Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I keep on hearing alot of different days to cut so what is the mbest day to ?

I have had 100% of my good eggs so far this year hatch, and have cut NONE of them.....

Dave

After the first one has piped OR let them pip on their own

52 days -- people have successfully cut sooner -- but 52 is generally considered the safest early cut.
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Tosha
JET Pythons

The cutters never talk about all the horor stories associated with cutting eggs early, do they?

Its a shame to kill a living creature because of human impatience!

As for the "horror stories" I think they are few and far between. I pip most eggs after the first few pip on their own, and have never had a single issue. I've produced over 500 balls.
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www.strictlyballs.ca

most of us are fine with pipping after the first few have pipped on their own. What I disagree with, and it would seem Jared and the others above have the same view, is the cutting of eggs early. If you think about it, lets say someone pips on day 52 (as was suggested), and lets say the clutch in questions was going to go 60 days. Thats 14% of those eggs incubation period compromised with an opened egg. Shelled eggs evolved for a reason. I personally believe they should remain shelled until they are ready to hatch. No embryos are fully developed at 52 days...

I agree with you completely, though I've never had a ball egg go beyong day 56. Pipping before nature takes it's normal course is just a bad idea. Period. Have some patience.
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www.strictlyballs.ca

I feel overall, there is no good reason to cut, other than you are impatient. You have waited 50 plus days, you cannot wait up to 10 more?

So, if you have a clutch of 10 eggs, and 8 have hatched after day 55, and now you are on day 59, and nothing from the other two eggs, I would probably say, time to cut em. That is about the only scenario that I see, where I would cut an egg nowadays.

If this is your first or second clutch of Ball eggs, I would say leave em alone. You will probably do more harm than good by cutting them.

Dave

nature takes it's normal course..lol what? Nature ?

Van
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Forever Trust in what we are,and nothing else Matters

The only thing that's left natural about the way we articificially incubate eggs IS the actual pipping. Let nature take it's course, allowing them to pip on their own and stop being so damned impatient. Show some restraint.
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www.strictlyballs.ca

If You don't know how to cut an Egg the Proper way don't even try. Let a lone they and understand it. I've never had an egg dye from Me cutting it and some Ive cut on 42 to 45 days out. Theres a lot to understand, you just don't pick up an eggs and cut away. The main thing is to not hit any veins at all. It seems odd to Me to hear about someone thats incubated a dozon or so eggs and think they know it all and they deside to cut. Then they post there butchery and ask what happened

I see nothing wrong with cutting ive been doing it sence 1988. And I'm not planning on stopping anytime soon."~

Van
http://www.myspace.com/gregvanzweden

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Forever Trust in what we are,and nothing else Matters

Reading your post hurt my brain. A lot...
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www.strictlyballs.ca

I'd say wait till the first one pips to be safe. Learn from my mistake. I cut a clutch of 5 eggs at day 55 and 2 still had a large yolk sac that had not been absorbed yet. It was a little scary but after 6 long days they finally absorbed the yolk and crawling around. Let them tell you when they are ready and don't rush it. All things come to those who wait right?

Why do you feel the need to cut? Some people might tell you 52 days and some people might tell you 59 days. Yet your babies are the only ones that know what time to cut out of their eggs. Nobody here knows your incubation temps or how steady they were. If they fluctuated on the cool side a bit they might not slit until day 65.

The soonest day to cut is 1 day after the first baby has pipped. There is no good reason to ever cut earlier. NONE! (keyword being "good"....curiosity is not a good reason). This year, we've had a couple posters on this board have a clutch go south after cutting...coincidence? Maybe and maybe not. You can't give a "safe" cut date, because every clutch is different. I've had clutches laid on the same day, incubated side by side, hatch 5 or 6 days apart.

i agree, i am starting my own breeding this season, just a couple of normals nothing "special" but i have made up my mind i wont cut the eggs. they seem to have been able to get out of their eggs just fine for hundreds of years without someone cutting them. why should we do it now?

Thats a safe rule of thumb.......

Better yet..........

Dont Cut.......let it be a surprise!

Jared
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~ ASK ME ABOUT MY BALLS ~

6 of the 7 replies in this thread got it right, IMO (sorry Tosha). Thats unusually high quality advice for this board...lol...

I take no offense -- I decided to answered the question that was asked instead of giving an opinionated lecture to the OP. You can safely cut your eggs at 52 days many many many people do it without issue. I did not say it was the right thing to do or that I did it -- just that that was considered by many to be the safest early cut.

One thing I've learned over the years on this board - people will do what they are going to do - lecturing them on your believes isn't going to change it - unless they ask for your opinion -- just give them the best answer to their question and move on.
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Tosha
JET Pythons

I and the other posters did answer the question that was asked: "When is the soonest you can cut?". You and we just happen to disagree. And I reread my post and didn't get the "lecture" aspect...I agree with your sentiments about people doing what they're going to do....I just don't see this particular thread as that type of deal.

"Dont Cut.......let it be a surprise!"

Thanks Jared!

I thought I was the only one on the planet who believed that.
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Louis Kirkland
Cornerstone Reptiles

>>
>>"Dont Cut.......let it be a surprise!"
>>
>>Thanks Jared!
>>
>>I thought I was the only one on the planet who believed that.

There are plenty of us who believe in this. We (I) just don't like getting roped into this annoyingly repetitious (cough) discussion.
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Jay A. Martin
Jay Martin Reptiles

Apparently I'm wrong but I've cut every clutch I've produced over the last 4 years without issue. I've cut earlier than day 52 as well. I just cut a little flap and I don't remove any of the shell and in my experience they still stay in the egg until they're ready to come out. I've never had one come out with a yolk sac left.

Chris

I usually cut mine around day 53/54. I have never had a problem with that.

Not a flame here, just curious (and I know this comes up from time to time, this is just the first time I really have chimed in on the debate and payed attention).

What is your reason for always cutting so early? Is it simple curiosity, or some other reason? And to go on, if it is simple curiosity, how do you justify that as a reason to cut?

Personally, I have cut eggs when I had humidity issues and they were hard and didn't soften by day 52. I cut them to avoid the snakes having issues trying to get out using their egg tooth.
The other times were just because I was impatient and wanted to see what was in there.

By your definition I don't have a good reason.

I do it because the people I've learned from in this business/hobby do it and they're who I learned from so I do a lot of things that they do. I set up my racks like they do. I use the same temps during breeding season as they do. I artificially incubate like they do, same temps, same substrate, same boxes, so cutting like they do seemed to follow suit. Had I learned from somebody who didn't cut perhaps I wouldn't either.

I do it because I like to have an idea of what's hatching. I organize hatchlings in racks based on morph so normals and hets go in a different rack than visuals and cutting lets me set up tubs ahead of time.

As far as the shell evolving, I'll agree with you, but it evolved for maternal incubation purposes because outdoors conditions change and aren't perfect. In the controlled temperature, humidity, airflow of my incubator it's importance is reduced.

I can't tell that cutting makes any difference. My hatchlings leave the egg between days 55-60 which seems to be the consensus for cutters and non-cutters and they seem to grow and thrive just fine.

Chris

after the snake pips it's safe to cut that egg a little more.....

......gawd.......

we need a "Wonder Window " from RonCO.....or Billy Mays...............and order now and get a free shawala

the day the eggs are laid.just rip a hole in the top and add the Wonder Window .........you can watch that ugly snot riddled worm turn into a beautiful $15 normal ball......and blow the fun and surprise out of hatch day....veins and all......

order now......and order within the next 15 minutes and get not one..not two........but three Wonder Windows .......

all major credit cards not accdepted....just the Kingsnake Express card.......and the new Satan Discover card....

./

I am not picking on anyone in particular....I just happened to have a wierd thought at this momment.......thanxxx.....sorry.....

why are we not all at Daytona???......

oh yea...we got stuff to feed and a real job......aaaahhhhhh

......not like these lazy proffessional breeders and all......slackers......

......!.
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......

lol... i want one of these wonder windows.
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Morph Evolutions
www.morphevolutions.com
www.myspace.com/morphevolutions

thank you all who have answer the question. This is my very first clutch ever . I have learned alot of new stuff and will keep learning alot more. I only asked the, question cuz I don't know what I doing .I would rather ask a question before I do something and it was to late. to day is day 50 for the eggs and I think it would be in best intrest for the new little ones not to cut . I will take pictures of them and the incubator and post it later today. I got 6 big eggs from a female pastel X male spider. All the are still doing great. this little project was not meant to be used in selling them to make some money. I plan on keeping them all . I have a small collection of 9 snakes and don't want to have houndreds and hundreds that I could not be able to feed . So 15 is a good number for me. thank you all