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How to Determine the Sex of a Ball Python
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Summary: Learn how to determine the sex of a ball python in this free video.
Nichole Bragg is the reptile expert at the Pet Kingdom in Cottonwood, Arizona. Call them at 928-639-4283.read more
" On behalf of Expert Village I'm Nicole and I'm here to tell you about ball pythons. Determining the sex of a ball python is fairly easy for beginners even. There are very tell tail signs of the sex of a ball python. This here is a female you want to take a look at the tail for where it starts to taper at the end down to the tip. This is a very short tail, short tails mean female it's a very simple way for an armature to determine the sex of his or own snake. Now these can also be sexed by a veterinarian they can probe down in here in the ecological area and if it goes in far it's a male. Because they have a hempen, the penis is kept inside of the snake?s body. If it doesn't go in very far it's a female. They have spurs right here and these are much more prominent in males, hers are very tiny. That is because she really doesn't need them the males tend to use them during mating and there's would be a lot more prominent in the adults. This is a male ball python as I was saying what you do is you view the snakes tail from where it starts tapering off which is about right here on this guy. The length of his tail here determines it says he's a male. He also has spurs down here this is a very young snake so his are not very prominent at this point. But these will grow to be pretty large as he becomes an adult. You can also some people can bend the snake backwards a little bit and pop out then penis. This is not recommended unless you done it before this is something you should probably have done by a vet. But this is generally a good way of telling what your snake is a male or a female, short tail means female, long tail means male."
eHow Article: How to Determine the Sex of a Ball Python
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Comments
wingedwolfpsion said
on 8/2/2008 Every single statement in this video, apart from the fact that some veterinarians (not many) can probe a snake for sex (and even that is described wrong), is incorrect. Yes--every one of them. Sorry. I breed ball pythons, and I can tell you that without a doubt, and will be glad to explain how to actually sex a ball python, if you like, Nicole.
Tail length in ball pythons is not an accurate indicator of gender as it is in some other species. Many male ball pythons have quite short tails. As well, both male and female ball pythons have spurs--again, sizes vary, but are equal between the genders. Hemipenes are stored in the tail--that's downstream from the cloaca, not upstream. There are two of them, hence hemipenes. Probing is done by inserting the probe into the cloaca on one side, toward the tail of the snake--the hemipenal pockets allow you to insert the probe quite far in, in males, but only a short distance in females (they have small vestigal pockets there). Popping is done by rolling the thumb across the hemipenal pockets to force the hemipenes to evert--not by simply bending back the tail of the snake. It is best not attempted by an amateur without the guidance of someone experienced. MOST veterinarians will NOT be familiar with either method, even if they have reptile experience. You will need to locate a breeder or or other experienced keeper who has training with probing to get a snake accurately sexed.
Finally, the vast majority of CBB ball pythons in pet stores today are going to be male. CH hatchlings bought in bulk might have some females among them. The reason for this is that females sell for a higher price than males, and breeders purchase them all first, and sell their female hatchlings to other breeders by preference.
bpguy said
on 8/2/2008 I agree almost everything in this video is false, I also breed Ball Pythons and you cant determine the sex by the shape of the tail or spurs... You can "pop" the snake if you know what your doing. This makes the sexual organs on the snake come out of the hood and if you see 2 hemipenes its a male, if not its a female, or you can probe the animal....
sugarmagnolia02 said
on 8/2/2008 I got scared she was actually going to attempt popping one! I would never buy an animal from the pet store that claims her a reptile "expert". God help those poor snakes.
jay36 said
on 8/2/2008 On behalf of Pet Kingdom in Cottonwood, these videos were never seen or even scripts reviewed by the owner. Sorry for the misleading info and just a note of relief Nicole is nolonger employed with this company.
ballpythonlover said
on 8/2/2008 Nicole, Nicole, Nicole - the more you talk, the more you show how much you don't know. Hemipenes are not kept in the body - they are kept in the tail. Tail length has nothing to do with the sex, nor does spur size. I've got females who have spurs larger than some of my males, and vice versa. Only probing and popping can accurately determine the sex of the snake. Your method is NOT a generally good way to tell sex.