Reptile & Amphibian Forums

What kind of surgical knife is used to slit eggs?
Jbugg

Have you considered just ripping the egg? Using a blade risks cutting the snake. Just my 2 cents.

I usually use a clean, new razor blade, but a sharp pair of fine tipped scissors works well too. With python eggs, it is easy to slit the shell without risking injury to the snake because they tend to soften and loose their rigidity towards the end of incubation. Just put a part of the shell between your thumb and forefinger so it is above the snake's body, then just make a slit in that portion of the shell. It is an easy task and just requires a little attention to be paid to detail. However, if the eggs are rigid with fluid, then you need to be a bit more careful about slitting into the eggs. When this is the case, I carefully make an incision with a razor blade that just barely penetrates the shell, and usually does not even cut through the amniotic membrane. This method has never resulted in an injury to any of my baby pythons. Hope this helps,
Chris