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jjryan

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Hay I have seen some breeding thread and after reading them i was thinking why is it so had to get help with breeding. I have the book keeping and breeding australian pythons and the other 2 that go with it. I love all the info in them. I feel as a reptile community and a reptile lover if someone need help with breeding why not try and help them. I for one can read a book a hundred time and still not understand but someone show me or tells me step by step and i will get it every time
 
Im not quite sure what your asking; Possibly is hard to get help because breeders don't watch this space as much as rookies (possibly)
 
From what I’ve seen, a lot of the more experienced breeders who come online are generally pretty secretive and greedy when guarding their knowledge. They refuse to share what they’ve learnt and seem to assume that if you dare have the nerve to ask a question, you’re a lazy moron and don’t deserve to breed. The concept of sharing knowledge in order to better the hobby as a whole is foreign to a lot of them. Having said that though, there are also some really helpful guys/girls on here and FB. You need to do a bit of leg work yourself and understand how to ask the right questions.

Your best bet is to read as much as you can and ask specific questions on whatever you don’t understand or that the books don’t cover. Coming on here and saying “how do I breed XXX?” is one of the fastest ways to earn the ire of the entitled peanut gallery.
 
I have no problem helping people that have at least tried to do their research first. I had several keepers who have helped me over the years and we still share info. Its when someone comes on here and asks things like 'I've got two pythons that I want to breed, what do I do' that it becomes annoying. In this day and age with books, fb, Google and breeders pages with all the basic info you can get a lot of the answers. If you're still not sure on something specific then feel free to ask but don't expect a step by step guide.
 
From what I’ve seen, a lot of the more experienced breeders who come online are generally pretty secretive and greedy when guarding their knowledge. They refuse to share what they’ve learnt and seem to assume that if you dare have the nerve to ask a question, you’re a lazy moron and don’t deserve to breed. The concept of sharing knowledge in order to better the hobby as a whole is foreign to a lot of them. Having said that though, there are also some really helpful guys/girls on here and FB. You need to do a bit of leg work yourself and understand how to ask the right questions.

Your best bet is to read as much as you can and ask specific questions on whatever you don’t understand or that the books don’t cover. Coming on here and saying “how do I breed XXX?” is one of the fastest ways to earn the ire of the entitled peanut gallery.

I think you might be being a bit hard there Daniel :)! Sensible breeding of reptiles these days shouldn't really be indiscriminate - I sort of liken it to people who have unsterilised cats & dogs and just let them breed because they can. This is in no way a judgement of the OP, I don't know what his/her aims or intentions are, but I think you'll find that many experienced breeders express reservations for reasons other than keeping the info to themselves. With many species being in oversupply these days, it's not a bad idea to have the newcomers mentored and being a bit more thoughtful about how they approach the business of breeding, rather than a free-for-all indiscriminate approach. I'm certainly very happy to offer any assistance to new keepers covering all facets of keeping and breeding (if I have anything useful to offer of course!) but I predicate that on the attitude of the person I'm dealing with and how they view keeping overall.

As I said, my comment does not reflect my attitude to the OP or the questions posed. As far as breeding info goes, the books mentioned should contain just about all the info you need to get you started, and I would suggest either edition of Greg Maxwell's "The Complete Chondro" would be useful for breeders of any species, not just Chondros, because of the insight it gives into python physiology overall.

Jamie
 
Half of it would possibly come down to the fact no one wants to write a book on a forum as its already been written and published on paper.
Its not that breeders are greedy with there info, alot had to learn the hard way so I dont see why they should spoon feed me info. I will learn the same way they did.
Another reason is alot of noobs want to breed for $$ not the love of it, they will also be the first freaking out that there snake has eggs and they dont know how to incubate, or get the hatchies started.
If you have specific things you dont understand ive seen alot of breeders help each other out, but if its knowledge easily obtained with a quick google search they wont help laziness..
 
Consider joining a local Herp Society if you have one nearby....a great place to meet local keepers and learn/see species you would otherwise likely only see on the internet. These organisation usually have a number of experienced members who you may find will take you under their wing and mentor you along your journey.

In any case, meeting a group of likeminded people with the same interests in your area will expand the circle of people to learn from in a practical sense and give you local contacts you know and trust to ask for help - particularly if you area 'step-by-step' learner as you suggest.
 
Answering a few questions is different to telling every n00b how to do it step by step. There's nothing wrong with someone who reads a lot, plans ahead, and then when they come to doing everything in practice they realise they've overlooked one thing... but when someone says "can I breed X and Y" then however many weeks later says "What do I do with the eggs?" "How do I build an incubator" then however many weeks after that, "When do I start to feed hatchlings?"... Well, It tries a person's patience. (And unfortunately makes us skeptical about every n00b breeder who's done the right thing, too).

Furthermore, I've seen litters of tabby cats that are impossible to sell, and people who keep half a litter of pups because they have trouble selling them... I'd rather not see reptile keeping go that way. It's nice to be aware of what you're going to do with the offspring before you're half way down the creek.
 
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