This is our 1st year breeding. And, while I’ve done countless hours of research I can’t find an answer to this question. If a female was paired & didn’t go this year, when is it safe to pair her again? I don’t plan on following the “season”; I want to pair as the female is ready. However, I have 1 female that didn’t go & it now has me curious. Is it ok to pair again now as she has went back on food & is gaining weight or do I go back to my records & give her a year from her last pairing? Thanks for the help.
I’d assume you’d wait until the following year to pair again, but then again you said you weren’t sticking to a “seasonal” breeding plan (which then would be considered year-round breeding) so I’m not sure either on that.
It’s my first year breeding too, so I’d be interested to know how soon a female can be paired (I too have a female that I bred earlier this year that didn’t go, but now she’s in the middle of getting treatments for an abscess so I’m not sure how soon I could try breeding her again… obviously after she’s completely recovered but still)
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There is no season for breeding ball pythons. While a majority will go around the same time of the year some will not. It is safe to pair them year around as long as they are healthy. Try waiting a couple of months and pairing again. She won’t breed if she is not ready. You have to work on the animals schedule.
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Usually a go indicator of a female building is she will be always jumping out the tub looking for food. If your female is feeding heavy start pairing her. If you get a lock wait about a month a pair again. Don’t pair to often as it can lead to undo stress and isn’t really necessary. Also she still may have sperm retained from her last pairing. You can have females ovulate who haven’t bred in months. I never withhold food either from males or females even when breeding. I let them go off feed on there own. Hope this helps
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I pair more than once a month. The thing I see often is breeders pairing less frequently and getting a couple of eggs with mostly slugs. I think pairing more often, but not to the point of exertion, fertilizes more eggs. This is where knowing your breeders comes in handy.
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Pairing less often usually keeps my males feeding regular. Also if your male is breeding with quite a few females more than once a month per female is going to take a toll. In the past two seasons I have one one clutch of 8 that was all slugs. And 3 slugs total from all my clutches. I myself think breeding more often actually decreases fertility rates. But this is only based on my experiences. I am a firm believer everyone should do what works for them. Trial and error
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I dont see the harm in pairing agian because a female wont breed if it means it will hurt her.
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just a question about pairing. you say to pair your males with your females once a month. my question is for how many moths do you continue to pair them? I started pairing some of mine 3 weeks ago and just paired again this weekend two of my males have been locked up with their females for over 24 hours. i have seen them break the bond yet.
I usually will do about 3 or 4 months. But if they continue eating I don’t see anything wrong with going longer. If they ovulate I stop as well.
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Thank you , I also have a problem right i have a male and female that have been locked together and I am not talking about in the same tub since Friday and they are still locked today. is there something i should do to get them apart or just let them go till they are done on their own?
I’d leave them locked until they split up on their own. Just let the male have a good rest afterward, he should be fine.
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Leave them locked until there done. They will stay locked for a couple of days sometimes. Don’t worry they know what there doing!
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