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My big yellow girl Sonora (Nora).

As a teeny hatchie, August 2005. Notice her identifying three small hash markings after the second large anterior splotch, and the yellow lab hair I so kindly left in the first photo below her tail for scale. .

September 2005

First breeding, March 2009

Pre-lay 2009

First clutch. 20 total. 13 Fertile. #18 developed adhesions, and those last 2 took two vet trips to remove. Got them out under sedation...the vet used his finger to break the adhesions and the eggs were removed with forceps. No surgery. No palpating. No aspiration. But she was still not a happy girl throughout the procedure.

We took 2010 off because of the previous complications and because I was in the field all spring. Here's March 2011, with a younger male (and crappy phone camera).

Pre-lay

Any day now...fingers crossed all goes well. She looks about to pop.

Simply awesome animal. She is a looker for sure and in some of those later photos looks to be the size of a retic!!!

Joe

Impressive girl! Very nice series
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See all my snakes at SerpenTrack.com

Well, she began laying Friday. Between Friday and Saturday, we got 21. Sadly, of those only 5 were viable. She pretty clearly still had eggs in her and hadn't passed a thing since Saturday afternoon, so to the vet we went this morning. Ultrasound showed 11 more. That's right, I said ELEVEN MORE! This girl is unbelievable. Has anyone ever heard of 32 eggs from a jani?!?!

The heartbreaking part is she's probably not going to be able to pass any more on her own. Big infertile clutches can of course wreak havoc. She's getting sent home with fluids and antibiotics, with the hope that she continues laying. However she is penciled in for surgery next Tuesday. Unless she rallies and moves the eggs (I don't have high hopes given the time frame and her past), this poor 6 year old 7'+ girl with amazing potential will not be breeding again.

I'm crushed. Blaming it on temperatures. My best guess is that my boys are not getting cold enough during hibernation for proper spermatogenesis (avg temps ~56F for 3 months). The female is ovulating like a superstar, and the guys just aren't cutting it. If she had a structural abnormality, she would have never gotten the first 21 out.

Scratch that it's the boy's fault hypothesis. Other female surprised me tonight! The males never showed interest in her, and her "pre-lay" shed was long before Nora's. I gave up hope on her producing this year.

Guess I can stop beating myself up over doing something wrong now.

Very disturbing. Hoping for the best. You must be on "pins and needles".
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See all my snakes at SerpenTrack.com