Hatchling death and questions

[Becca]

I am very upset right now, so forgive me for any errors or anything. This morning when I went to check on my hatchlings, I found my older hatchling from Apopha's first clutch dead. I had fed her the night before, a small pinky. She had taken the pinky no problem and all seemed well. This morning, the pinky was halfway in her mouth (I think she tried to regurg it), but she was dead. :cry: I'm so upset, I don't know what happened or could have happened to cause this. I keep the babies in their own little tupperware container (drilled with tiny holes for air) and a water bottle cap filled with water, on paper towels. I kept them in a small rack that is heated on the back with Flexwatt controlled by a Zilla thermostat. When I checked temps, the back (where the tape is) was 82F, the front (which is the cool side) was 78F. I don't know what happened, or what caused her to regurgitate, but it looked as if she couldn't get the pinky out of her mouth. Could she have suffocated? Has anyone else ever had this problem? Should I be worried about my other hatchlings...they all were fine when I checked on them. Could this be some sort of genetic disorder that the others will get? I'm so upset, I don't know what to do. Any help or suggestions would be so gratefully appreciated.

[Snakes Incorporated]

Any help or suggestions would be so gratefully appreciated.

Sorry for your loss. Sometimes crap happens with no reasonable reason.

[carnivorouszoo]

I don't know what to say, I once found a hatchling I had gotten dead with its shed stuck around its neck. It's a risk getting them that little. Seems most the bad stuff happens when they are tiny or if they are breeding females. Sorry for your loss :(

[Becca]

Thanks for the input, guys. A friend on another forum mentioned that it is possible she had some sort of internal birth defect that may have caused her to regurg or something similar to that. I am not certain what caused the trouble, but I have decided not to breed Apopha and Adam again in the future. I've been keeping a very close watch on all the other babies and they seem to be doing fine. I still would rather not take the chance in the future. :\

[Nanci]

I really doubt it was anything genetic. Or more specifically, inheritable.

[Shiari]

When breeding corns you are going to come across congenital deformities. Be it heart problems, gastrointestinal (I had one with a stricture of the stomach that resulted in the stomach rupturing when I tube fed the animal 1 gram of egg yolk), spinal, or other things. It just happens, and is very unlikely to be genetic and heritable.

[Becca]

Thanks for the input, ladies! I dunno if I will breed them in the future, more than likely not, but it puts my mind at ease that you think it would be okay and wouldn't cause any inheritable defects.