Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi all! It's been a while since I've posted here, but I have this issue. I'm going to breed (I hope) my Calis this year. They're both between 45" and 48" long, have cooled for 2.5 months and have eaten twice since. Now my question is this: When is it time? It'll be my first breeding so I'm unsure of what signs to look for. One thing that is different lately is this. The male has been more active the last couple of nights when I've observed. It's most likely not a hunger issue, they ate on Monday.
Any and all help is greatly appreciated! If all goes well these two make me some babies this year and next year my other Cali female will be ready as well as a pair of thayeri's I've been working on. Exciting stuff. Thanks again!

--Doug S.

Have they shed yet? Once they shed, place the male in with the female's enclosure. You can even do it before one of them shed, as your male may want to breed. Keep a close eye on them for a little while to ensure no "accidents" happen.

Mike
Michael's Place

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Your male is probably horny now, and is looking for his mate. As soon as the female sheds put the male in with her. If she has shed already since coming out of cooling try putting them together right away. If the male bites the female do not panic. Give them a minute to see what happens, he may be simply trying to hold her still while he does his thing. If they ball up and are both biting each other or it just appears to be violent seperate and feed them, wait 2 days and try again Tom Stevens

What happens if she does not shed? Last year I tried to wait for the pre-mating shed and it didn't come. I waited way too long for it to happen and missed the window of opportunity I needed.
Thanks.

--Doug S.

This has happened to me too. Last year with a corn.....who was opaque when she came out of brumation. She just would not shed, so I let the male get too her and she unwillingly[so it appeared] was bred. She did not shed until her pre egg laying shed and gave a perfect clutch. Went on too double clutch too. Sometimes things just do not happen "by the book" so you have to experiment. It would not hurt to let the male try his luck at any time,,,,,just may prove frustrating to watch him get rejected. Good luck and keep us posted. Tom Stevens