Then how come with a single generation of inbreeding in a snake doesn’t cause nearly as many issues as in something like a dog? I honestly haven’t seen negative effects of a single generation of inbreeding in a snake, but have seen negative effects of a single generation of inbreeding in dogs first hand. You would think that something that hasn’t evolved much since the dinosaurs wouldn’t be nearly as complex as a dog, or any mammal for that matter.
Because dogs are already inbred to a high degree to meet the “standard” for their breed.
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Just to add what you said, my dog which is in my profile picture is the direct result of inbreeding hence why his nose is shaped like that because it was over decades of inbreeding to get this desired look and while i am in no way hating on pure breds i just thought id add to your response as a way to back it up more with some one else responding as well, but yeah you are completely right on your response with your example of the dogs being inbred and the fact that even some of the simplest looking organisms are actually the most genetically complicated.
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I know this might sound strange but have you guys ever seen a gamete under a microscope I have got to say sperm looks exactly like a tadpole and carrots complex genetic material.
That being said let’s also not forget that line breeding in dogs is never usually mother to sonot or brother to sister its usually cousins (if they do it correctly) even still the reason why genetic effects occur is due to the lack of diversity. In snakes we haven’t quite narrowed that tree down…I think the most you will see extreme inbreeding is with recessive genes when first found. Even these lines I imagine are out crossed yes they lead to one source but think of it like this humans came from one source same with dogs and cats we all start from somewhere. The further those branches become-> the less related–>the less defects. Meaning technically a great grandson could be crossed with the great grandma ball python there is more genetic diversity there because the breeder brought in new blood along the line if that makes sense.
I will thank you to stay out of my personal life!! 
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Even at the cousin to cousin level, this is still inbreeding. So, as you rightly observe, even at this level the pool is closed so the genetic diversity is limited and the accumulation of deleterious mutations begins to occur
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You might think that, but I tend to find that most breeders have collections that are fairly closed so their genetic diversity is not nearly as high as you might imagine.
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XD woah their bud I was solely talking about animal sperm xD. It was when we were doing out reproduction section.
That makes sense which is probably why caprice breed cheatahs are seeing more of an issue since their numbers are limited and they have been out crossed so frequently 
it would be awesome if there was a way to find a generic map to navigate that so even if somewhat related one can navigate those anomalies. I imagine it would also help with saving endangered species of all walks of life.
See I know people do hold backs and stiff, but perhaps that’s where people might want to think about it a bit more? It’s okay for some inbreeding to occur but those branching out is equally important (my perspective) to keep the snake physically and temperamental balanced. Did you know that inbreeding can increase probability of aggression? That’s one huge reason why American lined German shepherds have aggression issues (not including the lack that people don’t know how to train) not only that but degenerative diseases can come out of it as well. Over all I think it’s always important to have a nice balance, so if users correctly line breeding is a powerful tool and yes it creates an increase chance of a new gene coming out since inbreeding=increase mutations/irregularities…weather that is good or bad that’s another matter all together.
Introduction
During the last few years, there has been a growing concern amongst breeders about the effects of inbreeding on captive herp populations. While in many cases this concern is justified, it must be tempered by an understanding of the effects of inbreeding - both positive and negative. Many of the questions we get regarding this topic show an almost myopic fear and misunderstanding. So we’ve decided to share nearly three decades of of experience and thought about inbreeding in hopes of giving our customers a better insight on the subject.
What is Inbreeding?
Simply put, inbreeding is the process of breeding together individuals which are related, often quite closely. Inbreeding has a single consequence, it tends to reduce the number of alleles (genes) available within the population. Such concentration of alleles can be viewed as positive, if they are good traits, or negative if they are bad.
Why would you do this?
Well, there’s a number of reasons, all of which can be justified in spite of the dangers involved.
In many very rare species, there may simply be a lack of available breeding stock to utilize in breeding programs. This the case with many of the Australian species. Many of these species have never been legally imported into the United States, and current stocks consist mainly of confiscated specimens held at various zoological institutions. Few of these institutions place much value on captive reproduction and fewer still will allow such captive progeny into the hands of private keepers. As a result, there are few unrelated specimens available to the private sector. So captive breeders are faced with the excruciating choice of either inbreeding their stocks or watching these species vanish from captive collections.
A more common reason for inbreeding is the reproduction of various mutations, such as albinism. Such mutations can represent a large financial investment, as well as being of general interest to many, and there is much incentive to reproduce such individuals. There is absolutely no way to produce additional specimens of these rarities without inbreeding them to some degree. That’s simply the reality of it. Each and every albino Burmese Python is in some way related to every other albino Burmese Python. That’s just fact.
But inbreeding is in fact, a matter of degrees. In general, the more closely related two specimens are, the less desirable they are as partners for reproduction. In fact, there are laws in most countries regarding the marriage of related persons. You cannot marry your sister, or your cousin, but marrying you fourth cousin twice removed is legal (although if you’ve heard any jokes about Arkansas hillbillies, you’ll know it’s not desirable). As I said, it’s a matter of degrees.
So What’s So Bad About It?
As we discussed above, inbreeding tends to reduce the number of alleles present. While this is good if the allele has desirable effect, such as albinism, it is bad if the allele has a negative effect such as a spinal deformity. There are many potential negative effects and many are well-known in captive reptile populations already: Bloodred Cornsnakes are a line-bred (euphemism for inbred) line of Cornsnakes notorious for producing small hatchings which are difficult to start feeding. Patternless Leopard Geckos are well known for a lack of fertility in males. These are just two well known examples.
Perhaps more common is simply a general lack of vitality which increases with each successive generation. This is exactly what happened with the Bloodred Cornsnakes mentioned earlier. Early in the development of this beautiful morph, breeders selected stocks based on appearance through successive generations. This had the desired effect of producing more and more attractive snakes by reducing the number of alleles which had a counterproductive effect on appearance and increasing the number which had a positive effect. Sadly, this same concentration of alleles had the opposite effect on the hatchlings’ desire to accept rodents as first meals.
What Can We Do About It?
Any conscientious breeder will make every attempt to minimize the negative effects of inbreeding through a variety of methods.
A method of primary importance is to utilize out-crossing wherever practicable. Out-crossing involves taking your cherished albino specimen and breeding it to two unrelated wild specimens. You’ll now have two groups of heterozygous for albino specimens which are only half-related to breed together. This is much better than breeding the albino directly to his sister, as many new alleles will have been introduced into the population using this method.
Where possible, breeders should attempt to acquire specimens which are unrelated, or close to it, for use as breeders. The use of large groups of unrelated breeders will allow production of many unrelated or partially related offspring by making different pairings each year.
Accurate records should be maintained with regard to lineage. This will allow breeders of future generations to determine exact genetic relationships when selecting specimens for reproduction.
In each and every case, the breeder should attempt to weed out specimens exhibiting undesirable effects. Specimens exhibiting deformities, or which lack vitality should be euthanized or placed with individuals as pets - they should never be used in breeding programs.
The Bottom Line
Hopefully, this discussion has provided some insight into the subject of inbreeding. We hope that the reader will realize that inbreeding should be viewed as just another valuable tool to be used by knowledgeable breeders, but that its’ use must be tempered by good judgment and caution. Without it, none of the beautiful mutations we enjoy in our hobby today would be available.
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I agree, the article is biased and opinion heavy. There are positive and negative aspects to line or inbreeding. It gets more complicated when one adds ethical beliefs to the mix. For instance, if one culls all undesirable offspring over generations, one is also culling undesirable genes from the line, but then comes the question of how ethical is it to breed living creatures expecting to cull a high percentage just to get a desirable outcome in a few.
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I’ve inbred dogs and others that I have known have inbred dogs. I saw someone breed a mother and son on a already tight line and everything came out normal. What you saw was just a coincidence. You can’t base your idea on inbreeding dogs just by seeing one breeding. Just like someone can’t do the same with just seeing 1 pair of snakes inbreed and the offspring come out funny. There are too many factors to just blame it on inbreeding like incubation temps. In dogs it can be a multitude of factors that can affect offspring including simply spraying insecticides on a certain week of pregnancy.
Real dog People not fur mommies breed German Shepard’s for aggression. Normal ppl might not understand that. A well bred GSD is going to act aggressively towards ppl naturally. Pet ppl that buy these type of dogs don’t know what they are getting into and then blame it on everything under the sun including inbreeding. If you want a dog that is friendly get a lab. If you want a protector get a well bred GSD or any other type of working dog that is bred to do their job.
I respectfully disagree with you regarding GSD and inbreeding in canines. It’s off topic, but I felt it would be ok to briefly pipe in as an indicator that there are differing perspectives.
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Alright people this is not a DOG FORUM this is a snake forum so back on topic.
Thank you.
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Ok I understand we are all biased people, if you say you’re not that’s just false.
But let’s try and keep our own personal feelings on this subject to ourselves. This is supposed to be a topic of whether or not inbreeding on snakes can result in health problems down the line.
Can we keep it scientific please.
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