Lot O' Questions!

I am planning on breeding some ball pythons and have a bunch of questions.

1. What size (on average) should the male and female be before i should consider breeding them?
- i was told approx. 1500 g for females, not sure bout males

2. Approx. how much space do they need?
- im planning on investing in 6 tanks with dimensions of 24"x12"x13 3/4". Is this enough room for an adult ball?

3. Should i keep each ball seperate until breeding time?
- I was planning on keeping 1 snake per cage, but is it a bad idea to double up?

4. How much would it cost to invest in 3.3 adult ball pythons?
- i plan on having an even number of males and females, but im curious to the pricing.


My friend and I currently own 5 balls. 1 female at around 1000g and 4 baby males. We more than likely will not be using these 5 in the breeding process.

If you have any other information or a good guide to breeding please reply.


Thanks.



- Robb

The Sutherlands ( www.ballpython.com ) sell a breeding balls video. It is helpfull.

Now, most of what I am going to tell you is info I have gathered, not expeireince as I have not actually bred any of my balls yet~

Female should be around 1500 grams. Male as soon as he makes sperm plugs. As low as 700-800 grams sometimes.

I would invest in a breeder rack rather than 6 tanks. You will get 6 enclosures in a MUCH more space efficient rack, ~ heat and humidity will be easier to maintain.

I keep mine seperate, as I have been told many times this is best. I have a male living with a female right now though (Wishing he was interested in breeding~ he is 700 grams and I guess just not interested yet) and they do fine.....I seperate for feeding, and I will seperate them when I see the female ovulate or I give up on this season~ whichever comes first!

Pricing depends on the time of year and quality of the BPs. You can usually get WCs reasonably cheap, but adult CBB Females will cost you a pretty penny. Less this summer than right now. If I were you I would look into CH (Captive Hatch) or CB (Captive Born) or CBB (Captive Born and Bred) yearlings (03's). You will get these for reasonable prices~ $75 to $130 depending on size) and they will be ready in a year or two. Your baby males should be ready by the time any yearling females you purchase are.

Good Luck

1. What size (on average) should the male and female be before i should consider breeding them?

Females should be about 500 grams per foot. 1500 grams is not always enough weight. I myself would not breed a girl weighing 1500 grams if she was over 4'.
Males can be bred anywhere from 500 grams and up, if the animal is producing sperm plugs.
I have the best luck with males that are over 1.5-2 years old.

2. Approx. how much space do they need?
- im planning on investing in 6 tanks with dimensions of 24"x12"x13 3/4". Is this enough room for an adult ball?

I house my adult females in 34" x 16" x 6" bins.
The tanks you mentioned would be a bit too small.

3. Should i keep each ball seperate until breeding time?

They should be housed seperatly at all times other than breeding. Housing more than one per enclosure can cause stress and lead to feeding issues down the road.

4. How much would it cost to invest in 3.3 adult ball pythons?

3.3 CBB adults will be very hard to come by this time a year. I would imagine you could spend as much as $400 per female. Adult males can be found for as little as $50.

I would avoid WC animals due to the potential health problems and vet bills.