Breeding Progress

[Cazador]

Sid and all,
Any of yours mate yet?

[Stefan-A]

Just curious, how can you tell, if you haven't actually witnessed it? Not that I'm expecting it to lead to anything this year, but I am preparing for it..

[Sid]

Originally Posted by Cazador

Sid and all,
Any of yours mate yet?

Rick, I removed my three adult females one at a time. With the first one the two young males showed no interest in a week. The second one of the males were all over for several days. Now it's wait and see.

Sid

[Cazador]

Stefan,
If you suspect they've mated, you can check the female's cloaca for a yellowish "plug." It stays put for about 2-3 days to prevent other males from copulating with her, although she quickly becomes "unattractive" and unreceptive shortly after mating, anyway. this is due to hormonal and pheromonal changes as a result of the mechanical stimulation of copulation. Send me a PM if you're interested in some literature about it. Then, within 2-4 days, she may, or may not, become "attractive" to males once again (by secreting pheromones).
Rick

P.S. You could also do a cloacal swab to look for moving sperm under a microscope, but uhhh, well, yah!

[Stefan-A]

Any longer lasting changes in the female's (or the male's) behavior?

[Cazador]

The only one that I can think of that you'd notice in captivity is that the male would stop courting her. She's no longer "attractive." BTW "attractive" is a specific term that relates to particular pheromones (vitellogenin) that the female stores in fat (lipid) deposits just under her dorsal scales. During mating, the male releases hormones with the ejaculate that make her unattractive within 15 minutes. Mating then stimulates her to mobilize the vitellogenin. This makes her unattractive for a longer period, during which time wild females would leave the hibernaculum and mating congretations. At about 3 weeks post fertilization, you can feel the young. They feel like little lumps and are closer to the vent than the stomach.

[Stefan-A]

I remember reading about breeders experiences with corns, and that the female might display an increased appetite in the early weeks of the pregnancy, before the eggs start taking up too much space and make digestion difficult. Does the same concept apply to garters and other livebearers?

[Sid]

Originally Posted by Stefan-A

I remember reading about breeders experiences with corns, and that the female might display an increased appetite in the early weeks of the pregnancy, before the eggs start taking up too much space and make digestion difficult. Does the same concept apply to garters and other livebearers?

Stephan, one the the Easterns I got last spring was gravid when purchased. She ate like a pig up to about four weeks prior to the youngs birth. Then the day after delivery started eating again. My experience only. Others my can give you more insite.

Sid

[Cazador]

I've had very similar experiences as Sid, but I don't think it's a definitive symptom of pregnancy. Most of my snakes eat like pigs after brumation, anyway. Once I can feel young inside a female, I start feeding her more frequently, but smaller portion sizes. Remember, I'm primarily feeding meat strips, so I can make them any size I want. I also cut smaller fish chunks and worms. Anyway, I feed gravid females smaller portions, but I offer food more often. This keeps them eating sometimes up to days before they deliver. I also give calcium/vitamins more often during gestation.

[Stefan-A]

Got around to weighing and measuring the girl yesterday. There has been a 10% increase in weight in just over a month.

I missed my previous length estimate (compared her length to the length of the terrarium and guessed) by 7 mm. Not bad, huh?