Any new input here?
I donât think I added anything about ball pythons myself â I prefer them to be 150-200+ grams and have eaten 5+ unassisted consecutive meals before Iâm comfortable shipping.
Not a breeder(yet) but I bought some crested geckos that, after weighing when they came in were only about 5g
They seemed pretty small for shipping after I got them(size wasnât clear in pics) but thankfully arrived unharmed and Iâm definitely going to be waiting until 10-15g before shipping any that I breed in the future
Good info to know.
Im not a breeder ( for sales ) as of yet.
But itâd be good to have inverts here as well.
Personally i prefer my inverts beyond 2i. The second instar, they are so tiny and fragile. Ive found at 2i most prey are larger than they are which makes feeding a bit of work. They will take fresh kill however so long as they are approximately the same size. Shipping can also be rough for inverts as i have had a few arrive dead or dying on arrival ( i alwyas do overnight ) the shaking and tumbling can really damage them. So when i begin selling scorpions they will be 3i or above.
My roaches i havenât figured out enough like coralling them ( they seem faster and smarter than me ). For now ill just be swimming in endless roaches now if only i could figure out how to make crickets live for more than a week i do everything that i can, food, water, hides and climbs. I know that when crickets die they give off a chemical ( i think its ammonia i could be wrong but its something like that) it has a cascade effect on the colony. I may have to experiment with a few options like an open air mesh enclosure they have some metal mesh ( not sure if they can squeeze through it or eat through it. ) or maybe ill have to make a wood box and screen enclosure with lots of ventilation.
My rosy boas when i start selling will have to be established f/t eating well before id sell ( of course healthy too)
Hi and welcome to our community.
Iâm a crestie fanatic, I would LOVE to see some pics of your cresties. We have a dedicated thread should you wish to share:
I have had a few shipped as low as that and they did really well, considering, but I agree that itâs not a good weight to do so. I have decided I wont ship below 10g and we use reptile couriers here in UK.
Totally agree. I do 5 + meals and 120g or more.
I know this is an older thread, but I wanted to bring up the point of crested gecko sizes. Locally I see them for sale at around 5g (which is often 5+ mo old, from what Iâve asked sellers), they are in a healthy condition then and I would be comfortable buying or selling them at expos at that size. I think the recommended size should be 10-15g, but the minimum size for shipping could be around 7g.
@ghoulishcresties @foxreptile, what are your thoughts?
5g for 5 month old is small imo.
But If couriering, I aim for atleast 10g myself. I donât mind if theyâre not going far them being 8+, but a few of mine have been going Scotland recently so theyâve all been above 10
Iâm surprised by their size as well, but a lot of sellers have been telling me that when the gecko appears to be less than 7-8g. On MM too, there are some that are over 5mo old and only around 5g.
Blimey thatâs tiny!!
A friend has a Lilly thatâs only 8g and nearly a year
I donât think that a lot of keepers around here feed insects as much as they should. Itâs more occasional and a few times/month instead of a few times/week.
I actually found out a few in the us donât feed live at all⌠they get dry and blend in with foodâŚ
Theyâd apparently had issues with âoverweightâ cresties when feeding liveâŚ
Never had that issue myself. As long as they have the right size enclosure and can actively hunt and move around there wonât be an issue with cresties getting chubbyâŚ
Iâm so far not able to get Spike to eat live insects. If anyone has any tips to get him to iâd appreciate it
my hatchlings from last year have taken a while to grow. I feel itâs something to do with the winter months, despite that I use heat and feed insects.
So I can understand the slow growth issue. The weather has been very poor here compared to normal and I wonder if that has anything to do with it? Donât know if others have had this issue.
It might also be due to genetics though as the sire to my baby geckos was small for ages then he shot up when he came home with me