Reptile & Amphibian Forums

So I'm not new to the reptile scene and I purchased 2 gravid sand boas and I was always under the assumption that boas gave live birth with the exception of 3 species. I thought I had Kenyans but from the little information I have found on Sand Boas, it says they are live bearers. I am totally lost. The lack of information on these animals really dumbfounds me as they are excellent pets. So anyways, when I search for "boas that lay eggs" all I get is the Calabar Burrowing Python which looks nothing like the snakes I have. Mine are shiny and bright whereas the Calabar looks rough. I'll try to post a pic on here if I can figure it out. Can anyone help me out? I have an incubator, I breed bearded dragons. What kind of preparation do I need to do??? I really thought the guy was mistaken (alot of these dealers are only in it for the money and its not uncommon for them to have no clue about the animals they sell) and was expecting a bunch of live babies. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

thats a west African sand rather then a Kenyan sand boa. Arabian and the west africans are the two species that i remember that lay eggs but there might be one more. I cant remember what temps and humidity they need but some of the people on the rosy and sand boa forum are working with them and can help you out if a search for west african sand boa care doesn't turn anything up.

Don't worry to much, your sand boa just slugged out (infertile ovas). The ovas didn't get fertilized by sperm. They do indeed give live birth. I attached a link to a sand boa site. Good luck, Joe
Link

so far there are 5 eggs out, 2 of them look like good ones ( I think) the others are clearly bad. The other female is ready to lay soon also. So if the eggs are NOT fertile, they come out as eggs and not live babies???

Scratch that, I tried to delete that last post but at least I got the pic up. I looked up the West african sand boa and that is definitely it. The guy I bought them from said Kenyan and thats why I was so confused. I'm gonna wait till tomorrow and move the white eggs to an incubator just in case. They actually look pretty good so it might be worth a shot. Thank you for your help!

Definitely a West African Sand Boa(egg layers). Those slugs aside, the good eggs look fertile. I wouldn't leave them in the cage though - they will likely dehydrate quickly. I'd at least set them up in vermiculite or perlite(however you do your dragon eggs. Not sure on incubation temp but if I remember correctly, the eggs hatch fast, 10 days or something like that. Good luck!

Yes, those white eggs are fertile! I candled both of them and there are bright red blood vessels all the way through and a distinct dark shape inside. I set them up last night (2am this morning actually) and she was still passing what looked like 2 more. The other female is ready to drop soon too. I'll keep everyone posted. Thanks again!

ok so its about 4 days later. The eggs still have not hardened or turned white, but the little guys are definitely getting bigger inside. I can make out a distinct pink form that now almost fills the egg and I believe I even saw an eye through the opaque shell. The only thing is, the eggs seem to be wrinkling. I maintain the water level in the incubator as well as the vermiculite the eggs are in. The temp and humidity are spot on every time, 24/7. There doesn't seem to be anything bad going on, I see them moving around in there so I know they are ok. I am just wondering if I should be concerned about the eggs. I touched them and they are still moist and flexible, so its not like they are drying out. Am I doing something wrong or is this normal?

That is common with this species. I have heard of babies hatching within 2 weeks of the eggs being laid. The female apparantly holds on to the eggs farther into gestation than other egg layers.
Good luck with hatching these and I would not worry about trying to get these to rehydrate. You run more of a risk of killing the eggs through excess water.

Keep us posted.

Warren
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Dr Warren Booth
North Carolina State University
Department of Entomology
3309 Gardner Hall
Raleigh, NC 27695-7613

Ok, I checked them again and the exposed tops of the eggs are really dry and leathery. The underside is soft and pliable. The one baby inside is just about filling the entire egg now but I am not comfortable with the conditon of the eggs. I tried posting over in the sand boa forum but it really didn't help me too much. Some of them said that this was normal but I feel as though it is too soon for the eggs to be so dried up. I can still see blood vessels which I'm guessing is a good sign and I can make out the pattern on the one larger baby. I might just be jumping the gun but a loss is a loss and I would hate to see something happen to these guys so close to hatching time. We just lost a gorgeous yellow pastel transluscent female bearded dragon because we bred her, not knowing it was her first time, and she was 5 years old and after laying a bunch of bad eggs, she died the next day from the stress. Not one time did I ever read about when it was too late to breed, only what the minimum age or size was. Needless to say, we were devastated and on top of our emotional loss, she was $400 dragon.

I added a little more water to the vermiculite and used a q-tip to swab some water on the really dried parts of the eggs. I DID NOT SOAK THE EGGS OR SPRAY THEM, I was very delicate in the way I did it. I just wanted to try to slow the drying out down a little because if they can hold out for another week, they will hatch out. This is so nervewracking. I'm glad I have all of you to lend your advice though.

sorry for the horrible pics

Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks!? Great post! I learned something new today! Great stuff! I look forward to seeing those puppies after they hatch out!
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Jeff Ronne Sr
The Boaphile
Director USARK

Originator of Boaphile Plastics
The Boaphile Boa Site
The Boaphile Photo Gallery Link

Thank you! For some reason, it looks like she still has at lest one more egg inside her but she hasn't let it out yet, I'm not sure it is an egg or backed up poop. Its not as far down as the eggs were. Well see what happens witht that. As far as the two little guys, I have them in the incubator pretty much under 24 hour surveillance. I have an all in one hygrometer in there, the temp is holding at 81-83 ( I would rather keep it a tad low than cook them) and the humidity goes back and forth between 54-61. The monitor keeps track of the highs and lows for the temp and humidity levels so even if I miss something, it lets me know what has happened. The eggs have not hardened nor have they turned white, which is what I assumed they would do once they leave the mothers body.They almost look like small clear underfilled water balloons. But, I can clearly see the blood vessels and the dark masses have doubled in size and you can see tons of movement in there and I think I can make out an eye in the one. These little guys are fiesty! Its a good sign that they are moving around and I am so anxious to see them come out.

My other female is in shed right now. Something else that had misled me. I know snakes go into a pre-brith shed but again, having been misinformed about the species, what I looked up said that snad boas do not do this. Funny enough, the female that just laid these eggs shed the day before she laid them. So in a few days, I hope I can tell all of you that I have a few more little bundles of joy growing in the incubator. I'll keep you posted!

Not having much interest in Sand Boas and such. This whole post thread has me fascinated.
I haven't a clue what proper temps would be to properly incubate these eggs.
I naturally would think it would be at least 84* probably 87*-88* but that
just because what I know about South American Boa species.
Good luck hope you find out the proper info for a successful hatching.

. . . Lar M
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Boas By Klevitz
Boas By Klevitz