Determining Breeders

Every year, Breeders looking to upgrade their collections and manifest new projects tend to reevaluate what they have, what they want to do, and the animals they are currently working with. Do they have enough space to keep everything they had previously? Do they have the resources to keep fifty more animals from the cuurrent year without moving anything out ?

These are the questions, and the answers are most of the time very difficult. The longer you do it, the more things get complex.. I can attest to that.

The thing that really is important to figure out is... Is it worth it anymore?

Is it worth it to feed that animal and use it next season for breeding? Males or females? Large or small?

Things floating around thru the community and in my own mind as well.

For example...

Are normal breeder females not worth the effort to have anymore?

They are still females producing eggs, but is it better to sell your breeder normals and het stuff that isn't easily create a morph, or do you keep them? Do you keep all of the newest and coolest females that you produce and replace the normals with them this year, or next year, or at all?

For me, every year is a bit more difficult... I am moving out some of the last of my breeder normal females, and it pains me to see them go. The same with my breeder males... It's one of those things that I feel guilty about, although it is a difficult decision, it is the best thing for my space and my collection.

And of course, the feeling that some people do not appreciate the breeders I am selling doesn't help the situation. This is not to say that my customers who get my breeders don't appreciate snakes.. That is not what I am saying at all. What bothers me more is the market for a breeder anything seems to be not much more than that of a hatchling... and this is the norm. So why buy hatchlings at all? (Another topic for another day)

But, it is part of the equation of being a breeder. Things loose value, other things are more interesting, and things change often.

The market is finicky, but the snakes are awesome. That is the bottom line.

So I clear out space for more snakes, more awesomeness, and next year the problem will again be where to put what I want to keep so that I can keep progressing in my goals as a breeder.

How bout you?

Have a great day, my friends!

Mystics, Specials and Others

Here I did another video with something I had done on the blog a few months ago.

But now, it's more flashy and with a catchier beat!

Enjoy!!!

Pretty Boy and Counting your Blessings.

My Pastel Pied shed out, and I am so excited to have him here.

He is one of the animals that I planned to produce (in my dream plans) to have for the next few seasons and to use in projects.

I am very very blessed to have him here.

Why am I so thankful for this guy?

Cause it seems that my odds are now turning for the worse.

Let me introduce you to the eight egg clutch from Mystery Males (many of them double or triple co-dom) to Normal.

End result?

7 Normals, and a deformed Normal dead in the egg.

I didn't even bother sexing them yet. I was so upset with them being ALL normals, I just put them in the tub and walked away.

Those two that are really nice and yellow and banded? Yeah, still just normals. Cool looking normals, but still just normals.

So yeah...

PLUS, the Lesser Pastel to Spider clutch I was super super excited about this season?

All bad.

EVERY egg is dead.

So there will be no Queenbees or Lesserbees for me this year.

That sucks.

Sucks bad.

So I am in somewhat of a funk.

My luck has taken a change for the not so great, but then again, we are not done, so... its a work in progress. I am disappointed by the recent hatchings. Yes, it is part of the game, and yes, its not the end of the world, but... expectations were high.

And here I am, in the rubble of my hopes crashing down.

Queenbees would have been awesome to have hatched out. Really.

But I have to keep telling myself that there is always next year. Which there totally is...

So I am positive that things will get better, that this season is not that bad, cause hey, I have my Pastel Pied!!!

There is always something to be happy about when it comes down to it, and I am very happy about him. Now to get him big and fat to make him ready for the ladies next year or so. 

So I am counting my blessings.

Healthy baby snakes of all kinds, hatching out the runt egg, learning and growing in my experience.

That is something to be happy about.

Grow and learn, and know that nothing goes to plan, or to even hope.

But it all happens for a reason.


Have a fantastic day, my friends.

Clutch #35: A Mystery

I did a lot of Mystery Clutches this year.

Why???

I'm going to be honest with you all, my friends.

I was lazy.

Breeding things to Normals, its pretty simple as to what you can expect, other than recessives.

So, I threw all of my co-dom males at the Normals that I didn't have specific plans for.

And with that, the Mystery Clutches were born.

Normals coiled around eggs is a beautiful sight, no matter what is in those coils or eggs.

I LOVE the beehive look.

Looks super cool, don't you think?

This female has been with me for a long time, and she is an excellent mother.

Even after I pulled her tub and got ready for egg extraction, she was not having any of it. She was coiled around those suckers TIGHT.

But being bigger and with opposable thumbs, I prevailed in acquiring what I had set out to get.

Six big eggs from a gal that has always been trustworthy to produce.

Not sure what's in them thar eggs, but I know I'll be happy with them as long as they hatch out healthy, (Males or not)!

And the other clutches that are hatching as of now are pretty interesting.

Pastel het Pied to Het Pied has given me ONE pied, one which I believe to be a Pastel Pied, but we shall see. THIS is one of the only times I will hope for a male this season.

COME ON PENES!

Pastel Lesser to Pastel is very misleading, as most things in the egg are bright and yellow, so I'm not assuming anything.

And the G-Stripe to Poss Het proves to be a dud, so she is officially now a Normal.

Now, I know I promised some other topics soon. I am working on them, including photos of said topics. It's kinda hard pinning down a ball python's head upside-down and getting good focus without losing something in the process. And as I am cleaning, I will take pictures of the room again for those who are interested.

PLUS, babies have shed out, new things to be put up on the availability page, and hopefully a few new babies to share in the next few days.

So until then, have a fantastic day, my friends.

Clutch #6: Mystery Clutch

So I admit to doing a few mystery clutches this year, more because I have plenty of big females that lay large clutches, and I have some really cool double and triple co-dom males to play with.


This female was paired with several males, all of which could be the sire or one of the sires of this clutch.


The ones that are likely are the sires, in order of likelihood:


Pastel Lesser
Lemon Blast
Sterling 
Enchi


So, I am expecting at least some pastels out of this. I think that's reasonable, right?

This particular female is a great reduced pattern animal, so I'm hoping for Pastel Lessers out of this batch. That was who she was with the most, so I'm expecting Pastel Lessers, but you know how these things goes.

And for the record, those eggs were formed like that, that wierd daisy chain or star like formation. It was very interesting to see. Very easy to move as well.

So we are on clutch number six, and I am glad to be this far ahead already at this point in the game. By the end of the month, I should have babies hatching!

WOOHOOO!

The excitement is building, and I am ready for it.

There should be a few more clutches on the ground before the end of the week.

HOORAY for eggs.

Have a fantastic day, my friends.