ok,im looking at purchasing a chondro that is supposed to be 5 years old.of the snakes i own,all were bought as neonates.this is the first adult i am thinking about buying so,im curious what i should be looking for.my first question is,is there a way to tell if he really is 5 years old,and not say 20,and is on his death bed? lets say there is,and he does prove to be 5 years,how much longer can he breed for?i mean do snakes go through a sort of menapause?or can they breed as long as they are alive?also,the person im buying him from is a breeder,could this male be a dud,so to speak,and he is only being sold because he does not breed?is this common for males?he really is a nice looking snake,actually nicer than some of the other males he is keeping,so its making me wonder why hes getting rid of it.also,wild caught vs caprive bred.im sure there is nothing that can be done,but just in case,is there anyway to tell the difference in a 5 year old?basically,im looking for some advise on how to judge the worthiness of this snake,and what you ,as professionals would do,as far as inspecting this snake,before you make a purchase.thanks a lot.
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looking at a supposed 5 year old chondro,have some questions before i buy.
Replies (3)
If you're worried about the claims this keeper is making i would reccomend not to do it. Chondro people are in a class of their own, usually keeping records or some sort or will gaurentee the animal, even it was not breed by them.
I'm not aware of away to tell chondros ages by looks alone, as these animals have varying growth rates. A 2 year old male can be as large or larger than some 6 year old males. The keepers claims about not wanting to breed could be right, or it could just be s/he does not know what they are doing.
As far as breeding, males you can breed them pretty much indefinately. Females, you're not going to get that many clutches out of them 4-6, though i would like to hear if people have sucess breeding females more than 8 times with out killing them.
If your doubting your purchace, i would say theres a very good reason why.
I agree with Everything Julian said... thats great advise...
Shiloh
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Shiloh Hawkesworth
kansas
(Midwest Serpents)
When purchasing adults I think it is most important to know that the person you are purchasing from is reputable. If he is, then the chances are good that you'd be purchasing a young adult male that could possibly go on to breed another 10 years if not longer.
An adult of this age is good in another way that you know what the phenotype IS. Most adults have finished changing, I have some older chondros "fade" in their colors with age.
