RAS Snakes

Breeding corn snakes is fun, exciting and educational, especially for children or young keepers. It is also stressful, tiring, potentially very costly and time consuming. Below is my personal guide to breeding corns, which will hopefully help anyone out there who wants to breed their corns in the future. 

Do you really want to breed your cornsnakes?

I always advise anyone wanting to breed their corns to think very carefully about the decision they are making. Breeding is certainly not without it's risks and you must be aware that if things go wrong, your beloved snake could die. My first breeding attempt went horribly wrong, with the female becoming egg-bound and dying despite costly veterinary treatment. Luckily this didn't put me off, but I now approach each and every breeding effort far more cautiously and ask myself "do I really want to take this risk with this snake?" You should ask yourself not only if you are willing to risk your snakes life, but also if you are truly capable of caring for potentially 20+ baby snakes for what could amount to many months before they all sell. It is hard work, so please be prepared. Breeding should not be taking lightly. Ok, lecture over!

Breeding basics for beginners.

So, you've decided you want to breed your cornsnakes- best of luck to you! Ideally you will own both the male and the female you wish to breed from. Breeding "loans" with snakes are widely discouraged because of the potential for disease/mite transfer and also because deciding who gets what from the hatchlings/profits can get pretty ugly. If you want to loan either a male or female for breeding you must be prepared to accept responsibility for it's safety and well-being. Ideally, both parties involved should sign a form of contract outlining each person's responsibilities- eg: who pays for vets bills, how are the profits (if there are any) split, who gets to keep which hatchling, etc.

As far as ages and weights of snakes go, this is open to debate. Most people will inform you of the "Rule of 3" for females-

300g in weight (minimum)

3 feet in length (minimum)

3 years old (minimum)

This is not a bad set of rules to follow, especially for inexperienced or beginner breeders. However, this doesn't mean that any snake over these 3 guidelines is suitable for breeding! Avoid breeding fat females at all costs- they lack the muscle tone to push the eggs out well enough and are more likely to become egg-bound. In my opinion, anything over 1000g (1kg) is definitely too big for breeding. Between 600-900g, approach with caution. 300-500g should be ok. Obviously the healthy weight for a snake entirely depends on it's length and muscle tone- if you're not sure if your snake is a healthy weight for breeding then please consult an expert or professional breeder. Age wise, contrary to what most of you will be told, breeding a 2 year old is not the end of the world, if they are big enough, healthy enough and strong enough. Again, judge each case individually- there will be 2 year old females who can definitely breed, and there will be 2 year olds who shouldn't breed under any circumstances. 

Males can breed from as young as a year, and their weight and length doesn't matter as much as those of the female. Younger males may not be as fertile as older males though, and small males may suffer injury to their hemipenes if they are bred to a larger, stronger female who might move away during the breeding process. 

Assuming your male and female are suitable candidates for breeding, we will move on to the next part!

To brumate or not to brumate- that is the question!

Brumation, the reptile equivalent of hibernation, is the process whereby your snake is cooled down over winter, going a few months without heat or food, before being warmed up in the spring ready for breeding. Many breeders believe a period of brumation is essential for a successful breeding season, increasing libido and fertility in males, and conditioning the females ready for egg production and laying. The truth is, many breeders don't brumate and have no problems with breeding. The choice is yours. 

If you do choose to brumate, you must first make sure that your snake is heavy enough to see through the winter without getting too skinny. Feed your snake more than usual through November and the start of October if you are brumating in December-February. Make sure you do not feed your snake for 2-3 weeks before the start of the cooling process- this allows all the food in their system to pass through completely, otherwise it may rot and cause your snake to become very poorly, or even die. 

In early December, start to cool your snake down. Every other day, bring down the temperature by a few degrees until you get to around 13-15 degrees centigrade. Many people use a seperate box for their snake during brumation- a Really Useful Box with deep substrate and a water bowl is fine for the brumation period. Make sure your snake is placed somewhere relatively quiet and dark-ish to keep them from being too active, which can lead to excess weight loss.

Brumate your corn for around 8-12 weeks. Monitor them closely for signs of ill health, respiratory infections (RI's) and unhealthy weight loss. It is normal for your snake to lose a bit of weight during brumation, but if it starts to look skinny, with a protruding spine or easily felt ribs, then consult a vet or consider warming them up early ready for feeding.

After the 8-12 weeks, warm your snake back up over the same timescale as you cooled it down. When the snake is back up to it's usual temperatures, offer it a small feed, then start building it up over the next few weeks until the snake has regained it's usual body weight- this time of year, females can be slightly heavier than normal so that they have reserves for egg-laying. It is a good idea to dust prey items with a calcium supplement at this time of year- many people believe this helps with the formation of healthy eggs, and it certainly does no harm. 

What to actually breed?

Yes, cornsnakes obviously, but you do need to put some thought into the morphs you wish to produce. Quite simply, the market is saturated with cornsnakes and they can be VERY hard to sell, especially the more common ones like normals, amels, anery's and normal pattern mutations (stripe and motley). Unsold hatchlings can get expensive to keep and take up room which could be used for keepers or other snakes you decide to buy. Some shops will buy your unwanted snakes, but expect rock-bottom prices which will barely cover your overheads. If done right, breeding can yield some nice profits, but expect to lose money if you breed "lower" morphs. 

The breeding process itself.

So you've either brumated your snakes or not, you've checked their weight, their muscle tone is good, you've picked the morphs to breed and you've decided to go ahead with everything. You can choose to either introduce the male into the females enclosure, or vice versa, or put them both into a separate breeding tub. Be aware that if you allow your snakes to breed on their usual substrate it can get stuck in their vents and cause considerable discomfort and possibly even infection. Newspaper or paper towel is best for breeding, but again, this is your choice. 

Once introduced, males will normally be fairly forthcoming with their advances, chasing the female, lying on  top of her, jerking and twitching and rubbing her with his body. If receptive, the female will lift her tail slightly, allowing the male to insert his hemipene into her. They can lock for up to an hour, so try to leave them to it as much as possible. Do not lift or disturb snakes during breeding to double check as this can cause injury or disruption.

I tend to leave my males and females together until the females look visibly gravid. I do not advise leaving the male with the female all year round, or after egg-laying- this can be stressful and tiring for the female. We will get on to double clutching later....

Building your incubator- Do It Yourself.

For making an incubator you will need-

Humidity should be around 90%+ (with the eggs in the egg box inside)

Eggs!

Now here comes the most exciting (and stressful) part of the whole process, waiting for your eggs to make their long awaited appearance. Eggs should arrive 3-5 weeks after mating. As a general rule, expect your female to lay within 2 weeks of her pre-lay shed (normally the second shed of the year if you have brumated her). Don't leave it too late to add your females lay-box- it will smell and look alien and they need time to get used to it. A tupperware tub, with a hole cut/soldered into the lid will do fine- just make sure your female fits into it comfortably. Half fill the box with damp sphagnum moss, vermiculite or perlite (available from garden centres). It is important to make sure the lay-box contents don't dry out too much- if you don't notice the eggs straight away they can dry out, though this is relatively easy to sort out.

Around laying time, it is advisable to replace your usual water bowl with a smaller one that the female cannot lay in as this destroys the eggs if not noticed quickly. If your female spends a lot of time in her lay-box, move the water bowl close enough to it that she can drink without having to leave the box entirely. She will feel particularly vulnerable around laying time and this can lead to her becoming dehydrated through refusing to leave the box. 

Your female may become restless and grumpy around laying time- this is normal. Check for eggs once in the morning, and once at night. If you check the box during laying, retreat quietly and leave her to it! Do not be tempted to remove any eggs that are there if she is still laying, as this can cause her to stop laying and become egg-bound. Now, most females will lay all their eggs within a day or so, though longer than this is common. Do not be too quick to panic and rush her to the vets with suspected egg-binding. This can cause stress and often exacerbates the situation. If you feel your female is struggling, add some Reptoboost or Powerade to her water to give her a bit of a boost. 

Once all the eggs are laid (remaining eggs should be clearly visible in the lower half of your female) you can then think about removing them for the incubator. Bear in mind that new "mothers" will be grumpy about having their eggs taken away, although maternal instincts in cornsnakes are all but non-existent. Carefully remove your female from the eggs, and place her back in her enclosure- you can then pick up the lay-box with the eggs in it and take it out. 

When moving the eggs into the container for incubation try and keep them the same way up as the way they were laid. The embryo attaches to the upper surface of the egg and rotating them can drown the developing embryo. Don't panic if this happens soon after laying though, as the attachment of the embryo takes around 24 hours. If the eggs are in a clump, leave them like this. If they are loose, that's also fine. Eggs can be pulled apart with the utmost care, but this is not necessary. Infertile eggs, "slugs", will be yellowish, soft and squidgy, and usually not stuck the rest of the eggs. If the eggs are dehydrated and shrivelled, laying a dampened paper towel over the top of them for a few days should plumpen them out nicely.

The medium in the incubation tub (vermiculite or perlite) should be damp enough that it clumps together when squeezed, but no so wet that you can get more than a few drips of water out when you do this. Push the eggs carefully into the medium, put the lid on (it doesn't need air holes) and place the tub into the incubator. Put the lid of the incubator on and then just wait. Eggs will hatch in around 60 days, more if temperatures are lower, less if higher. Open the egg box once a week to allow an exchange of air. If you need to dampen the medium the eggs are in, use water at the same temperature as the incubator, and wet the medium directly, not the eggs. 

Offer the female a small feed the day after laying, although some will take a feed just a few hours after laying. Feed small meals often until the female starts regaining weight well, as she will be looking a little light after laying. She should be back up to normal weight a couple of months after laying at the very maximum.

Double clutching....

Double clutching can be accidental or done on purpose. Females can retain sperm which can lead to them becoming gravid again, which of course cannot be helped. However, if you choose to breed your female with the intention of getting a second clutch of eggs in a season, then you must be sure she has regained enough condition to get through it safely. Producing one clutch of eggs is hard enough for a female- don't push your luck. 

Hatching time!

The best time of it all! This bit is awesome, and amazing to watch. A healthy hatchling should be able to make its way out of the egg without assistance, using the special egg-tooth on its nose to make slits in the egg. If you are inexperienced, please do not be tempted to cut the eggs yourself or forcibly remove the babies (removing babies shouldn't be done manually anyway). Hatching should be finished after around 2 days, tops, although longer is common and shouldn't lead to panic. 

Hatchlings can be removed when completely out of the egg and housed in individual tubs with paper towel substrate and a small water bowl. They will shed after around 5-7 days, and then they can be offered a feed- pinkies should be fine at this stage. Although hatchlings are tiny at this age, almost every hatchling should manage a whole pinky with ease. Every 5 days is a good feeding regime to get into.

Hatchlings shouldn't be sold until they are eating well- at least 3 unassisted consecutive feeds is the minimum before you should sell. Never sell a non-feeder or fussy feeder, and if hatchlings will only take pinkies scented with something, either make buyers fully aware or don't sell.

Most of all- have fun!!