Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I found a website that recommends cooling rosies to between 50 and 55 degrees for 2-3 months if they are going to be bred the following season. Is this still the best plan, or is there new information. Any help is appreciated. Happy Holiday to all and best of luck with your breeding season.

-Anthony

I couldn't say what the the "best" plan is, but I can tell you that rosies seem to do very well breeding-wise with nothing more than a reduced light cycle for the cage for 2-3 months and most of the cage in the 55-65 deg range even if you still provide a heated end of the cage.

My advice to you is to not go too low in temps with rosies. Err on the high side. 55 deg is actually plenty low for them (a day or two or three of lower temps will not hurt, but try to keep it reasonable). Mine bred just fine with temps not lower than 60 deg (often warmer), and I still provided a warm area on one side. Of course these were Baja, Mexican and coastal rosies, so that plays into the equation. But I did do the light cycle thing, and that goes a long way with rosies. It is not just temps alone.

I've had males successfully inseminate females with no forced cool period, although much of the cage was obviously cooler during the Winter months, so cool temps were available as needed. Always do the light cycle thing, what a difference it makes. You'll see.

Make sure that if the temps get below 55 the cage is absolutely dry. Cold and dry is survivable for them. Cold and damp is not good at all. Kingsnakes can do it but not rosies. They aren't kingsnakes and should not be treated exactly like kings.

Also, rosies need alot more heat to digest food after a cool period, compared to kings. Rosies take time, due to their mass, to warm up. Do not skimp on a basking area with rosies. They use it much longer with more of their body on it compared to kingsnakes. I make this comparison because so many people want to treat rosies exactly like a kingsnake. There are noted differences, even if slight, in their husbandry. Good luck.

Mark G,

I really appreciate the input. I was concerned about temps in the 50's. I have moved them back into my house where the ground floor stays around 60 all winter long. I was really concerned about leaving them outside in the garage where temps can drop down to the 20's. I will probably be posting again at the end of February to ask about warming them back up. Thanks again for the feedback. Best of luck with all of your snakes this season.

Happy Holidays,
Anthony-

I do not drop mine below 60, many of my friends do without any issies. I actually did not start cooling my rosys until a couple of years ago, and produced many nice litters. however, I worked mainly with coastal's at the time and now only keep desert localities.
-----
Keeper/Breeder of
Sand, Rosy, and Rubber Boa's, Drymachron, Alterna, Black Milks, Thayeri, and Crotalids.