Do you handle your breeders?

I'm curious if you guys handle your breeders in the "off" season. I have a snow female that I enjoy having out and want to breed her next year. I know I won't handle her while gravid, but just didn't know if you got them out at all.

Mine are pets first, breeders second. AND I made the hopefully-gravid girls go for Maternity Walkies and Swimmies until they went blue, to tone their muscles.

Nanci,

I never thought of swimming them. That's very good info! Thanks

Originally Posted by Nanci

Mine are pets first, breeders second. AND I made the hopefully-gravid girls go for Maternity Walkies and Swimmies until they went blue, to tone their muscles.

I'm with Nancy. I don't have many snakes, but they are my pets first and breeders second.

Nanci- what is a maternity walkie? I am trying to picture a very gravid snake being walked across the floor? I am I close?

If you read Don Soderberg's book, he talks about exercising the female after breeding, before laying. He says she would be active in the wild, out looking for a nesting site and such, and he believes it is advantageous to exercise captive females and tone them up by running them through your fingers or letting them crawl over bumps. I have the exact text copied here somewhere, I'll look after I get to work.

So I took the girls outside for calm walks through the grass, or relaxing swims in the water garden. If I couldn't get them outside I'd sit on the livingroom floor with them, or even just do gentle cornsnake treadmills in my hands.

What is the title of that book? It sounds like something I need to read and study.

Here's the link to Don's South Mountain Reptile site, where you can find his book as well as Kathy Love's book. I'd recommend both!

Here's the paragraph I was thinking of!

From Don's book:

Often a female corn that is too small to lay her first clutch of eggs will fall victim to dystocia. In cases of immaturity and because of the sedentary nature of all captive corns, I recommend exercising the female for several weeks prior to egg laying. In the wild, even gravid (egg laden) corns will continue to travel away from their hides in search of water, food and change of temperature. In the process, they slither over rocks and branches which facilitates the toning of muscles. By conditioning the muscles around the oviduct, the female is better equipped for the demanding task of oviposition. To emulate this palpating exercise, allow your corn to crawl across your open hand and onto your other hand, over and over again. Another way is to follow your snake around the house as it maneuvers over obstacles. Five to ten minute sessions, two to three times per day will decrease the chance of dystocia in captive corns.

I handled mine up until about 5 days after they did their pre-laying shed. I wanted them to be in great shape but once they were really close to laying I let them be...besides they were both pretty cranky!

Thanks Nanci. I have Kathy's book. Unfortunately I've had to use the regurge papges, but we got thru that.