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BIg Problem

C

crunkmasterflex

New member
Alright here's the deal i have two corn snakes about 1.5 yrs old there about 3.5 feet long in a 30 gal aquarium i figured since they were so young i wasn't expecting any mating going on for hopefully another year or so well i woke up this morning to check up on my snakes and was looking around for any feces and found an egg it looks dehydrated and unfertile like the ones in the corn snake manual where it shows a good egg and a bad egg all not soft and deformed looking. Well there is only one egg there and i had a feeling something was going on with my female because it hasn't eaten for well over a month. I figured she was being stingy or just didn't feel like eating or something. But now what im worried about is her getting egg bound im not ready for any eggs so im most likely gonna throw them out unless i find an easy way to hatch them. SO if anyone can help me out and let me know what to do next I would appreciate it thanks
 
Perfect example of why they should be kept seperated!!!!!

1st, seperate them immediately. Continueing houseing them together provides them with the opportunity to produce a second clutch. Also, the female will all ready be stressed from the current breeding, haveing the male in their can just add to it.

Next, create a laybox with damp vermiculite (or moss). With any luck, she will lay in there. Added security should help her along as well.

If you suspect that she is eggbound, go immediatly to a vet!
 
The females will breed before it is healthy for them to do so, as young as 8 months is what I've heard. I sepparated my yearling males and females when they were about 15 months old last year and now I feel like that was really taking big risks.

House them apart and if you want to breed them next year, make sure the female has had some time to put on some good condition so that it doesn't take too much out of her.
 
okaye so the next step is seperating them...how long should i keep them seperated?? does the moss thing or w/e have to be in another cage other than the one my female is housed in.. what do i do after i have the eggs what is the cheapest way to go??? Do i need to know anything else because im gonna go in a couple of hours and get some moss and find a new enclosure for my other snake...what should i do about the already egg thats in there it doesn't look healthy at all i read taht misting it with water could help is this true??? any additional comments would be greatly appreciated
 
they've already breeded which is why im asking those questions and i checked today and i seen like 10 eggs or something so i doubt my snake is egg bound she should be fine now my next question is what to do im gona get an enclosure and seperate the two but how long do i need to keep them seperated and do i have to buy an egg incubator or anything liek that and is it okaye to touch the eggs to move them to a more suitable place???
 
They should be housed separately from now on unless you want more eggs. It is possible for them to double clutch so if she is put back with the male, she may become gravid again.

You do not have to buy an incubator for 1 clutch of eggs. You can put them in a warm spot in the house (on top of the refrigerator, for example). It is ok to move the eggs...just try not to rotate them.
 
alright well basically im just gonna get a piece of carboard and seperate teh cage into two...but if your saying it needs to be in a warm spot would it be alright to just take the whole cage and leave it by a window or can i put a heating pad under the female side...does the female always stay with tthe eggs?? when will she go back to her feeding habits??
 
oh yeah also would it be alright instead of using the moss stuff to just use that stuff that comes ina brick and breaks into dirt and just keep it moist???
 
Purchase another enclosure and supplies (what should have been done in the first place). A piece of cardboard isn't likely to keep them seperated. Putting them in front of a wind can cause dangerous spikes in temperature.
 
well i just seperated the cage its a big cage its 30 gallons so they should be fine and by putting them next to a window i meant just leaving it there with out the window open so it can get sunlight but i was just thinking that i should just put a heating pad underneat the side my female is on. also does the female have to be by the eggs all the time and so im guessing since nobody objected to using the dirt stuff in teh brick form i guess i can just use that then and keep it moist right???
 
The eggs need to be taken from the mother and put into a separate container. PLEASE do a search for how to take care of the eggs...or better yet...go purchase the Corn Snake Manual! It'll give you TONS of info!

And you would be MUCH better off using moss or vermiculite for the eggs.
 
To me it seems that this thread is a bit confusing so I'll try to put together everything that has been said with some of my own comments.

Your corns need to be separated from now on. Period. If not, they will repeatedly mate and the female will not have a chance to recover from laying eggs in the first place. This will also prevent her becoming gravid (pregnant) in the future so you are not caught with unexpected eggs. Cardboard will not keep them separated for long - they will find a way to get through it. If you do not have a lot of money go buy a sterelite or rubbermaid tub and drill some holes in it - just make sure to secure the lid with something heavy like books. Be careful putting a cage in front of a window - sunlight can make it get extremely hot, very fast.

The eggs should be removed to their own container and kept in a warm spot. The top of the refridgerator is a good spot like CornCrazy said. They should be kept moist, but not wet.

You can try to feed the female a smaller item at first. Make sure to watch her and give her plenty of water. She's just been through a lot of stress to try to keep that to a minimum (in my opinion that would mean moving the male to another tank).

Like it has been suggested use the search feature - there is a ton of information on this site. Also go buy the Cornsnake Manual by Bill & Kathy Love. It will answer lots of questions and is generally a good book to have around.

Remember this is just my opinion and I was trying to put it into one post - hope I was of some help.

~Katie
 
alright so i have to keep the snakes away for ever now?? and nobody has answered me on the dirt question for the eggs okay so ill take the eggs away from the mother tomorrow put then in its own container and put it on the top of teh refrigerator and left alone for how long??? ill feed the mother tomorrow a small meal and hope for the best for my eggs and i already have the manual and have been reading it so it should take around 2 months for the eggs to hatch right?? oh one more question it won't effect the mother if i take the eggs tomorrow right???
 
crunkmasterflex said:
alright so i have to keep the snakes away for ever now?? and nobody has answered me on the dirt question for the eggs okay so ill take the eggs away from the mother tomorrow put then in its own container and put it on the top of teh refrigerator and left alone for how long??? ill feed the mother tomorrow a small meal and hope for the best for my eggs and i already have the manual and have been reading it so it should take around 2 months for the eggs to hatch right?? oh one more question it won't effect the mother if i take the eggs tomorrow right???
Click to expand...

You don't have to keep them apart forever - but they do need to be apart unless you want to have eggs again. As for using dirt...vermaculite or moss is better - vermaculite isn't that expensive either. How long they will incubate depends on the temperatures you use. I believe there are averages in Kathy's book. The mother might be a bit upset when you try to take the eggs away but that will be because she's stressed - not because she's really that attached (I believe - someone correct me if I'm wrong).

~Katie
 
It is recommended by the majority that cornsnakes are kept singly. They are solitary creatures. Further more keeping them paired/groups causes unneeded stress (do a search so houseing reptiles together).
 
I think I read something about them being near a window - if so, be careful! You would be surprised how hot it can get really quickly if the sun can shine right in.

If you already have the Manual, read page 45. It tells you in the middle of the page how to check manually for ovulation. That is also a good way to check for retained eggs. Always do that after a female has laid a clutch. Then you will know if you are going to have an egg binding problem before it becomes too late to easily deal with it.

Good luck!
 
I will THIRD the "do not put near window" reply. That is very dangerous when the sun is out, you could easily kill the snakes without meaning to.

The eggs SHOULD be taken away right away, not left overnight, if possible, if you want them to stay viable (alive). Otherwise depending on what they are laying in and where, they may very well dry out and be no good.

Get yourself a small container for putting food in the fridge, like a glad container or something. Put vermiculite, perlite or moss in it (preferably not dirt). Make sure the medium (the eggs "bedding" you use) is good and moist with warm water but NOT dripping wet. Make a little cavity in the medium to place the eggs. Take the eggs out of the viv being careful to keep them in the same upright position they were laid in. Turning the eggs should be avoided at all cost. Place the eggs in the medium so that the upper most eggs on the pile are partially burried in the medium. Cover the container (with NO holes in the container) and put it in a warm spot.....like on top of the fridge as Corncrazy said......and let them be. DO NOT turn or fool with them but you can check them once a week to see if they are actually fertile and not going bad.

Here is a picture of some of my eggs set up in a small container with perlite to give you an idea. Mine are seperated to fit into the smaller containers but you can get the deeper glad or tuperware or whatever containers and leave the eggs in a clump.

Good luck AND definitely keep the male and female seperate.
 

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