Silly Pet Store Staff Comment(s)

[LUBU]

My friend and I want to breed rtbs right, I got a female year old and he got a male year and a half old. I wasnt around when his came in so I said "how do you know forsure its a male? We should go to the vet to be sure" and he says " the guy that brought it "popped it in front of me" I laughed and said "well I guess we cant use it for breeding because you cant pop them once there a year or more old". What a dum ass. were good friends but still why lie about somthing like that? After I told him that he changed his story and said we should go to the vet.

 

[dionythicus]

Actually, I learned how to probe many years before I ever knew there was such a thing as popping. I probed literally thousands of baby corns and kings before I started popping. If memory serves, I started popping in the early '90s, but started breeding in the mid '80s. So I had to probe prior to that. AFAIK, I never injured a baby by probing. But since becoming a "popper", I have had little reason to probe babies.

I would trust someone who was a breeder like you or a herp vet, but would you let a 20 year old part time worker at a local pet store do it? *shudders at the thought* I still need to learn to pop correctly. I'm too afraid I'll squish somebody.

 

[Roy Munson]

I still need to learn to pop correctly. I'm too afraid I'll squish somebody.

Ditto. I've read Kathy's stuff, Connie/Hurley's stuff, and much more, and I still have never had any success. And it's for the same reason: squish paranoia. I need to become proficient at this by '07 at the latest, but it would be nice to know NOW. I know how to probe, but I don't dig it, and I've never tried it on a hatchling.

This is my thread, so I'm allowed to derail it. Any tips for dionythicus and me?

 

[marty.warwick]

:-offtopic

:roflmao: That just made me laugh

 

[JenC]

Technically, you arent sposed to pop so old because most of the time its inacurate cuz most males wont give. Its not terribly harmful but it SHOULDNT be done, but it can.

 

[Taceas]

Technically, you arent sposed to pop so old because most of the time its inacurate cuz most males wont give. Its not terribly harmful but it SHOULDNT be done, but it can.

Doo wut? Spellcheck and punctuation are your friends.

Popping is harmless to newly hatched and still young snakes. While I've never personally popped anything larger than a corn. With corns its easy to do and yields pretty accurate results. I would never pop anything over 2 months old, however as they've developed their muscle control for keeping them retracted better.

Now granted the only way to be 100% certain is to probe, but for me the risk of pushing it in too far on such a small, squirmy animal is just too much to think about. I pop when they're separated out of the first-shed container as I'm labeling them in their own containers. Then I'll do it again 2-3 more times in the following days to make sure. Here in the past, I ask a friend to come over and concur with my results.

But yes the "squish factor" is something you need to get over first. Once you get it down, just keep practicing. You'll learn the motions to get them to come out with very little pressure involved.

I place one thumb just above the vent to slightly open it up. The other thumb below the area where you think the heads of the hemipenes should be, and roll your thumb up towards the vent (like getting fingerprinted). Most will pop out easily.

Just make sure you're over a sink or paper towel while doing this, as they do and will defecate on you.

 

[Drizzt80]

Ditto. I've read Kathy's stuff, Connie/Hurley's stuff, and much more, and I still have never had any success. And it's for the same reason: squish paranoia. I need to become proficient at this by '07 at the latest, but it would be nice to know NOW. I know how to probe, but I don't dig it, and I've never tried it on a hatchling.

This is my thread, so I'm allowed to derail it. Any tips for dionythicus and me?

Get yourself a confirmed male hatchling to practice on. When you know it's a male, and you're supposed to have something pop out, it makes it easier to find the right way to manipulate those hemipenes out. Personally, I'm not 100% at it myself, but when I have a confirmed male that I can go back to, it makes me feel better that I'm doing something right. It's the one's that 'pop' female that worry me cause then I wonder if I did it right. Once you get the feel for it, the males go pretty easy!

I'm heading into my 5th year breeding, 3rd being able to pop, and personally have found that I'll catch my mistakes when I pop once after that first shed and a couple meals are down, and then do a re-check pop a week or so later. I usually only re-check the females or the questionable males (ones that really didn't 'boing' - best way to describe that really successful male popping experience!).

D80

 

[Drizzt80]

Now granted the only way to be 100% certain is to probe,

I hate to disagree with you here, but the only 100% certain way is to have a successful paring . . . :sidestep:

I personally dislike the idea of probing (I have done it . . .), and avoid doing it if at all possible. Error in probing would seem much more detrimental to the health of the snake.

D80