Edie is a 'ho

[jaxom1957]

My creamsicle male, Lucius, has been storming around his viv for the past month. I figured he was probably feeling randy, but wasn't planning to breed anyone yet. Then I noticed that Edie, an amel, had been cruising her viv in much the same manner. When I went to pull her out of the viv for feeding, she kept trying to get away from me. She also didn't want to go in the feeding bin.

I decided to put her in with Lucius. I thought they'd sniff around a bit, get to know one another... Wrong! Without the benefit of dinner, dancing, even a few exchanged witticisms, they coupled. Edie spread her proverbial legs like a two-bit hussy. While there is the possibility that Lucius is the corn snake equivalent of Billy Dee Williams, I was still shocked, shocked I say, by Miss Edie's behavior. Miss Edie is a HO!

They remained coupled for forty minutes. Can that possibly be normal? I've never bred snakes, or reptiles of any kind, so my frame of reference is mammals and birds. Do corns usually go at it for that long?

BTW, Lucius is five and a half feet long. Edie is three and a half. I worried that he might be too big for her, or too rough. I worried that both were virgins and might not know what to do. I worried that she might be afraid of him. Wrong! Miss Edie is a HO!

I'm going to wait two days and turn the hussy loose on poor, innocent Lucius again. Three breedings spread over a week seems to be the consensus, from what I've read. Please correct me if I'm mistaken.

 

[snakemom1961]

Congrats on the hookup with the "ho"...lol
Hope you have a great clutch of eggs from her.

 

[jaxom1957]

Congrats on the hookup with the "ho"...lol
Hope you have a great clutch of eggs from her.

Thanks, so do I. I was smart enough to buy two incubators last year because the price was so good, so I'm actually ready for eggs if I get them.

I was most fascinated by their tails. The rest of their bodies were barely moving, but both of their tails were waving sinuously, almost like a belly dancer's hands. Oh, and I had to laugh at Lucius's "mating dance". He twitched like he had the hiccups. Is that the snake equivalent of a wolf whistle???

 

[diamondlil]

:cheers: Congrats!
(So it wasn't just my pair that did the tail weaving thing then!)

 

[jaxom1957]

So it wasn't just my pair that did the tail weaving thing then!

Don Soderberg mentions it in his "Corn Snakes in Captivity", as well as the "flinching and jerking", as he called it (I compared it to hiccups). Luckily, Lucius had read it

 

[Nanci]

He twitched like he had the hiccups. Is that the snake equivalent of a wolf whistle???

Zee does that occasionally, only it's directed at ME!! It's a little, well a lot, unnerving. Yet another reason I call him Pineapple...

Nanci

 

[jaxom1957]

Reaping what she ho'ed

Miss Edie is a HO!

Over the past three days, Miss Edie has laid a total of twelve eggs. I don't know if any are fertile, as this is my first time with reptile eggs. I will wait a week and then try candling them for embryos. She seems to be weathering the laying well, hasn't lost much weight, etc. She is very territorial about her viv, rattling her tail at me when I was retrieving the eggs, but I'm sure she'll get back to her sweet self once she's finished.

How long should I wait before offering her food? She hasn't eaten in just over four weeks.

 

[Roy Munson]

Over the past three days, Miss Edie has laid a total of twelve eggs. I don't know if any are fertile, as this is my first time with reptile eggs. I will wait a week and then try candling them for embryos. She seems to be weathering the laying well, hasn't lost much weight, etc. She is very territorial about her viv, rattling her tail at me when I was retrieving the eggs, but I'm sure she'll get back to her sweet self once she's finished.

How long should I wait before offering her food? She hasn't eaten in just over four weeks.

I never saw this thread when you first posted it. Sounds like you had quite a show.

Those eggs look like slugs, but it can't hurt to hold onto them for a week and candle them. Usually anything that is laid over a day after she starts will be a slug. You can try feeding her tomorrow if they're all out. I usually start off with a smaller than usual meal for a feeding or two, then I resume normal feeding (or slightly more frequent than normal feeding) after. Good luck.

 

[jaxom1957]

Those eggs look like slugs, but it can't hurt to hold onto them for a week and candle them. Usually anything that is laid over a day after she starts will be a slug.

I won't be shocked if they're all duds. It was a first breeding for both Edie and Lucius, and they only hooked up once. I'd be thrilled to get just one live hatchling, a female creamsicle.

You can try feeding her tomorrow if they're all out. I usually start off with a smaller than usual meal for a feeding or two, then I resume normal feeding (or slightly more frequent than normal feeding) after.

Thanks for the advice. I'll try her on a couple fuzzies tomorrow and hope she eats.

 

[jaxom1957]

Those eggs look like slugs, but it can't hurt to hold onto them for a week and candle them.

McKenzie looked at them this morning and agreed they all look like slugs. I'm not exactly heartbroken, as I wasn't planning on breeding this year. It would have been fun to hatch out one, but c'est la vie.

You can try feeding her tomorrow if they're all out. I usually start off with a smaller than usual meal for a feeding or two, then I resume normal feeding

Worked out just like you advised. Edie ate two fuzzies for dinner, and appears very healthy and not the least bit thin for her troubles. Thanks for the good advice.