Live rodents for sale, please email me with any questions. $20 minimum order required, thank you for looking!
Rats $3 any size
Mice $2 any size
Monday, February 24, 2014
Monday, February 10, 2014
Ball Python Breeding 2013-2014
I began my inaugural ball python breeding season by dropping cage temperatures in late October of 2013 then I introduced males to females beginning in November. I decided to try the Markus Jayne method for my first attempt at breeding balls. Below are some pictures of successful locks between my male and female balls. I'm currently setting up a new incubator and just recently turned my cage temperatures back up to 92 degrees. I've done some research and several breeders don't change temperatures year round. I might try that next time depending on the turn out from this season. One thing that I have learned from keeping reptiles is that you do what works best for you. Good luck and I'll hopefully be back with pictures of eggs and snakes hatching in the near future.
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Orange Ghost het Car X Double het Glow |
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Bumble Bee X Lemon Blast het Car |
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Bumble Bee X Normal |
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Mystic X BEL (Lesser Mojave) |
Saturday, April 20, 2013
Tokay Gecko: My Neighbor Totoro
My buddy Dan, the manager at Clawpaws in Pittsburg, KS, ordered a small Tokay Gecko for me. I happened to show up at the store one day when Jason, their supplier, was dropping off an order. Guess what, I got lucky and my Tokay showed up the same day. His name is Totoro and I've included some pictures of him below. This is the first gecko I've ever owned so I don't have many pointers for Tokay care but here's a link. Totoro makes an awesome ornamental pet but I don't recommend handling Tokays unless you can raise one from a hatchling. Then your chances of taming this savage beast may be higher but good luck none the less!
Golden Rule #3 Do NOT house Tokay Males together.
Golden Rule #3 Do NOT house Tokay Males together.
Monday, March 4, 2013
Mice Breeding Basics
I've started a new colony of mice to help feed my growing ball python collection. I've decided to direct my attention towards breeding ball pythons although I will still breed Bearded Dragons and Uromastyx yearly. Buying mice weekly started to accumulate to roughly $100 a month so I weighed my options. I was able to pick up a few used mouse racks, $20 a piece, from a friend locally. You could easily build your own rack system, just check YouTube for instructional videos or try the Google on the internet device and I'm sure it wouldn't cost much more than what I paid. Now I spend $16 a month on a 24lb bag of Special Kitty cat food, $10 on 8lb bag of Hartz: Large Bird Diet, a 50lb bag of Kent Cubes Rodent Diet (you can usually find this at your local feed store) for $20 that lasts forever, the water is free as we're on a well and I buy a huge $20 bag of shredded aspen to avoid mites, roughly every 3 months. That brings my monthly grand total to approximately $35. The only drawback is having hundreds of mice in my garage, make sure they can't escape, that could be seen as a "problem". I guess hundreds of mice colonizing in the walls of your home might be a bad thing. If you're not scared of mice and you might actually kind of think they're cute like I do then I recommend breeding your own mice if you own more than 3 ball pythons. The advantages out weigh the cons in my situation. I'm ensuring that I'm feeding top quality healthy mice to my snakes, I'm saving close to $65 a month on the mouse bill and I love animals so the more the merrier! As of now I have 2 racks with 6 tubs each but I'm thinking about upgrading to a new rack after purchasing a breeding pair of rats. My larger ball pythons prefer rats and I realize they have a higher nutritional value than mice but I'm always worried for the safety of my snakes. Mice will cower in the corner once they realize a predator is in the 10 gallon Rubbermaid Roughneck with them while rats will take a defensive position and fight back. If you own ball pythons then you know exactly what I'm talking about. My bumblebee, Loki, can't stand rats, not even rat pups but mice are like candy to him and I'm pretty sure 99% of all other ball pythons on this Earth. Loki had a bad experience with a rat when he was younger and I just can't get him back on rats for some reason. If anyone has any pointers for me it would be great to hear your educated opinion. I also prefer live over frozen thawed feeders and I don't own a deep freeze. I've included some pictures of my mouse racks below along with some mouse pups and the aspen bedding I use, check it out.
Golden Rule #2 Remove your male mice as soon as your females look pregnant!
Golden Rule #2 Remove your male mice as soon as your females look pregnant!
Labels:
Ball Python,
Ball pythons,
Breeding,
joplin,
kent rodent feed,
mice,
missouri,
mo,
mouse,
mouse rack
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
Dubia Roaches: For Sale Joplin, MO
I have been breeding dubia roaches for a little over a year. My colony is large enough to support my primary use of feeding bearded dragons and to sell excess. I'm willing to match any online dubia roach dealer's price and the great thing about this opportunity is that I'm located here in Joplin, MO. If you are interested in placing an order for dubia roaches or have any questions, please feel free to contact me personally at RadioactiveReptiles@gmail.com
I recommend starting your own colony if you take care of more than 3 animals who will eat them as a feeder insect. This option is much more cost effective than purchasing dozens of crickets or containers of feeder worms from other local dealers. It's simple to start your own colony. Here is a list of things that you'll need; 1) Large Tote opaque with smooth sides (the kind Wal-Mart sells) 2) glue gun 3) wire screen (approximately cut 9" x 4" 4) duct tape 5) 50 mixed roaches including 3 adult females to 1 adult male at the least 6) egg cartons 7) a dark dry place in your house that maintains a 70 degree minimum temperature (mine are in my closet). I add enough corn meal (yellow or white) to cover 3/4 of the bottom of my container. Then I build a structure out of egg cartons on top of that for them to colonize. I also provide water crystals made from mixing water and Soil Moist which you can buy on Amazon for much less than others sell it for. Depending on the size of your colony add a potato cut 4 ways into the container about twice a week. Make sure you remove any remains of vegetables or fruit as quickly as possible. Mold will kill your roaches! Below I've posted some pictures depicting my colony and lit set up.
There are several advantages to feeding dubia roaches; 1) they're more nutritious than other feeder insects 2) they don't stink 3) they're easy to care for 4) they breed easily 6) they're very cost effective The downside to dubia roaches is that they are roaches and the idea of having thousands of roaches colonizing in your closet tends to freak some people out. I'd say that most normal people are a little creeped out by this idea but who am I kidding. If you're reading this then you're probably a reptile keeper and you know that neither you or I are normal. I love exotic reptiles and wouldn't trade them for the world, maybe a winning Powerball ticket for $600 million?
Golden Rule #1 Do not feed your bearded dragon anything larger than the diameter between it's eyes!
I recommend starting your own colony if you take care of more than 3 animals who will eat them as a feeder insect. This option is much more cost effective than purchasing dozens of crickets or containers of feeder worms from other local dealers. It's simple to start your own colony. Here is a list of things that you'll need; 1) Large Tote opaque with smooth sides (the kind Wal-Mart sells) 2) glue gun 3) wire screen (approximately cut 9" x 4" 4) duct tape 5) 50 mixed roaches including 3 adult females to 1 adult male at the least 6) egg cartons 7) a dark dry place in your house that maintains a 70 degree minimum temperature (mine are in my closet). I add enough corn meal (yellow or white) to cover 3/4 of the bottom of my container. Then I build a structure out of egg cartons on top of that for them to colonize. I also provide water crystals made from mixing water and Soil Moist which you can buy on Amazon for much less than others sell it for. Depending on the size of your colony add a potato cut 4 ways into the container about twice a week. Make sure you remove any remains of vegetables or fruit as quickly as possible. Mold will kill your roaches! Below I've posted some pictures depicting my colony and lit set up.
There are several advantages to feeding dubia roaches; 1) they're more nutritious than other feeder insects 2) they don't stink 3) they're easy to care for 4) they breed easily 6) they're very cost effective The downside to dubia roaches is that they are roaches and the idea of having thousands of roaches colonizing in your closet tends to freak some people out. I'd say that most normal people are a little creeped out by this idea but who am I kidding. If you're reading this then you're probably a reptile keeper and you know that neither you or I are normal. I love exotic reptiles and wouldn't trade them for the world, maybe a winning Powerball ticket for $600 million?
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My Dubia Colony |
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Lid Example |
Golden Rule #1 Do not feed your bearded dragon anything larger than the diameter between it's eyes!
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Female Desert Ball Python: Unproven Breeding
Desert Ball Pythons are beautiful visual morphs. Unfortunately as far as I've read there have been no confirmed successful clutches laid by female Desert Ball Pythons. Some breeders have speculation that if you're able to get the snakes weight over 3,000g that she will produce a successful clutch but there is no confirmed data to back this up. As far as I know, trusting the opinion of two guys I seek advice from quite frequently, Joe and Clark from Powerhouse Reptiles, the female Desert Ball Python's egg ducts are too small. This causes them to throw slugs and unfertilized eggs. I've seen beautiful 4 gene Desert's selling for under $500, once again this is just a beautiful pet and can't be put into a breeding program. I wouldn't mind having a pet like that but part of the fun is breeding them! If you do try to breed your female Desert you put her at risk of becoming egg bound which could lead to her demise. Now for the dirt and grime of the reptile industry. Several breeders have invested large amounts of money into their Desert breeding projects. How do you think they plan on making their money back? Well of course, selling their inventory. Now don't get me wrong you can make some beautiful morphs with the Desert gene but at what cost? Desert females are being sold without the disclaimer that they cannot be bred. Now who knows one day, someone might unlock the genetic secret to successfully breeding these wonderful morphs but until then we're at a stand still. Unfortunately, I've seen several Desert Ball females being sold at outlandish prices. Some breeders even describe their Desert Balls as dinkers, Ball Pythons with "unknown" genes. This will help them avoid being pinned as a con artist when they know what they're dealing with but this description is used as a disclaimer for unsuspecting customers. Then when the snake reaches breeding size, if she is bred without knowing what her genes are, she could die or be faced with a serious health risk. Ok, so what if she does lay a clutch, you've just produced 8 solid slugs. Who are you going to come looking for if you do your research after you all ready make the purchase, the breeder and guess what, "He didn't know what her gene's were." Be careful and don't make the mistake of buying into the Desert gene without knowing the consequences. Below I've listed some pictures and articles that will go in depth more than I have, probably from breeders with much more experience than I, check it out.
http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1458949
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?170524-Has-desert-female-breeding-got-anywhere
http://thereptilereport.com/breeding-desert-females/
http://www.ssnakess.com/forums/python-regius/89914-question-about-desert-morph.html
http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1458949
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?170524-Has-desert-female-breeding-got-anywhere
http://thereptilereport.com/breeding-desert-females/
http://www.ssnakess.com/forums/python-regius/89914-question-about-desert-morph.html
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Desert Ball |
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Desert Ball |
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Desert Spider |
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Desert Mojave |
Saturday, November 24, 2012
New Addition to the Family
I found my new female ball python, Cleopatra, on faunaclassifieds.com from Casey Dunham, his listing is amazing and he has some awesome prices if you're interested in buying any ball pythons. My wife and I drove roughly 7 hours from Joplin to Oklahoma City round trip. The new addition to our collection is roughly a 6ft long 7lb 10 year old female ball python. Check out the pictures I've listed below, she's a beauty and she's as big as a dinosaur but as timid as a cat! She has the possibility of being gravid after 5 confirmed locks with a male pastel champagne. It would be awesome if she was gravid because I'd love to own a pastel champagne but if she's not we plan on breeding her with one of our males this season. Our male bumblebee, Loki, has been restless and hasn't eaten much since the beginning of October. Also our male pastave, Perseus, has shown similar breeding characteristics. The only question now is, "Do we want to make bumblebees or pastaves?" We love getting out of town and this isn't the first trip we've made for our reptiles. Last year we drove roughly 8 hours one way to the Dallas/Fort Worth area to pick up a 4 stack of Boaphiles. Our next trip will be the OK Reptile Expo on December 9th in Broken Arrow, which just happens to be the Sunday before finals week, ahhhhhhhhh! If you get a chance, check out the OK Reptile Expo and maybe I'll see you there.
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Cleopatra |
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I'm 6'2" to add a size ratio comparison |
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Do you think she looks gravid? |
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