Want to breed "Need breeders HELP"

[Shann]

I fell in love with my first boa at the age of 5, I don’t remember what happened to her but I came home and she wasn’t in her cage:( ! My Mom told me they had to give her away. Then after meeting my husband we got another boa. As our family grew and bills got bigger we couldn’t keep her. I am kind of glad because we had her in a big reptile glass tank about 5 ft. by 2 ½ ft. with a reptile heating pad and a heat lamp with no thermostat. “I know bad mommy:o ” But I didn’t know what I was doing then.
Now that we are doing fine I got an Albino female boa and a DH for Sunglow male that I did plan on breeding. I have read everything I can find that is available on books, on the web and I have also learned a lot on snake forums.
I have 2 boaphile cages for my snakes with the correct heating and humidity; I also got 2 boaphile 15 sweater drawer racks for future breeding.
But the more I have talked to people about breeding I am scared. I have heard horror stories about other peoples females dying, or slugging out and having a slug left behind and they have passed away from it. Another horrible story was that the female ate the male:eek: . But this was a first for me hearing of this. But this is from people in passing and I don’t know if they are good breeders or people that just put two snakes together and hoped for the best.

My snakes are my babies and they mean the world to me and the last thing I want to do is hurt them. If my vet says they are mature enough and healthy enough and they are in awesome caging with the correct heat and humidity can things still go bad?
I also heard that a female can get aggressive after her first breeding and it can be very difficult to calm them down again. Is this true?

So what I am asking of all of you is the pros and cons of breeding! I would very much appreciate it! Thank You, Shann

[Linda]

Pros: There's nothing like the feeling you get when you have your first litter. :D Sort of gives your boas immortality. They can live on forever through they're offspring. Then to see the different colors/patterns and watching the babies grow up. Well, that's pretty darn good too. They change so much as they mature and that's pretty nice to be able to see.

It's even better when you have a "perfect" litter with no deformities, preemies or slugs. Just a pile of perfect babies. :D




Cons: There's no gaurantee when breeding boas. Breeding boas can be a very "humbling" experience. This is the only "con". What I've put below is why it can be humbling.

You can get all slugs or a mixture of slugs, preemies, and/or viable babies. Your female can have complications and die during gestation. She can have complications and die after birth.

A female can give bith to babies that are deformed. Some of these deformities are minor. Some of them are "severe". Sometimes you have to choose the fate of these deformed animals. Sometimes these badly deformed ones won't last long and you don't have to make that choice.


The male can be injured during breeding, but this doesn't happen that often.

I did read somewhere that a male was eaten by the female, but that was somebody that knew somebody that had a female eat the male. Not really first hand info, but still info that was posted on a forum.

Some females just refuse to ovulate. Even the best efforts by the male doesn't seem to get the job done.

Some boas end up getting RI's during breeding season. It could be from stress or lower temps. Lowering temps isn't required for breeding boas, but some people do lower the temps.

Females can and do become very aggressive during the gestation. Some become aggressive during breeding season. There are a few boas that don't become aggressive. Even a female that becomes very aggressive during breeding/gestation will "normally" go back to being the way they were before.

Females and male can both go off feed during breeding and/or gestation. Some boas recover from this fasting period very well. Others take a year or more. Mostly it's the females that might take a year or more to recover from breeding and gestation. Males normally get back to feeding fairly soon after the breeding season.


Even a nice pair of healthy mature boas can have "problems". Everything can be going well and then it all falls apart. When breeding boas the best you can do is, "hope for the best, but prepare for the worst". As I said, breeding boas can be a humbling experience. I'm sure I've missed a few things, but you get the idea.


BTW Some of the problems that boas have during breeding and/or gestation "could" be from "human error". I'd guess that boas in the wild don't have the same problems of those in captivity. We pamper our boas and protect them from the "bad things" that boas in the wild have to endure, "just to survive".


The "problems" I've listed are the worse case senerios. These things don't always happen, but they can and do happen each year. Sort of makes you want to cry when you read all the posts about dead babies, preemies, slugs, deformities, and dead mother and/or father boas. It sort of makes you wonder why anyone would want to breed boas.

BTW I know the odds, but I still choose to breed my boas. You just have to be very "aware" of your boas. Watch them closely and take careful notes. If something seems "off" it probably is. Listen to your boas. They can teach you a lot. They can't talk, but their body language speaks volumes.

[ChrisGilbert]

Breeding does have its downsides. Not every animal is designed to breed, remember that most die in the wild. There may be hidden factors of captive breeding that prevent some boas from ever breeding. Or others it may be a case that they will have complications with pregnancy, as does occur with females of every species of animal.

Breeding puts a LOT of stress on boas. If both are not in TOP shape, then they shouldn't be bred. Any hidden ailment could be applified by stress.

The recommendation has always been that if you absolutely can not live with the possibility of loosing an animal, don't breed it.

If they are healthy, and you are ready to deal with the litter, and taking care of the babies, then I feel you should give them a chance to breed. That's just natural. I always advice people to be prepared to take care of the ENTIRE litter. What if you can't find homes for all the babies? Are you going to be able to take care of a whole litter of boas for their entire lives?

[Shann]

Linda and Chris Thank you for the informative replies. I have a lot to think about. I actually have been researching this for three years now. One year before getting my snakes and the two years I have had them. I think it could be really exciting for me, I am a stay at home Mom and my 15 year old son is really into our snakes too and has learned a lot, he picked out his own mexican black Kingsnake for himself. I went into this thinking it could give me something to do for myself and also something for my son and I that we can enjoy and do together.
I think it could be very rewarding for me, but it could also be tragic. I have to do a lot of thinking and talk to the family about it.
I do have people waiting on babies and I also have a couple of guys that work at a local pet store that breed their own normal Columbian redtail boas. They are going to help me for a baby of their own in return. "If I do breed them"
I do understand that I may have to care for what I produce, I like that idea. That is something we also would have to talk about. But I have 2 more years to make my decision. They both will be 4 years old by then. And if I don't I have two awesome boas and two racks to fill with something else. You both are great and thanks for responding. Shann