Hey guys !
My Mojave girl has locked up with her man a few times in the last 3 months with many locks. She has become ravenously hungry, cool seeks more, I’ve found her inverted a number of times too. I was convinced she was building follicles with her weight gains too. But I tried palpating for follicles for the first time today and couldn’t feel anything:(. This is my first year breeding ball pythons and maybe I just suck at palpating for follicles. Any advice ? My main concern is if she isn’t building should I stop feeding her? Like I said she’s ravenous eating 2 medium rats a week. She would probably eat every other day if I let her. So at this point I’m I just making her obese or should I keep feeding holding out hope? I just don’t know
i would definitely cut her back. no reason even with building to feed 2 med rats a week.
Yeah depends how big your “mediums” are but for me that’s a bit much. Most importantly though just look at the snake and assess its overall physical condition as far as knowing when to feed. It does sound like she could be building with that attitude, palpating can be tricky… Just keep up your pairings and if she suddenly goes off food/ doesn’t want the male then that could be a good sign!
Ok that sounds like some good advice. I’ll try palpating her later today and take some pics to. She is definitely a lil on the chonky side if she’s not prego
Yeah hard to say from that angle. Honestly I don’t really palpate because I was never great at it, instead I pay attention like you said to feeding patterns, the females physical appearance as well as behavior. You’ll second guess yourself a lot and they can be tricky but you get a feel for what’s going on over time. One thing to pay attention to also is “the glow”. She looks good and looks like good body weight, I’m sure once a week feeding would be plenty but always your call.
Here are some more pics
I did palpate again and I think I might have felt a few follicles I think I’m just not squeezing hard at all Im scared for my baby so I baby her
Just keep things up til you see an ovulation! Could be getting there, good luck!
She is definitely fat if she isn’t pregnant. Don’t feed her that much even if she is building. Once a week should be enough with that much weight on her already.