Wierd Weather and breedings

Pastel Super Mojave x Lemonblast

So of course, the weird weather here in Southern California has led to some very concerning breeding conditions, but I have been watching accordingly, and have captured a few breedings in the last few days.

Also, the problem with the weather is that the humidity has been very low, and lots of dry sheds have resulted. This paired with the fact that I don't like to harass my animals while during the breeding season as much as I would normally has basically shown itself in the stuck shed on the pictures for today.

Please forgive me.

Above, we have a new breeding and a new female to the loop. The Lemonblast female is a recent acquisition that just came out of quarantine. She has now been paired up with the Pastel Super Mojave, hopefully to make some stellar Super Pastel Mojave Pinstripes. Fingers crossed for this pairing...

Vanilla het Hypo x Pastel

And here we have the Vanilla het Hypo male with a Pastel. Nothing super fancy, but I'd love to have a few Vanilla Pastels to work with in the future. Here's to a bunch of combos in this clutch! He is a stud of a breeder, so hopefully there will be some good Vanilla stuff in this upcoming season for sure.

Spider het TSK Axanthic x Pastel het TSK Axanthic

Last but not least, we have my favorite pairing of the blog. I have been shooting for Axanthic Killerbees ever since I saw them from NERD back in 2006. This is my big chance to make some Axanthic Bumblebees, which I could then pair up with the Pastel Axanthic that I produced last season. Fingers crossed for something AMAZING out of this pairing, since this is my only shot this season at it.

So there you go, my friends. I hope that this gives you a glimpse into the possibilities here at Heather's Herps in 2012. I am getting excited, and although I expect this to be a late season for us due to the weather, it should still be an awesome one!

Have a great day, my friends!

Big girls, baby boys

As you know, I've been introducing new males into the harem.

A few of these boys actually showed some kinds of promise, so I snapped some pictures.

Above is my Pewterbee with a Pastel, and he was actually locked as I checked. He likes the larger girls, and I can't say I'm upset about it at all.

I am upset about the mess they made before I took the picture, but... it's hard to clean without not messing with them.

This guy below I've actually mentioned before, my beloved Spinnerblast.

He keeps trying to make things happen.

Problem is, you notice where his vent is? You can see per the picture what the issue is, but the thing is, he is trying! He is managing to lift the female's tail, and that again is a great sign, but no hemipene work at all so far.

Oh well... More to see soon.

Have a great day, my friends!

Pastel Enchi clutch

Alrighty people, they are all out, and they are doing very well!

I ended up with an extra even sex odds as well as genetics odds.

1.1 Enchis, 2.2 Pastels, 1.1 Pastel Enchis.

I didn't end up with any Normals, which is even awesomer!

So they are all looking great, and the Enchis look fantastic. No spots at all, and will grow into great adults. The Pastel Enchis, which I have never hatched out before, are fantastic as well! 

I love the head patterns of the Enchis, and the Pastel Enchis have amazing head patterns with blushing as well.

This female is my only hold back for this clutch, and I have to say I am really amazed at how cool the Pastel Enchis look. I can't wait to see how she grows into her colors.

The rest will be at the show in January.

www.reptilesupershow.com

So with that, have a great day, my friends.

Pastels and Enchis hatching

The Pastel Enchi clutch is hatching, and although not all of the eggs have hatched, these two babies have come out.

This Enchi female is going to be AMAZING when she sheds out and grows up. I love her reduced pattern. She is not that high yellow, but she will grow into her colors soon.

And her little brother, the Pastel male, hatched out first. He is very nice looking as well. 

Hopefully tomorrow I can show you all the rest.

Sorry for the short lived blog, but I am trying to get things back on track in life. Please forgive me. 

Have a great day, my friends.

Almost done!

This is one of the last females to lay for 2011, and I have to say, I'm glad to see it! She was one of those females I wasn't sure was going to go at all, until I saw her ovulate several months after everyone else.

I have one or two more females that are going to lay, and that should be it for this season. Basically... This season is going to end during the beginning of the next one. WHEW!

It hasn't been like that for me in a long time, if at all. I am surprised at this, but honestly.. I'm not really concerned. As long as these gals are ready and healthy and give me eggs when they are ready, who am I to complain, eh?

Anyway, this girl was mainly bred to the Enchi, so I am expecting Pastel Enchis in the next few months. She was bred to the Sterling waaaayyy early in the season, but considering he was not involved for at least 4-5 months before the eggs, I can't imagine him being the father. But... here we are, waiting to find out.

She gave me eight beautiful little eggs, so I can't wait to see some good stuff from this clutch. Also, the last few clutches did hatch, and there are some fun things to share!

This clutch hatched out on Saturday, early, of course. This was the Pastel Super Mojave to Genetic Stripe clutch. One egg went bad, and the end count was:

1.0 Pastel Mojave het Genetic Stripe, 1.2 Mojave het Genetic Stripe

I will take it! I am really excited to make some Pastel Mojave Stripes!

This girl came out of the Caramel to Hypo clutch, the only one... The other eggs went bad. But look! She is a Hypo!!! I have no idea why, and the Caramel male was not traced back to being a het, but this is a Hypo.. I don't know what's going on.

She may be a Hypo Het Caramel, but it'll be a few years before we find out. HOORAY for fun Het stuff!

And the next clutch due to hatch is my most exciting clutch of the season. In a few days, we get to find out who was the father of the Special female clutch. Four eggs are still viable, and I can't wait to see what is going to pop out...

Have a great day, my friends!

Not done yet!

Chubby Female Pastel

Well, the season is coming to a close, but I'm not even done yet! I know we have mentioned that planning for the next season is already underway, as I tend to start my next breeding season on my Birthday, but this time it may not happen.

With everything going on, my Birthday actually falls on the Saturday of the Sacramento Reptile Show, so while we will be snake-ing that day, I will not be able to pair up any animals. 

I am expecting two more clutches to lay, one from the female above and another late female as well. The incubator is still on, and I doubt that it will be shut down until January at this point.. 

But that is alright!

It doesn't mean that things aren't going to happen, it just means that things are going to happen a bit later than usual. 

Black Pewter

I'm also trying to get around to taking a lot of new pictures of critters, as the collection variety has expanded.

I fully intend on getting a few more things done, as well as photos and introduce some new topics to discuss, a few of which have been requested.

I am also doing a few auctions on my Facebook Page located here. If you are on Facebook, check out my page and like it! If you want to be involved in the auctions, you must like the page. Some great deals happen over there, including discounts on purchases and fun games!

Anyway, have a great Monday, my friends.

Funny looking and Wow!

I finally gave in to picking up another Clown. I really like her, and I am in Clown mode right now. I love that I finally have another one, albeit not as reduced pattern as the male, but pretty damned cool if I do say so myself. 

The head pattern is so cool! It's like a puzzle... Funny looking, but interesting.

She has a few years, but I have plenty of plans for her.

Fingers crossed for a quick growth spurt.

The Clown project is something that I didn't get into too strongly, and I'm trying to make up for it.

She's a start!

Pastel Lesser to Normal clutch blew me away after hatching.

NO NORMALS. This is redemption from last year and the double co-dom to normal ALL NORMAL fiasco.

Here they all are....

4.0 Lessers, 1.0 Pastel

And the gals...

0.2 Pastel Lesser, 0.1 Lesser

I have to say, I'm pretty pleased with the results, although I would have liked to have more females...

Lesser males, anyone?

Have a great day, my friends

Mojave..Spider...Pastel

Clutch 14 is out, and all 10 eggs were fantastically fine! My odds were good in terms of morphs, as there are no normals in the clutch, but I have to say, my sex odds had a little to be desired.

That's alright though.

Here are the males...

One Bumblebee, One Mojave Spider, 3 Mojaves, and a Pastel Mojave Spider...

And what about the girls?

A Spider, two Mojaves, and a Pastel Mojave Spider (who is of course, staying here)

I am in love. I really do like this combination... I look forward to seeing her grow up.

I am glad to have the opportunity to have a gal...

YAY for more SPIDERS!

Swimming in more Spiders, and I am alright with it!

The next clutch doesn't hatch out for another week, so I am lacking in topics somewhat.

Suggestions? Comments? Concerns?

What have I not touched on in a while?

What do you wanna see?

Let me know, and have a great day, my friends!

Out early...

Well, one of the Crystals is out. 

And out early. It has an umbilicus still hanging, but I don't expect it to be a problem. 

And guess what? 

With all that pink, it's a GIRL!

I hope the other one comes out with Penes, but we shall see...

Most of the clutch is still tucked in the egg with no movement, but two heads have been peering out, and they look like Mojaves. 

Fingers crossed that after this weekend I will have something more to share about the clutch than just this gal!

And of course, the first clutch to hatch is taking its sweet time to shed. So I took a picture of the jumble just for the heck of it. 

They should also be shed by Monday.

So Monday will be the day to see what is really going on, my friends. I expect another clutch or two of eggs as well, I think. 

Should be a good day.

Can't wait to see what more is going to pop out!

Come on, eggs... Really. I'm tired of waiting. 

Let's get going with some live action!

Clutch #1 OUT!

First clutch of the season is out and about, my friends.

I am rather excited about it, if I do say so myself.

I really am enjoying seeing the tiny babies hatch out.

This clutch was the Pastel Lesser x Pastel pairing, and the results were not unexpected, per se, but the Lesser portion of the genetics was rather lacking...

Here is the outcome:

1.1 Pastels
1.1 Super Pastels
1.0 Super Pastel Lesser

This guy, who I was hoping was going to be a gal, is absolutely smoking! He is gorgeous, and similar in pattern to his older brother, who I have here to be a future breeder for next season.

Again, a group picture. The background isn't that great, and the colors aren't the best, but hey. It's a group picture!

 The Supers together...

And the Super Pastel Lesser alone in all his glory. 

He should be a great looking animal, like his older brother.

Isn't that the weirdest thing? These guys only have a year difference between them. The color change is staggering, but especially right out of the egg until now. Maybe we will do another color comparison after the first shed.

With joy comes sadness as well. My beloved Bobo, the white dumbo rat that I have had for many years passed away last night of old age. He was a good breeder and a good pet. Rest in Peace, my friend.

So with that, we have a great few days of nothing exciting happening quite yet, as the next clutch to hatch is due at the end of the month.

Have a great day, my friends!

Clutch 14- It's getting good!

Well, I have to say, this clutch made me smile.

Clutch 14 is from my 2005 Pastel female that was a huge female from the get go (somewhere around 3000+ grams), and laid a fantastic TEN egg clutch for me yesterday. She was so big that I wasn't expecting her to lay for another few days due to her lack of bulge. But she surprised me, as she was on the watch list, but with no expectations. I'm not upset that they are here at all!

She was bred to my Mojave Spider male, and I have to say I am really excited to see what pops out of this one.

This clutch is the largest clutch I have had this season so far, and I am very glad to see it!

It's a beautiful thing, seeing so many good eggs in a pile. What good luck for the first of the month, eh? Good things keep on coming! 

So of course, I got the box ready, put the eggs in, and now we wait. I am really hoping for some amazing Mojave Bumblebees in this clutch. I have never hatched them here before, so I am excited to say the least! 

Lets hope that this is not the last larger clutch that gets laid here... Fingers cross, my friends. 

Have a great day!

Clutch #11 and fatties

So Clutch #11 is on the ground, with Clutch #12 more than likely being laid right now...

But let's discuss Clutch #11 first.

Clutch #11 is an enigma wrapped up in a conspiracy, deep fried in a nutty coverup!

Well, not really... But I am not sure who the father is.

I know who the mother is, obviously... But I have no idea who I put with this gal that sired this clutch.

This gal was a "Oh crap, I'm not sure who would be the best bet for this gal... so lets throw a few things on her" female of this season.

So I did.

And I wrote them down, crossed some out, and the sticker on the tub is basically a bunch of scribbles where there should be a guaranteed father or fathers to be.

I can make a few things out, like Mojo Spider and Bumblebee... But I'm not sure why I crossed them out. This is basically a fail of records and organization for Heather.

For shame...

But we did get six glorious eggs out of the deal, and I'm sure they will be fantastic animals, no matter what pops out.

Mystery Clutch #1 for the season...

And of course, it looks like within the next few weeks, I will have the second incubator running full blast.

Here are a few fatties that I found in nesting position.

You gotta love the symmetry of it all. Beautiful little round buns..

Some a bit more fiesty than others...

And some much more nonchalant.

But all uncomfortable and due to give me eggs in a few weeks to a month.

Bring it on.

Have a great long weekend and day, my friends.

Clutch #9 and more EBP

Well, the Egg Butt Puff actually resulted in eggs early last morning, but I didn't stay around to get them all until later. I did, however, take some photos before she was done.

 She looked miserable, of course, as most females are when pushing fetal things out of holes...

But a few hours later when I had the chance to get back into the snake room, she was done.

This female was the first female to lay for me last year, but this was not the case this year (obviously). 

So a few weeks later than the first clutch, we have six good eggs from my Pastel Super Mojave male and this female Pastel. 

I am hoping for a good bunch of Pastel Mojaves and Super Pastel Mojaves.

And some more Egg Butt Puff from my proven Het Pied female. She is the next one I expect to drop, although there are a few other females that are close as well (within the next week). 

We shall see!

And I was excited to see this, as I had been missing visual locks with this pairing. My Enchi male with one of my Mojave females (in shed and dirty). Lets see if this works, eh? Should be a great clutch if I get one... 

Fingers crossed!

Have a great day, my friends!