually not far away.
Flying By The Seat of My Pants...
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Bill Buchman
