Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I see one eyed albinos every so often and wonder if it is truly genetic. I don't have any nor have I ever had any. If anyone has bred them are there one-eyed babies in the litter? Just wondering how the trait manifests itself.

Thanks,
Dan

A few years ago there was a thread on the subject on one of the faunaclassifieds forums. To summarize it, there has been a lot of theorizing and little experimentation. The cause could be genetic, and it could be environmental. Nobody knows for sure. There are parallels in other species for both causes.

Paul Hollander

I could swear I remember Joel Dubay breeding a completely blind Albino.
With good results I mean.Maybe I have something mixed up.
. . . Lar M
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Boas By Klevitz
Boas By Klevitz

It is genetic but, however, unlike many people think about genetics, it is not a simple recessive, dominant or co-dominant trait. Contrary to what many people seem to think, genetics is far far more complicated than just a handful of methods or ways different characteristics are seen.

After 13 or 14 years of making Albino Boas, without doing a careful scientific study of this issue, here is my opinion on the matter. Albino Boas are more likely to have problems that cause the eye, almost always the Boas right eye by the way, that are rarely seen in non-Albino bloodline Boas. In fact, hets (For Albino) sometimes will have this same bad eye issue. There is some reason, unknown to me, why an Albino is predisposed to having this problem. Perhaps it is something to do with improper draining of they eye or some sort of blockage causing infection. By the way, I have never seen an Albino that was born with normal eyes have a problem with an eye later in life. Something goes wrong while still in Momma.

I also know that if treated immediately after birth, this can usually be cured. I learned of this the best treatment I use from Bigg Mike. Using Terramycin ointment directly on the eye twice a day till after they shed, usually results if the infection being cured and no loss of the eye. I have in the past also realized the same result using the tiniest amount of Amakacin I could inject, three times, three days apart starting immediately after birth. This worked as well. I emphasis the tiniest amount possible as it is very easy to use too much and kill the baby Boa.

All that being said, in about 2003 Joel DuBay bred a female Albino that was born with both eyes bad, to an Albino male with one bad eye. That's right. Just one eye between them. She produced a litter of 23 babies with only two bad eyes in the lot. This is the exact same result that may very well occur using two perfect Albinos. I think that proves that the bad eye thing in Albinos, though something that does occur, and is certainly genetic due to it's relationship to the Albino lines, is not a genetic characteristic that works like Albinism or any desirable "mutation" that we are familiar with. In other words, an Albino with a bad eye seems to be no more likely to produce an Albino with a bad eye than an Albino with two good eyes.
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>>It is genetic but, however, unlike many people think about genetics, it is not a simple recessive, dominant or co-dominant trait. Contrary to what many people seem to think, genetics is far far more complicated than just a handful of methods or ways different characteristics are seen.
>>
>>After 13 or 14 years of making Albino Boas, without doing a careful scientific study of this issue, here is my opinion on the matter. Albino Boas are more likely to have problems that cause the eye, almost always the Boas right eye by the way, that are rarely seen in non-Albino bloodline Boas. In fact, hets (For Albino) sometimes will have this same bad eye issue. There is some reason, unknown to me, why an Albino is predisposed to having this problem. Perhaps it is something to do with improper draining of they eye or some sort of blockage causing infection. By the way, I have never seen an Albino that was born with normal eyes have a problem with an eye later in life. Something goes wrong while still in Momma.
>>
>>I also know that if treated immediately after birth, this can usually be cured. I learned of this the best treatment I use from Bigg Mike. Using Terramycin ointment directly on the eye twice a day till after they shed, usually results if the infection being cured and no loss of the eye. I have in the past also realized the same result using the tiniest amount of Amakacin I could inject, three times, three days apart starting immediately after birth. This worked as well. I emphasis the tiniest amount possible as it is very easy to use too much and kill the baby Boa.
>>
>>All that being said, in about 2003 Joel DuBay bred a female Albino that was born with both eyes bad, to an Albino male with one bad eye. That's right. Just one eye between them. She produced a litter of 23 babies with only two bad eyes in the lot. This is the exact same result that may very well occur using two perfect Albinos. I think that proves that the bad eye thing in Albinos, though something that does occur, and is certainly genetic due to it's relationship to the Albino lines, is not a genetic characteristic that works like Albinism or any desirable "mutation" that we are familiar with. In other words, an Albino with a bad eye seems to be no more likely to produce an Albino with a bad eye than an Albino with two good eyes.
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>>All Original/Boaphile Plastics
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'There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."' -Rainshadow

What if you ignore the bad eye? Will it hurt or kill the animal?

Thanks,
Dan

I was searching for hours yesterday(WED) for this DuBay blind Albino info".
The first part of your post is extremely helpful for eye problem treatment thanks.
Great info to know.
. . . . . Lar M
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Boas By Klevitz
Boas By Klevitz

:

These are just some opinions to think about. If it is NOT genetic, you would see as many Kahl hets and normals with one eye as Kahl albinos, and that is NOT the case by a long shot. I have never seen a one eyed normal or het, ever, not even a picture or a rumor of one. I am not saying they don't exist, but the numbers must be very low. Remember, albinos have two copies of the albino genes, hets only one. It's likely the absence of the normal eye genetics and the doubling of the albino eye genetics causes the problem. Albinos of other species have genetic eye problems too. Study albinos in other species and you'll see this is so. There are lots of things that point to it being a genetic problem, none the least of which is that Sharps don't have the same problem, and we know they don't have the same genetics. Don't shoot, these are just my opinions. : )
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Caden Chapman
slithering.serpents@gmail.com
http://slitheringserpents.com

If it is something environmental that we aren't compensating for, you'll of course see more one eyes than not. One eyed normals do exist. A small percentage are CBB, and a small percentage come from Colombia with the same defect. If you were to compare numbers, Id bet it would the three would be pretty even, but a one eyed Albino is a popular thing, where as a normal isn't.
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South Central Herpetological

>>. . . One eyed normals do exist. A small percentage are CBB, and a small percentage come from Colombia with the same defect. If you were to compare numbers, Id bet it would the three would be pretty even, but a one eyed Albino is a popular thing, where as a normal isn't.
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>> South Central Herpetological

I'd love to see some pics of one-eyed hets & normals.
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Caden Chapman
slithering.serpents@gmail.com
http://slitheringserpents.com

I have seen hets born with a bad eye and I have seen hets born with both eyes bad. I don't have pictures to prove it though. I explained a lot more about this in this same thread up just a bit. I've never kept a het with a bad eye.
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.
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Caden Chapman
slithering.serpents@gmail.com
http://slitheringserpents.com

I have also seen kahl albino litters with one parent missing an eye and have 20 plus perfect babies.
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Richard Ceniceros
Tap or take a nap