• Hello!

    Either you have not registered on this site yet, or you are registered but have not logged in. In either case, you will not be able to use the full functionality of this site until you have registered, and then logged in after your registration has been approved.

    Registration is FREE, so please register so you can participate instead of remaining a lurker....

    Please be certain that the location field is correctly filled out when you register. All registrations that appear to be bogus will be rejected. Which means that if your location field does NOT match the actual location of your registration IP address, then your registration will be rejected.

    Sorry about the strictness of this requirement, but it is necessary to block spammers and scammers at the door as much as possible.

GAH! SHE LAID EGGS!!! HELP ME PLEASE!

Regit said:
Your eggs look pretty good, aside from the yellow one. As for the size of first clutches, it really can vary- last year my friend's gal laid 9 for her first clutch, and 17 this year (8-10 fertile, the rest slugs). My ghost girlie who just laid her first clutch tonight finished off with 18 eggs, all fertile!
Click to expand...

Wow, 18 eggs for a first clutch. Congrats! I hope they all hatch for you.

Just wondering, how long should I observe Arshess for any symptoms of a retained egg?

Also, thanks everyone for all of your wonderful words of advise. I really appreciate what you have done for me. =) I'm really glad that I joined this forum, I don't know what I'd do without all the great advise I've been given.
 
Uhm, just a little update. The sphagnum moss has little white molds in it. Is that normal or ok? Or should I replace the substrate? Also, I was wondering why the moss was molding, because I boiled the moss before I put it in the incubator. So, there shouldn't be anything growing in there right?
 
Hm... I haven't heard of the substrate molding like that before, but I suppose it could be natural. I haven't used sphagnum as an incubation medium (only hatchrite), so I can't say for sure. But it's probably some of the bacteria from the egg causing it to grow.
 
But, the mold was only on the top yesterday. Then, when I went to go check on them today, the mold was everywhere. Well, I don't know about the inside near the eggs, cause I didn't want to check on them too much. But, from what I see so far, the molds are on the outside moss.
 
shaberry said:
But, the mold was only on the top yesterday. Then, when I went to go check on them today, the mold was everywhere. Well, I don't know about the inside near the eggs, cause I didn't want to check on them too much. But, from what I see so far, the molds are on the outside moss.
Click to expand...

:shrugs: I have absolutely no idea, then. I'm sure someone more experienced than I can answer that question, though.
 
Could your moss be too wet? How often are you opening the container to allow for air exchange (or do you have holes in the tub)? I try to open mine once a week to allow some fresh air to get in. Also, could your moss be packed in too tightly and not allowing for air flow? That could possibly cause mold to form....just thinking out loud here....

I use sphagnum as well, and so far haven't had any issues with mold (this is my 3rd breeding season). I would suggest taking off the layer that is moldy and replacing it with some fresh moss, just be careful not to disturb the eggs of course. :) Now, if the mold is everywhere....I guess I would still change all the moss, being extra extra careful. That's just me though....I don't think the mold should have any effect on the eggs.
 
Hallie said:
Could your moss be too wet? How often are you opening the container to allow for air exchange (or do you have holes in the tub)? I try to open mine once a week to allow some fresh air to get in. Also, could your moss be packed in too tightly and not allowing for air flow? That could possibly cause mold to form....just thinking out loud here....

I use sphagnum as well, and so far haven't had any issues with mold (this is my 3rd breeding season). I would suggest taking off the layer that is moldy and replacing it with some fresh moss, just be careful not to disturb the eggs of course. :) Now, if the mold is everywhere....I guess I would still change all the moss, being extra extra careful. That's just me though....I don't think the mold should have any effect on the eggs.
Click to expand...

My thoughts exactly. I use moss and it did get some mold once due to being too damp. Since then I wring it out very well before putting the eggs in it and haven't had any issues since.
 
shaberry said:
But, the mold was only on the top yesterday. Then, when I went to go check on them today, the mold was everywhere. Well, I don't know about the inside near the eggs, cause I didn't want to check on them too much. But, from what I see so far, the molds are on the outside moss.
Click to expand...

maybe there is still time for you to aquire Hatchrite insted of moss...I will recommend you to use hathrite in the furture..by the way here is some info about how use hatchrite and how to order it online aswell...good luck....
http://www.hatchrite.com/instructions.html
http://www.petsolutions.com/HatchRite+I59700100+C40002053.aspx
 
here is what I use to incubate my eggs and it WORKS>>>>
incubator.jpg
 
Your in California.. Your not going to get vermiculite any more..

Wet the spagnium moss and wring it out.. That should be fine.. I use the big deli's for incubating my eggs, I also put a damp paper towel over top of the moss ( I cover my eggs with the moss, which is why I am wringing out the moss really well .. ).. I open the egg boxes once or twice a week for about 10 minuetes to allow for some fresh air exchange...

I have yet to have a mold problem using moss, although there can be a rather earthy smell, with a hint of a mildew like scent too.. If I was close to you, I would offer to come and take a peek and offer my opinion if you wanted, however I am out in the middle of the desert..

Regards.. Tim of T and J
 
When you get white mold, it means it is too wet. Be sure the eggs are covered with a blanket of moss, and then leave the lid off for a few days until the top dries a bit. It should still be damp UNDER the blanket of moss, where the eggs are. You can remove the moss with the white mold if you like, but I don't think it will cause a problem as long as you dry it out a little. Try to keep the moss surrounding the eggs just damp, not wet. If the moss is slightly too dry, the eggs will dent in a little. Then you will know what 'slightly too dry" moss feels like, and you can dampen it a little. A slight denting won't hurt, as long as you hydrate the moss when you see that, and they will fill out again. (note that denting is normal several days or a week before hatching, and doesn't mean they are too dry at that time).

I don't know if I missed it, but I didn't notice how you are keeping them warm - an incubator, or just sitting on a shelf in a warm room?
 
Sounds like you have received all the right advice. I may have missed it, if someone already answered then I am sorry.

You asked if she should be fed now, yes, you need to start feeding her. Begin with a few "half" sized meals. After two, you should be able to go to normal feeding.

Also, if she didn't breed the snake in the store, then it is possible she retained sperm from the previous years breeding (if she was bred). This may be why you have a small clutch. Hopefully that is not the case. If it is, you will likely end up with babies that shows kinks and deformaties like enlarged heads, underdeveloped bodies and such. Hopefully that isn't the case here.

Good luck and keep us informed.

dc
 
Forgot to address...

the possible retained eggs. If she takes a small meal, let her digest it first. But within several days, you need to GENTLY BUT FIRMLY check again for the retained eggs as you did before, but with a little more pressure in the belly. You still have some time, but within a week or so of egg laying, you should be prepared to check carefully and deal with any problems, as I suggested in my book.

Good luck!
 
Thanks for all the opinions and suggestions guys. I really appreciate it. Well, I was able to find a Lowes that carried vermiculite (THANK GOD!), so I decided to change my substrate to vermiculite. I think I'm going to stick with it too. I find it much easier to work with than sphagnum moss. Not to mention, the moss had me really paranoid. What with the molding and my uncertainty of the humidity levels. And since the vermiculite is a weight to weight ratio for substrate to water calculations, I don't feel as insecure with my methods. With the moss, no matter how much I wrung it out, I still felt uneasy about it. So, yeah. The eggs are in a new incubator (just a tad bit bigger) with vermiculite and a paper towel on top. I put 4 small holes in the container, so that I wouldn't fuss too much, opening and closing the incubator to make sure that the substrate was alright.

TandJ said:
Your in California.. Your not going to get vermiculite any more..

Wet the spagnium moss and wring it out.. That should be fine.. I use the big deli's for incubating my eggs, I also put a damp paper towel over top of the moss ( I cover my eggs with the moss, which is why I am wringing out the moss really well .. ).. I open the egg boxes once or twice a week for about 10 minuetes to allow for some fresh air exchange...

I have yet to have a mold problem using moss, although there can be a rather earthy smell, with a hint of a mildew like scent too.. If I was close to you, I would offer to come and take a peek and offer my opinion if you wanted, however I am out in the middle of the desert..

Regards.. Tim of T and J
Click to expand...

What is it with vermiculite being hard to find anyway? Is there some kind of ban on it or something? Or is perlite replacing it?

But, thanks anyway for the advise and the offer to help me out Tim. I really appreciate your generousity. Just wondering, you say you're out in the middle of the desert, could you possibly be in the Barstow or Victorville area?
 
Hmmm...

Vermiculite comes in fine, medium, and coarse. I have always bought the coarse because I feel that the fine (and maybe the medium) packs in too closely and doesn't allow air to get to the eggs. Since I never used anything other than coarse, I can't say for sure that the others will cause problems. But I would be concerned. Which variety did you get?
 
kathylove said:
I don't know if I missed it, but I didn't notice how you are keeping them warm - an incubator, or just sitting on a shelf in a warm room?
Click to expand...

The eggs are in a plastic tupperware container with 4 holes. Currently, they are on top to of my dresser in my closet. The lowest temperature that the thermometer has read at was 77.4 degrees Fahrenheit. Right now, the thermometer is reading the temperature at 82.5.

Camby said:
Sounds like you have received all the right advice. I may have missed it, if someone already answered then I am sorry.

You asked if she should be fed now, yes, you need to start feeding her. Begin with a few "half" sized meals. After two, you should be able to go to normal feeding.

Also, if she didn't breed the snake in the store, then it is possible she retained sperm from the previous years breeding (if she was bred). This may be why you have a small clutch. Hopefully that is not the case. If it is, you will likely end up with babies that shows kinks and deformaties like enlarged heads, underdeveloped bodies and such. Hopefully that isn't the case here.

Good luck and keep us informed.

dc
Click to expand...

Thanks so much for the advise and concern Camby. I really appreciate it. Uhm, but I kinda fed Arshess a regular sized meal (small adult mouse) today. >.<;;; However, I did feed her a f/t pinky mouse 8 days prior. She just looked so weak after laying the eggs, that I wanted to give her something for a bit of energy. Anyway, she seemed to take the mouse down fine today. So, I hope nothing bad happens. But, I'll keep a close eye on her just in case.

As for the babies, I really hope they turn out alright. Actually, I'm just hoping that they'll be able to come to full term. But, thanks so much for giving me a heads up on possibile problems that I may come up with if the eggs hatch. For sure, I'll keep you guys updated on these little guys.

kathylove said:
the possible retained eggs. If she takes a small meal, let her digest it first. But within several days, you need to GENTLY BUT FIRMLY check again for the retained eggs as you did before, but with a little more pressure in the belly. You still have some time, but within a week or so of egg laying, you should be prepared to check carefully and deal with any problems, as I suggested in my book.

Good luck!
Click to expand...

Thanks so much for the advise Kathy. =) I'm kinda star-struck right now. I can't believe that you posted in my thread. Anyway, she digested and defecated (today) the f/t pinky that I gave her 8 days ago. I guess she retained the feces until she shed this morning. Usually she has a bowel movement 3 days after eating.

Prior to feeding her, I gave her a bath and let her slither around a wet hand towel to make sure she didn't have any retained shed. After, I dried her off with a dry shirt and felt her sides and her belly as she moved along.

I don't believe I felt any lumps or anything on her lower 2/3rds of her body. So, I don't believe that she is egg-bound. Are there any symptoms that I should look out for, just in case I missed feeling a possible retained egg?
 
Kathy, I'm not quite sure which grade the vermiculite I bought is. The product is Sta-Green Horticultural Vermiculite. I wanna say that it's the coarse grade, because when I went to the reptile shop where I buy the small mice, I asked the owners if they carry Hatchrite, but they said they only used coarse vermiculite and showed me their incubating substrate. The vermiculite I use looks similar to the one that the shop owners showed me, but I really don't know for sure if it's the same. I've attached some pictures of the vermiculite that I'm using. Sorry, for the poor quality pictures. I only have my camera phone with me at the moment.

1243145122070.jpg


1243145210176.jpg


Hopefully, this vermiculite is the right grade. *crosses fingers*
 
It does look pretty coarse, from what I can tell in the photo. The fine grade looks like a coarse sand, sort of. I think it should work.

The 82 temp sounds great! In general, it is more detrimental to overheat them than to cool too much. You might find that just turning on a light in your closed up closet might be enough to keep them at the desired temp of 80 - 85. They take longer to hatch at temps on the cooler side of the range, but that is not necessarily bad.

Just keep an eye out for denting (except just before hatching) and moisten if you notice dents. One little trick (I think it might have already been mentioned) is to put a couple of layers of newspaper on top of the eggs and vermiculite. The paper serves as a humidity gauge - if the paper gets "crisp", it is too dry; if it gets soggy, or starts to mold, it is too wet, in which case you can remove the lid for a few days to let it dry out.

So far, so good!
 
*sigh* I'm so glad that my substrate looks suitable.

As for denting, I'll be keeping a very close eye on the eggs to make sure that doesn't happen. So far, the eggs look fine. And the temperatures seem alright. The humidity also seems fine too. I placed a sheet of paper towel (cut to fit the tupperware) in the incubator, and just checked on it. It seems fine. The sheet is moist, but not soaking wet.

When the temp. goes down to the 70s, I just turn on the light in the closet for a few minutes to get the temperature back up to the 80s. Just wondering though, there's no damage done to the eggs right? What with the fluctuation in temperatures and all.

Thanks for all the help Kathy! I really appreciate your generosity. =)
 
Here in SW Florida...

I don't really worry about them getting too cold, lol! I have gotten them in the upper '70s at night. Just means they won't hatch as quickly. But I don't really know what the coldest temps are that they can survive - never tried to check it out since it would involve a refrigerator, haha!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top