Reptile & Amphibian Forums

So here's the story...

As most of you know, I dropped out of the whole BP market investment thing. However, I still have my two adult male PDH Albino Piebalds (100/50). And to be honest, I'd kinda like to breed at least one of them this season. (I'm so very curious!) Unfortunately, I no longer have any females in the collection. So I decided to sell off one PDH in order to fund a breeding project for the other. (I refuse to spend more out-of-pocket money on snakes right now. I'm almost tapped out from the new Cornsnake collection. LOL)

I'm really not all that concerned with market prices and such. I just need a single adult female (2400g ) for the remaining PDH male. I remembered someone emailing me a while ago about an extra female. And I thought, "Why the heck not? This extra PDH isn't doing me any good just sitting here. I'll offer an even trade."

I contacted the person and the trade is fine. The animal is 2000g and very docile. (She's a little beat up looking from the description, but hey...so am I.) Apparently this female is a LTC. The current owner has kept this female for almost two years, and rumor has it that the previous owner kept the animal for almost three years. So that makes this female a LTC of around 2-5 years. (And she is feeding fine.)

The current owner attempted breeding this female last season with two different males. No eggs.

So the question is...do you think the unsuccessful breedings last season are more probably a result of the female being LTC (even though she has been feeding fine) or simply one of those standard the-girl-didn't-take scenarios?

And ideas?

Chris
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mean people suck

I would be just as concerned about the possibilty of sperm retention from those two males last season,as i would the possibility of not getting eggs at all.(Unless they were a spider and a mojave,lol)

btw...Of the two ltcs i tried last year,one bred,ovulated,and then re-absorbed.The other didn't breed.

Good luck in your search.
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Charles Glaspie

Tanstaafl:
"There ain't no such thing as a free lunch".
An acronym created by my favorite author Robert A. Heinlein.

I'm not too concerned about SR with this one. (Same genetics involved.)

And maybe the LTCs are on a different biological clock.

Who knows?

Thanks,
Chris
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mean people suck

Charles,

Not to be an a$$, but once a female ovulates she can't resorb her follicles.

Maybe you just thought you saw an ovulation.

TomChambers

Tom, not to be an a$$ about this topic and I won't get into a major forum debate over it but I have photos of a boa that ovulated and did reabsorb. I've shown the pics to a few people that at first said no way! One look at the pics and they ALL agree that it is a definite ovulation. She never produced a litter nor did she drop slugs. So the only logical answer is that she reabsorbed. If it can happen with a boa, why not with a ball? I would say it is very rare but possible.
John Q

John, I sent you a P/M out of respect for this thread.

TomChambers

Hey Tom,i may in fact be mistaken.
So far be it from me to be one to spread false information(i can't stand that either).I guess i just assumed thats what it was i had witnessed.

Here are some pics what i saw.
She had not eaten from the time they locked up.Not until June.(Nor were there any internal parasites,as she had a fecal exam in early summer 04)

The coupling
Feb 10,05

April 23,05 /building?
(btw,this stuck shed was a second occurrence)

May 5,05

May 6,05 ...and gone (with no fecies in the tub to have misplaced the mass of those "lumps" )

So damnifiknow. lol

...anyone?
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Charles Glaspie

Tanstaafl:
"There ain't no such thing as a free lunch".
An acronym created by my favorite author Robert A. Heinlein.

Chuck -

I hear that sometimes balls can go thru a false preganancy type deal - maybe that is what happened - she was just going thru the motions.

Or -

Maybe for some reason she built up the follicles but was unable to fertilize them so they were reabsorbed?

Go figure these freaky creatures!
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Tosha

"Nihil facimus sed id bene facimus"

7.33.0 Ball Python (Harry and Fluffy and gang)
1.0.0 Angolan Python (Anakin Skywalker)
0.0.1 Green Tree Python (Verdi - yeah I know but my kids love the book)
0.2.0 Feline (Pippen and Pandora)
0.0.1 Desert Tortoise (Pope John Paul aka JP )
2.2.1 Fish (1,2,3,4)
0.0.2 frogs rescued from pool skimmer

"Maybe for some reason she built up the follicles but was unable to fertilize them so they were reabsorbed?"

Yeah,thats what i was thinking.

btw:That same male did sire 3.5 hatchlings with another female.So at least i know he wasn't an issue.
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Charles Glaspie

Tanstaafl:
"There ain't no such thing as a free lunch".
An acronym created by my favorite author Robert A. Heinlein.

I've thought about it, and I don't think I'm ready to take the chance on a "proven to be unproven" LTC female.

Thanks for the advice.

Chris
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mean people suck

It would be possible for them to be on a different biological clock. We are in the northern hemisphere and WCs come from the southern. Their winter is our summer and vice versa. Someone should try cooling temps on a WC or LTC 6 months from now and see if that sparrks them. IT would be cool to find out.

np Chris,i have seen a few up for sale that seem to be on the up and up,but they are costly.

Start riding around to all the petshops!

good luck
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Charles Glaspie

Tanstaafl:
"There ain't no such thing as a free lunch".
An acronym created by my favorite author Robert A. Heinlein.

"Start riding around to all the petshops!"

I've never had the spine to attempt a probing. (I don't want to harm the animal.) And I really don't want to pay $50-$100 for an animal only to discover it's another male. (Which is an example of my luck. LOL)

Chris =/
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mean people suck

I pop em'! I know it's not 100% reliable, and some people don't like doing it,but when i get the good ol' Sperm Plugs I feel pretty confident it's a boy When they are that big the males have no trouble popping out the little surprizes, you dont have to press very hard at all to, umm, get the answer!
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