Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Thanks again for all of the help so far. I don't hold out much hope for these eggs but I want to give them the best start.

As far as mom I think I am going to leave them with her for now - she seems pretty dedicated.

Can I put a pan under her hide rock with the perilite in it to help with humidity or should I just stick with the bowl of water in the cage?

The eggs are definately yellow (parchment color) but they are not rock hard. How soon can I candle them? I know how to do that since I have raised chicks.

Thanks again to everyone who has replied. I have already been to the store twice to get supplies. Hopefully we will have some success but who knows.

this is an article i came across on maternal incubation that might help you if that's what you plan to do

http://ballpython.snakes.net/robcarmichael/maternal.htm

One more thing. Should the eggs in the hot end of the cage where temp would be at incubation temp 24/7 or should they be in cool end and mom takes care of heat?

What is the ambient temp where they are at?
-----
Jay A. Martin

It is a four foot long enclosure. They are on the "cool" end which is about 75 degrees. The other end has a heat mat and gets to about 85-90 degrees. During the day I have a heat lamp that shines down partially on the water bowl to help with humidity and partly on the floor. I moved the lamp closer to the eggs to help with the temperature.

4 foot long? Wow! That's huge. The eggs need to be at or around 89 degrees. I'm not sure how this is accomplished maternaly or how much. Rob Carmichael does the maternal thing so hopefully he will get this post. Otherwise, just look for a post from him and send a direct message.

Personally, I think the enclosure is too large. What is the width? Is she afforded adequate privacy (i.e., security)?
-----
Jay A. Martin

Just put the water in the cage. Just water.

If all eggs are yellow, it sounds as though you have slugs. If you can get mom out, candle the eggs. Do not pull them apart if stuck together and do not rotate.

Hopefully, you will see something. If not, I would still leave them with mom until they start to rot. Then remove them.
-----
Jay A. Martin

You should be able to candle the eggs with just a small flashlight and leave them in with the mother. Since you are maternally incubating them, I would want to avoid harassing her too much by removing her from the eggs. (I have never done this, but that is just my guess.)

I use this candling technique on my incubated eggs when I have one start to go get moldy. If the baby has died for some reason and the egg is going bad, I can easily look at the egg and see if it still has good blood vessels. And, I don't have to worry about tipping the egg or dropping it or anything like that.

Good luck!