Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ok, this is my northern female that i believe to be gravid. what do yall think?? over the last week or so it seems as if the "fatness" in the back portion of her body has moved further down. so im keeping my fingers crossed. the anticipation is killing me!!! haha

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0.0.1 albino burmese
0.1.0 normal burmese
0.0.1 redtail boa
1.0.0 albino corn
1.1.0 leopard geckos
1.2.0 copperheads
1.0.0 green iguana
0.0.1 veiled chameleon
2.1.0 ball pythons
0.0.1 mexican red knee tarantula
0.0.1 emperor scorpion

another pic

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0.0.1 albino burmese
0.1.0 normal burmese
0.0.1 redtail boa
1.0.0 albino corn
1.1.0 leopard geckos
1.2.0 copperheads
1.0.0 green iguana
0.0.1 veiled chameleon
2.1.0 ball pythons
0.0.1 mexican red knee tarantula
0.0.1 emperor scorpion

and another

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0.0.1 albino burmese
0.1.0 normal burmese
0.0.1 redtail boa
1.0.0 albino corn
1.1.0 leopard geckos
1.2.0 copperheads
1.0.0 green iguana
0.0.1 veiled chameleon
2.1.0 ball pythons
0.0.1 mexican red knee tarantula
0.0.1 emperor scorpion

Have you probed this snake?
From the last picture, it looks like a male.

Randal Berry

I have not personally probed the snake but the guy who gave it to me was certain it was a gravid female. But you know how that goes, could be could not be. I guess only time will tell if it is gravid. If it doesn't drop within a month or so, I'll borrow some probes from a friend. I don't have any probes anymore since I quit breeding corn snakes. I'm really hoping it is a gravid female because it will be a first for me. I'll keep ya updated.
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0.0.1 albino burmese
0.1.0 normal burmese
0.0.1 redtail boa
1.0.0 albino corn
1.1.0 leopard geckos
1.2.0 copperheads
1.0.0 green iguana
0.0.1 veiled chameleon
2.1.0 ball pythons
0.0.1 mexican red knee tarantula
0.0.1 emperor scorpion

Randal, I'd say your dead right. Its a male......TC

what are some tell tell things that distinguish a male between a female without probing??
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0.0.1 albino burmese
0.1.0 normal burmese
0.0.1 redtail boa
1.0.0 albino corn
1.1.0 leopard geckos
1.2.0 copperheads
1.0.0 green iguana
0.0.1 veiled chameleon
2.1.0 ball pythons
0.0.1 mexican red knee tarantula
0.0.1 emperor scorpion

The length and the taper of the tail from the cloaca.
Males have longer tails that taper than females. However, if you could post a pic of the snakes ventor I could tell for sure, however, by that last photo (#3), I would guess it's a male.
Randal

ok I'll get some pics as soon as I can. I also got a new set of probes coming this week so I can sex it.
Thanks for y'alls input it is greatly appreciated.
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0.0.1 albino burmese
0.1.0 normal burmese
0.0.1 redtail boa
1.0.0 albino corn
1.1.0 leopard geckos
1.2.0 copperheads
1.0.0 green iguana
0.0.1 veiled chameleon
2.1.0 ball pythons
0.0.1 mexican red knee tarantula
0.0.1 emperor scorpion

I agree, if it were a gravid female, that bulge would be a lot further down towards the cloaca, somewhere near the second beige area from the tip of the tail. Seems too far up the body to be babies. I could be wrong though.
When's the last time the snake defecated? If it's a male, I'd be concerned about poo retention with a bulge like that. Might want to swim the snake in warm water for a while. A recently ingested meal should sit higher up than that bulge, and babies would sit lower than that.
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Tom

"The more people I meet, the more I like my snakes"

I've never had to deal with poo retention. What would he the best way to go about swimming the snake in warm water? And how long do I need to keep it in the water?
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0.0.1 albino burmese
0.1.0 normal burmese
0.0.1 redtail boa
1.0.0 albino corn
1.1.0 leopard geckos
1.2.0 copperheads
1.0.0 green iguana
0.0.1 veiled chameleon
2.1.0 ball pythons
0.0.1 mexican red knee tarantula
0.0.1 emperor scorpion

I'd typically pick up a large, deep CLEAR Rubbermaid type container and fill the bottom few inches with warm water. Keep in mind your body temperature is 98 degrees, so "Warm" to you will be over 98. To a reptile, 98 is plenty warm enough, I'd go cooler, maybe 90. Use a thermometer if possible.
Swim the snake for an hour or two. Evaluate what it's doing. Drinking, chilling out, raising it's tail like it's trying to defecate. I might be waaay off with fecal retention, but with a big weird looking mass like that, it's worth a shot until you can find out for sure whats going on.

If you havent already, see if you can get a full body shot from directly above the snake so we can see the whole thing in proportion.

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Tom

"The more people I meet, the more I like my snakes"

ok thanks for the Info. When I get off work tonight I'll get a whole body shot from above and get it posted as soon as possible. Thanks again for the help it is greatly appreciated
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0.0.1 albino burmese
0.1.0 normal burmese
0.0.1 redtail boa
1.0.0 albino corn
1.1.0 leopard geckos
1.2.0 copperheads
1.0.0 green iguana
0.0.1 veiled chameleon
2.1.0 ball pythons
0.0.1 mexican red knee tarantula
0.0.1 emperor scorpion

here are a few pics of the copperhead from above.

-----
0.0.1 albino burmese
0.1.0 normal burmese
0.0.1 redtail boa
1.0.0 albino corn
1.1.0 leopard geckos
1.2.0 copperheads
1.0.0 green iguana
0.0.1 veiled chameleon
2.1.0 ball pythons
0.0.1 mexican red knee tarantula
0.0.1 emperor scorpion

n/p

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0.0.1 albino burmese
0.1.0 normal burmese
0.0.1 redtail boa
1.0.0 albino corn
1.1.0 leopard geckos
1.2.0 copperheads
1.0.0 green iguana
0.0.1 veiled chameleon
2.1.0 ball pythons
0.0.1 mexican red knee tarantula
0.0.1 emperor scorpion

n/p

-----
0.0.1 albino burmese
0.1.0 normal burmese
0.0.1 redtail boa
1.0.0 albino corn
1.1.0 leopard geckos
1.2.0 copperheads
1.0.0 green iguana
0.0.1 veiled chameleon
2.1.0 ball pythons
0.0.1 mexican red knee tarantula
0.0.1 emperor scorpion

Well, now Im not so sure. She looks a bit too fat in the middle to be gravid, but she's plump in all the right places, just a bit too much in the middle. I'm not sure. She actually might be gravid and you may end up with 150,000 babies heheh. Kidding of course.
Keep her well fed and give her good warm temps and dont freak out if she goes into a shed and stops eating. It's a sign she's probably gonna drop her babies soon.
Keep us posted
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Tom

"The more people I meet, the more I like my snakes"

well she is completly refusing food for the past two weeks and it might just be me but she seems to be getting just a little fatter every day. I just hope I'm not at work when she does decide to drop.
-----
0.0.1 albino burmese
0.1.0 normal burmese
0.0.1 redtail boa
1.0.0 albino corn
1.1.0 leopard geckos
1.2.0 copperheads
1.0.0 green iguana
0.0.1 veiled chameleon
2.1.0 ball pythons
0.0.1 mexican red knee tarantula
0.0.1 emperor scorpion

You'll probably be sleeping.

well, I work nights so if she has them in the day your right I will be asleep. I've started stocking up on gladware containers, the little plastic cups that you get at restaurants for water bowls, and day old pinkies. I also purchased a few baby anoles and a few little grey tree frogs incase I can't get them to accept the pinkies. I'm gonna wait until after the first shed before I offer any food. I'm gonna use the frogs and anoles to try and scent the pinkies if they won't take them. If that do t work I guess I'll feed the frogs and anoles.
-----
0.0.1 albino burmese
0.1.0 normal burmese
0.0.1 redtail boa
1.0.0 albino corn
1.1.0 leopard geckos
1.2.0 copperheads
1.0.0 green iguana
0.0.1 veiled chameleon
2.1.0 ball pythons
0.0.1 mexican red knee tarantula
0.0.1 emperor scorpion

Dont panic and jump right to the anoles and tree frogs. Give the babies some time to get a little hungry. I've found that 2 day old rotten pinkies have more appeal to baby copperheads than when they're fresh. It's gross and I dont understand it, but it's my actual experience.

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Tom

"The more people I meet, the more I like my snakes"