Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a female brooksi who has looked like she was going to burst for DAYS now. Her pre-lay shed was on the 4th and today is the 19th, so that puts her at 15 days.

Has anyone had a king go this long before laying?

Thanks.
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>>Has anyone had a king go this long before laying?

I haven't, but i've heard from friends who have. I assume she is still looking like she's gonna burst, and not "deflating"? Sometimes females look like they're full of eggs but go thru a process i don't think is yet fully understood, in which they return to no longer being or appearing to be gravid.
Several theories:
1) they lay their eggs, and eat them: there's no sudden obvious change in their body mass, but as they digest they slim down. I have anecdotal evidence that this DOES happen, at least sometimes. (key to recognizing this event would be that the swelling would shift from the back half of the snake, where gravid females carry the eggs just before laying, to more mid-body, where a large meal would rest.
2) that the eggs have not yet been formed but are still ova and that for what4ever reason the reproductive cycle stops and over time the swollen ova contract in size, the swelling of the body tissues along the oviducts reverses, and the snake eventually returnhs to "normal" (not gravid) appearance without ever laying.

Other theories?

Lastly, you're probably aware that vets have a few meds--hormones and calcium--that can be injected to facilitate laying in a snake that's eggbound.

good luck, keep us posted.
terry

I just posted above this post. I have been pestering this board for the last few weeks. My first time breeding any snake and she seems to be a reluctant layer. But, today she is finally dropping her clutch. I couldn't feel eggs in her until Saturday afternoon. I felt lots of them then. My girl is really big and an experienced breeder. I'm the one without the experience. It has taken her a long time to get this far but finally it's happening. Maybe this is perfectly normal for some females to hold on to their eggs until they feel the time is just perfect. I'll bet we'll be reading your announcment soon. Good luck.

i just checked my records and have never had any king go more than 12days after shed(usaully 8to10days),good luck,i hope she didnt eat them,(that is possible!)if nothin in a day or2 i would get her to a vet for a sonagram, peace
thomas davis