Hi, so last year I brumated my corn snakes from December 1st - February 1st and didn’t have the best fertility (but that could have been the male’s fault), I am just wondering how long you guys brumate your corn snakes for with success. Thank you in advance.
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I don’t. I have brumated in the past, but honestly didn’t noticed a difference in fertility. I live on the Gulf Coast where our cold weather is often medium-warm to absent. I see wild snakes year-round, admittedly fewer in the winter months.
How cold did you get them?
I brumate my adult corns from Dec. 1st through the end of Feb. (with a "cool-down week or so beforehand and a “slow warm-up” week afterwards. I aim for ~55 degrees F, always make sure they never drop below 45, and do my best to make sure they don’t get above 65 on the occasional warm Winter days we have here in SC. Based on convos with other breeders, I think Caryl is right that it often does not negatively impact fertility to not brumate, I just like the break I get not feeding and cleaning (other than water changes) for 3 months, and I like that they typically all end up on similar shedding and laying schedules.
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Around 50-55 degrees.
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So not brumating 3 months wouldnt impact fertility?
It didn’t for mine. That’s not meant to be a sweeping generalization, just my personal experience with brumating mine.
Snakesmith is right on the money about the break being nice! The bigger your collection, the bigger (and probably more welcome) the break. The first year I skipped brumation, it was because we were planning to move over the winter (didn’t happen, incidentally). I didn’t notice a difference in fertility, which made me curious. The next year I brumated some, and kept others on a normal feeding/temp/light regimen with my growing youngsters. Again, I didn’t see a difference. Since then I’ve just not bothered with brumating.
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My biggest question was if it mattered if I took them out of brumation at 2 or 3 months.
I don’t think it would. Mother Nature doesn’t have a firm, consistent time frame for putting her snakes into brumation. While I wouldn’t be surprised that there’s some variation in populations, I doubt that there is consistent difference in fertility based upon length of brumation.
The real keys to good fertility are consistently good husbandry. I can’t think of a biological study on 2 vs 3 months’ brumation and fertility. As long as your smakes are in good condition, you make sure they empty their gut as much as feasible before brumation, and you follow proper protocols, I don’t think the time frame is crucial.
Might make a good study topic, though.
(Apologies for delay. Had an emergency.)
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