Ball Python Breeding

Not sure how to breed ball pythons? Well you’re in luck because below is a simple guide explaining how we breed ball pythons here at MacKnight Stables. Now before going any further understand if you asked 10 breeders their process they would most likely all give you different answer. With that in mind the steps below are what we have had the most success over the years and hopefully you will to.

Pairing

Beginning in late October each year we begin pairing our animals. We place males in with the females on Mondays and Wednesdays and leave them together for 2 days, on Friday males are separated and given a break over the weekend to eat and regain their strength. Additionally, we start pairing females that have laid the previous year 7 months following their laid date.

Courting

After introduction the male begins the breeding process by “tickling” the female with his spurs.

The Lock

Once the process begins the male and female wrap their tails together and “lock” into position. The lock can last anywhere from a couple of hours to well over 24.

Building Behaviour

As Follicles begin to develop the female will begin to spend more time on the cool side of the tub and will start wrapping her water bowl on a regular basis

The Glow

Anywhere from 1 to 2 months before females ovulate, they will undergo a dramatic color change where they begin to look like they are glowing!

Ovulation

It’s almost impossible to miss, the female hasn’t eaten for quite some time and now she looks like she swallowed a football. From this point eggs are 45 to 50 days away.

Post Ovulation Shed

About 2 weeks following ovulation our females normally shed. From this point we generally begin the 30-day countdown to eggs.

Egg Laying

Once the female is ready, she makes a nest and begins the egg laying process, which normally takes several hours.

Incubating

Once all the eggs are laid, we gently collect them from the female, place them in incubation media and then rinse the female off and set her up in a new enclosure. For those wondering we use perlite mixed with water (1:1 ratio based on weight) as our incubation media, which is placed in sterilite 6qt tubs with glad press in sell place over the top, lastly the egg setup is placed in an incubator set to 89 degrees. Our eggs normally take 55 to 60 days to hatch.

Hatchling Setup

Once the hatchlings come out of the egg, we place the entire clutch into a tub with moist paper towels until they have all had their first shed. Once they have all shed, we separate each hatchling and place them into their own tubs and offer food 7 day later.