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Help with incubation method

PlatinumRosePythons

PlatinumRosePythons

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I have a female that is going through her pre lay shed right now. This will be my first clutch of eggs and I was just wondering if I should do maternal or artificial incubation? I've heard some bad feedback from the kind of incubator I was gonna buy (reptibator) and since then have been considering maternal incubation. A home made incubator isnt an option at present. Any thoughts/opinions/advice is greatly appreciated! :)
 
I like using an incubator. I have used a store bought one and it wasnt for me. a home made one is very easy to make. All you need is to go on craigs list find a broken mini fridge free-$50.00 is what I have found them for. Buy a couple computer fans maybe $10.00. Get a controller and wire heat in the bottom of it and run power to your fans and its done. It is a lot easier then you think and it works great. I wouldnt waster my money on a store bought one.

I know the momma knows best but I find when i leave them maternal she can move them she can let one roll away they dont get a constant humidity. I dont that is just my preference.

I have attached a picture of my setup. I put a ranco controller on mine. Heat in the bottom and a fan. Works great holds right at 90% humidity and 88F is what I incubate at.

GOOD luck with your clutch however the method I hope it works great.
 

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Maternal works if you can supply the correct environment.I suggest finding someone with experience doing maternal incubation and getting as much info as possible.
If you can't provide the correct humidity and temperatures for her then you need to incubate them.

A home made incubator isnt an option at present.
Click to expand...
A mini fridge isn't an option?
 
We tried maternal incubation last year and were happy with the results (will do it again this year). But, we did keep the incubator set up, and stuck a few stubborn roll outs in it. IMO, either method works, but if I had to choose between maternal incubation or an unreliable incubator I would go with maternal incubation.

As a side note, I think incubators are kind of like aquariums...the smaller the setup, the faster dangerous fluctuations can occur.
 
FireStorm said:
We tried maternal incubation last year and were happy with the results (will do it again this year). But, we did keep the incubator set up, and stuck a few stubborn roll outs in it. IMO, either method works, but if I had to choose between maternal incubation or an unreliable incubator I would go with maternal incubation.

As a side note, I think incubators are kind of like aquariums...the smaller the setup, the faster dangerous fluctuations can occur.
Click to expand...



I agree with your last statement. I had a small one that held one clutch and it was a nightmare! Everytime I looked at it it read something different. I got ride of that thing ASAP.

What type of substrate do you keep your bp in? I know someone that does carpet pythons and maternal incubation and he lets her lay wherever she is comfortable. Then covers her up with about 10 sheets of newspaper and mists the top of the newspaper everyday and he seems to nail it everytime. Works great for him.
 
I think I'm going to try maternal incubation. I keep my snakes on aspen bedding and after she finishes her shed I plan on giving her a large laying 'cave' to help her feel more secure. I also have loads of sphagnum moss to put in there. When it comes to bedding, should I leave the aspen in there or replace it with perlite/vermiculite?

Thanks for all your help guys! :)
 
We use either cypress mulch or our regular cage liners ( I would have to look up the name...can't remember offhand) and just add sphagnum moss. I wouldn't use vermiculite or perlite, and you may have trouble with the aspen molding. If you can get cypress, it seems to handle the high humidity pretty well.
 
TexasVipRoom said:
What type of substrate do you keep your bp in? I know someone that does carpet pythons and maternal incubation and he lets her lay wherever she is comfortable. Then covers her up with about 10 sheets of newspaper and mists the top of the newspaper everyday and he seems to nail it everytime. Works great for him.
Click to expand...

Correct me if im wrong, but I read that when bp's incubate their own eggs they sometimes leave the eggs to drink and eat whereas carpets never leave the eggs. While that paper thing is a seriously awesome idea I don't know if that will work with ball pythons.
 
FireStorm said:
We use either cypress mulch or our regular cage liners ( I would have to look up the name...can't remember offhand) and just add sphagnum moss. I wouldn't use vermiculite or perlite, and you may have trouble with the aspen molding. If you can get cypress, it seems to handle the high humidity pretty well.
Click to expand...

Adding cypress to my shopping list! Thanks so much! Any other tips for a newbie lol?
 
Maternal Incubation... One of my favorite hurdles in keeping Reptiles.

Do your homework thoroughly, and make it happen!

So much more rewarding...
 
if all else fails and you have an empty space in your rack. just incubate them there. works fine...
 
I use cypress and coco husk mixture. The coco hold hundity soooo well, but it's dirty so I only use alittle mixed in with cypress triple shredded mulch.
 
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