Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Ok I know that some people say 1500g is the minimum size for breeding a female and some say 1200g is the smallest. My personal preference is 1350 since it's in between what everyone says. My question is has anyone had a female that is 850-900g this time of the yr make it to breed and produce good eggs for a late feb/mar breeding. I'm asking this because I have 3 early '04's that are pushing 900g now and eating med rats as often as I'll give them (every 5 days). All three put on 300-350 gm in the last 2 months and at that rate they could all easily be 1300-1400 gm by feb for a late clutch. Any input would be greatly appreciated. A few more clutches of poss het pieds would be great, lol. Josh Hutto

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2.1 het pied (RDR, alan bosch x 2)
1.0 het albino (ben siegel)
1.0 het citrus hypo(gulf coast line)
1.6 05 normal bp's
0.6 04 normal bp's
2.5 adult normal bp's (some need breeding to see if norm)
6 white eggs from pastel to norm breeding
4 various corns
0.1 brazilian rainbow boa (alan bosch)
1.0 american pit bull terrior
1.1 taco dogs (ankle biters)
1.0 grey cat
1.1 bearded dragons

a BAD dog is MADE not bred, support the American Pit Bull Terrior as the greatest breed of dogs on Earth!!!!!

>>Ok I know that some people say 1500g is the minimum size for breeding a female and some say 1200g is the smallest. My

It's rarely that simple: both weight and size play a role in breeding females. The female needs adequate fat reserves (correlate weight) to build, develop and maintain eggs. Without this, you can get slugs, few eggs or nothing at all. For example, you could have a 3000 gram female that is "thin" for her length. She may not produce anything even though she meets the elusive weight requirements. Most of my females are still over 1500 grams AFTER laying eggs but may not be ready for the following season because their fat reserves have been depleted.

>>personal preference is 1350 since it's in between what everyone says. My question is has anyone had a female that is 850-900g

Average is 1500. It is rare for smaller animals. If you think your females will be border line, hold off on cooling for a month or two. This can give you a little more time. I had two females from this past season that I cooled at 1400 grams. They did not take. Unless they are gaining 150 grams a month, I think you should wait until next season. Besides, by then they will really be ready with nice size.

At either rate, good luck!
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Jay A. Martin
Jay Martin Reptiles

I have alway been told that the MINIMUM weight that a female bp should be before breeding should be at least 500 grams per foot. That is a good way to judge if she is ready or not.

I do know that the animals need a sufficent amount of fat reserves to produce good eggs. I have bred other species of snakes such as retics, burms, eastern and western hognose, several venomous, and some balls. I asked my question because I've never tried to breed a ball at less than 1500g but have heard of it being done. Those three females if they aren't at least 1600g with great body tone by mar they will not get cooled this yr, I was just asking if anyone had gotten females up to that size in a 6-7 months from 900g and gotten good eggs from them. Thanks for the input, Josh Hutto

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2.1 het pied (RDR, alan bosch x 2)
1.0 het albino (ben siegel)
1.0 het citrus hypo(gulf coast line)
1.6 05 normal bp's
0.6 04 normal bp's
2.5 adult normal bp's (some need breeding to see if norm)
6 white eggs from pastel to norm breeding
4 various corns
0.1 brazilian rainbow boa (alan bosch)
1.0 american pit bull terrior
1.1 taco dogs (ankle biters)
1.0 grey cat
1.1 bearded dragons

a BAD dog is MADE not bred, support the American Pit Bull Terrior as the greatest breed of dogs on Earth!!!!!

I had a female that weighed about 850 grams when I bought her at a pet store last July and weighed about 2400 grams by the time I bred her in March and got 6 good eggs from her 3 months ago. It was her first breeding, but she eats like a horse. She still does, and I think that she'll be over 3500 grams in a few more months.

The one bad thing though is that one of the eggs had a nipple that was about half the egg. It went bad with about 2 weeks to go. I think it started to mold too much because of a lack of calcification and high humidity. I really wish the little guy could have just made it 2 more weeks. He was a lesser platty and fully formed,,, but small. Bummer huh?

Jason Walters
MidWest Herps

I'am going to try to breed my female this season and she weighs 1,100gs. Thanks Scott