Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I'm interested in breeding rosies - either putting a pair in brumation this coming winter or winter of '10-'11. While I know this is far into the future - atleast almost a year - I do like to prepare myself. How would someone who is only planning to breed a pair go about cooling the temperature down to 50 degrees? I keep the snakes in my room, I do not have a "spare room" so obviously opening the window is not much of an option. I live in Michigan, so it gets coooold. How does everyone else do it?

I use a wine cooler with an addition thermostat to cool off some of my animals.

-Chris
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Christopher E. Smith
Contact
Captive Bred Herps

Don't worry about lowering the temp to 50 degrees...there's no need to go that low.
I've always cooled them to typical winter-room-temp with great success. 65 degrees or so.
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Thanks,
-JC
www.rosyboas.to

60 plus rosies
0.1 Boa constrictor
1.1 cats

I second the 60-65 deg thing. Constant 50 deg is of no benefit to rosies.

As a minumum, here is what they need for breeding:
1. A night-time temp drop down into the low-mid 60s during Winter. If you want to hold those temps during the day as well, fine.
2. A Winter light cycle, or just dark.
3. In Spring, increase humidity (just spray 'em a little.) Nothings gets breeding going like rain.

Anything else is really unnecessary IMO. And in captivity, too low of temps for too long doesn't sit well with rosies. In the wild they can handle it because they have extensive burrows to avoid drastic temps.

I've bred rosies with no cooling (except the ambient air temp was in the low 60s, sometimes hitting the 50's at night. Heat was still provided) - just kept them mostly dark, or in a room with a window but no other lights on for the most part.
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Mark