Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello-
I can't believe that it took me this long to find this forum. I've had thayeri for several years, and was hoping to have some babies to show this year, but for a variety of reasons (one clutch laid outside the nest box and dessicated, one female egg-bound, one didn't get gravid) Nature didn't cooperate. My current adult collection is 3.3, with 3.4 neonates/yearlings, so hopefully next year will be a different story.
My questions:
1) Has anybody had good results with "Lizard Maker" scent for pinks for difficult to get started hatchlings?
2) What type of rack systems do people use for adults? I'm using Sterilite sweater boxes that are 23" long by 17" wide, but those seem small, especially for breeding pairs.
Thanks in advance!
-Lee

Hey Lee,
Welcome to the forum. Sorry to hear about your bad luck this year.
I've used the same size sweater boxes for years and have had good sucess. I use the 30 gallon aquarium on top (in the pic) for breeding some of the time, and sometimes I just remove water bowls and hide boxes and put them together in the sweater boxes. I use no lids on my boxes.

I've never used "lizard maker" but if you read through some of the old post you will see some of the techniques some of us use. Russ Bates turned us all on to "chopping pinkys in half" for the first few meals. Several people have posted that it really works well.

If you get a chance post some pics of your collection, we'de love to see what you have.

Vichris

I have only used Lizard Maker with a stubborn Western Hognose. It worked fine. Rinse the mouse with water. Apply 1 drop of lizard maker and dangle it a bit in front of the non eating snake. If the snake is a larger snake, where gloves in case he lunges and misses the mouse (if you know what I mean).
Hope this helps.
-----
Paul

Lee,
I'm using sterilite and rubbermaid box racks with boxes that measure roughly what you mentioned. What I've found to be helpful is using very low to no heat at all. My thayeri do well at the bottom of my racks and eat, grow and breed in temps between 76-82.

Sounds like you have a good colony. Just be sure and get them good and cold this winter and you should have success. My thayeri only hibernate for 60 days (Dec 15 - Feb15) and then they are up feeding and ready for mating come March. I usually get my first clutch of eggs by the 1st of April and hatchlings by the first week of July.

Good luck
Russ

Hello Lee,
I would like to welcome you to the forum and to our Mexicana addiction......LOL
I too had some problems with breeding this year..It happens to the best of us sometimes. A wise man once said...."The snakes are in the driver's seat and we are merely along for the ride...."
I had 6 females of various ssp. lay infertile clutches, but as you said NEXT YEAR is gonna be great. I have 9 adult female thayeri that will potentially produce next year....never count your snakes before they hatch.

As for Lizard Maker....I have had little luck using it, but I have many other techniques/methods that tend to get stubborn Mexicana to feed on mice. Over the last 4 years I produced well over 150 Thayeri and have only lost 3...2 to nonfeeders and 1 mysterious death. This step by step process I devised derived from a couple years of breeding alterna (those are the worst in my opinion). One year I hatched 8 alterna and only 5 lived.... This was before I devised a plan.....LOL

My snake room has a large rack system on one end for all my breeders. I have about 45 adult snakes in my collection 20 of these are Thayeri.....LOL I have many getula morphs and locale specifics, Greeri, Mexmex, Hondurans and some Pits now (those are addicting too). My rack is much like Chris Garcia's but I use lids with mine.....I also use the same size Rubbermaids with the addition of some longer ones (I forget the quart size). I plan on building a lidless rack system this winter while they are in my hibernation chamber. I live in South Texas so I have to artificially hibernate my snakes with an air conditioned chamber. It is lofted in my snake room. On the other side of my snake room I have a shelf system that holds my yearlings and hatchlings...around 60 or so right now. I use heating pads that are against the back wall of the shelves...The cages butt right up to them...works well, but I am working on building a small rack system with heat tape....Maybe this winter as well.

So, welcome Lee...I hope you get around to sharing pics of your Thayeri....I bet you have checked out the pics shared on this forum already...There is a plethora of Mexicana pics on this forum and we like it that way...Don't we???????

Welcome,
John Lassiter