Hello, I have a question I’d like to ask for your opinion on. This year, I used one male snake for breeding, and my other females produced perfectly fertilized eggs. However, one snake that I bred six times and fed weekly produced half infertile eggs in two separate breeding cycles. What could be the main reason for this? single eggs are soft
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I’m not sure anyone can tell you definitively. Maybe a genetic incompatibility issue preventing about half the clutch from fertilizing.
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Thank you so much 
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Are you saying some of the eggs in the photo are infertile?
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Bred with a male six times within the 2 cycles?
Or this female has laying eggs for six cycles?
If the 2nd then it could be stress related because of the breeding without being given an off season.
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Yes, they look nice, but they’re quite soft.
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Hahaha, yes, I wrote it a little wrong. I meant she mated 6 times, this is her second time laying eggs.
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Soft doesn’t mean infertile, necessarily. If all the eggs were laid at the same time, the most likely culprit is an issue with calcium deposition. She may have some sort of shell gland disfunction or calcium deficiency. I’d give her a break from breeding and not breed her more than once per year and see if that helps with the integrity of future clutches. I wouldn’t necessarily suggest calcium supplementation immediately, as you can easily overdo it and cause bigger problems, but 2-3 lightly calcium dusted meals may help replenish anything lost.
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Absolutely agree. Fertilization doesn’t guarantee proper mineralization of the eggs’ shells. It’s also possible that they feel soft to you because they’re in need of a bit of hydration. Slugs usually feel a bit slick, not just soft. If they’re fertile, they might develop just fine. Not seeing veins in the first week or so doesn’t mean they aren’t fertile. One trick for separating fertile eggs from slugs is that a single drop of water (at the same temp as the eggs!) will be absorbed by a fertile egg. Slugs don’t absorb this. But hey, the best policy is the old standby, incubate until there’s no debate.
Got a few other questions in the interest of figuring things out, with the understanding that sometimes one just can’t quite figure it out.
- How old are these parents? What did they weigh when they were bred?
- You said the female had laid before. How were those eggs?
- When was she bred before? What was her weight after laying?
Sounds like this female certainly needs a year off. I wouldn’t presume there’s a problem with the male simply because of this clutch.
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First of all, thank you so much for the invaluable information. This female is 7 years old and weighs approximately 650 grams, while my male is 2 years old and weighs around 200 grams. In her previous spawning, she laid 20 eggs, and there were 9 slugs. I kept them but discarded them when they deteriorated. Yes, these eggs don’t look slippery or bad; I will give them some time and update the topic. Thanks
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Good luck on the development of the eggs. Looks like most have at least a pretty good chance of survival to me.
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