Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I was wondering how many people here slit there eggs after the first baby pips, and how many leave them alone and let the babies open the eggs themselves. If you slit, how do you go about making sure you don't injure the hatchling inside?

Tracy Barker writes in their book that she always slits any eggs that haven't already pipped on their own on day 55. I do the same.

The trick to avoiding hatchling injury is to keep the tip of the scissors (I use fine manicure scissors) pointed upward, not down into the egg. There is a nice series of photos in the book demonstrating proper technique.

Once again, I think everyone who attempts to breed balls should buy the Barkers' book.
-----
Brad Chambers
WWW.HCU-TX.ORG

The Avalanche has already started-it is too late for the pebbles to vote....

A good resource for "tools" for slitting eggs is a disection kit. I use the tweezers to pinch a piece of egg to make the initial cut and then cut upward, not in, just like the previous poster mentioned. (after the first one pips of course).

They also make several kinds of disection scissors that are helpful, blunt nose and so forth, that help to avoid issues when cutting.

My 2 cents.
-----
John Dague
M.W. Reptiles
www.mwreptiles.com

And I use the same techniques mentioned above.

If the others have pipped then yeah - go ahead and cut.

Candle the egg - find a spot away from the baby and where there aren't any veins if it's dented already thats usually where I find it safest to start otherwise pinch a bit of the egg together and make a small slit - from there you carefully put your scissor in and angle the blade so you are cutting up out of the egg not down into it.

Good luck!
-----
Tosha
JET Pythons

I dont breed BPs yet, but i do breed many corns.... after the first 24 hours or more of the first pippie.... i usually use nail clippers....
: )
~kin
-----
~Sober Serpents~
www.freewebs.com/soberserpents
Corns, Creamsicles, A Black Rat, Thayeri, Cal Kings, A Jungle Corn(Just A Pet), A Ball Python, A Bearded dragon, Leopard Geckos, Green Anoles, a Snapping turtle, and a white cheeked mud turtle

I cut whole clutch after the first pips. I pinch the loose part of the shell and cut a sliver the entire length if the egg. I have been known to cut a clutch at 48-50 days if I just can't wait to see if their is something "special" inside!!!
-----
Bill Buchman

I have not had any eggs but if I did, I would slit them...actually I would take an oval window off them...so they can breath when they want too!
Check out youtubes videos from Prehistoric pets...he takes a razor blade and does a ton off eggs...you may get the hang of it just by watching as I think I have.

Andy
-----

don't slit.......

if you have to ask how to do it...don't.....

and at times one baby will pop out a few days early and the rest will not come out for 3,,,4,,,even more days......

I wait till half or more pip......

......
-----
......

If you haven't done it before check out prehistoric pets you tube videos. Looks scary but there is plenty of room in the egg for the snake to hide. Just take a little off the top.

Just take a little off the top.

Last time I said that I was being drafted. You KNOW what they did with that don'tcha?

As for slitting, I haven't had that decision to make yet either, but unless I suspected trouble I think I'd let them pip on their own.

Quig

and killed all kinds of stuff..

but the razor blade thought almost scares me...

small scissors....really small and sharp ones......pointy too........

.......
-----
......

Trist me I was scared to but I find it much easier to open a decent sized hole to look inside the egg. It's all in the wrist!

everything else you might have been scared or nervous about doing. Once you've cut the first egg, the rest is a piece of cake. It is fun to watch them pip on their own, but I have no patience........ I'm a cutter.

Wayne

Helps to have relatives in med/surg.
I'll be slitting 5 Friday night.