What you need to breed! Building infrastructure.

[@alishadixonxo]

i’m nearly 17 and im leaning about ball python breeding so i can hopefully do it in the future when i’m more experienced because it’s been a dream of mine for years now, this video really helped me and i love your energy. thank you so much :)

[@spuds7677]

Great advice. This kind of happened to me. I started out with some Het Albino females and I had one Albino male. I got a good deal on a couple of GHI females, spiders, pinstripes among others. I had 80 females and 25 male Ball Pythons, several types of King Snakes a few Albino Burms and Granite Burms as well. Well my Rat guy moved away and I had no way of feeding my snakes. I went to the local show and sold most of my collection off. It was a sad weekend for sure but, it did free me up for other hobbies.

[@OlympusReptiles]

Aaron Hoobler sorry man. we started buying Reptile shop rats, then onto using rodent pro. then on to breeding our own. now we are part of the local Reptile shop and breed/use those rats. crazy circle!

[@janetgriffiths7200]

That's why I did start breeding my own rodents. It's part of the necessary infrastructure, just as much as tubs, heat tape, racks, water bowls, etc. I do control the rat breeding, though, and I make sure that I have enough little rats by the time the baby snakes are ready for their first meals. I sell some rats as pets even. Very informative video, as always, and thank you.

[@josettetaylor5176]

At 6:16 that female killer bee SLAYS me.😘

[@janetgriffiths7200]

My racks are homemade, both snake and rodent. I find it fun to build my own, sense of accomplishment, and pride. I'm quite a handy person, and do own my own house painting business.

[@jaquansatchel4372]

Yeah, I completely agree, not enough people explaing the process, yeah theres a lot of people wanting to start to breed snakes lately like myself, but a little guidance would be helpful just so I know my husbandry is tip top, and my noodles are happy. The breeding process is so meticulous and people wanna make sure they're doing things right.

[@Targaryen-ey6gx]

You actually just saved me man, I am on my was to Start my "breeding career" and all I thought about till now was: What snake Do I buy first? Which morphs Do I wanna breed? But damn youre totally right. I should really check my priorities. You got my follow

[@OlympusReptiles]

Supernatural Fan thanks man! it really isn't bad having a few, but as it grows it can be crushing without the infrastructure set up.

[@chrisbethel6121]

great advice! most people just look at the cost of the snakes and forget about food and housing. keep up the good work guys.

[@robinhoodlum7180]

Every time you put up a video I'm just starting to love this channel more and more and more like seriously you take the most common sense approach to not only snake breeding but just the general husbandry of it all, seriously I would love to purchase a snake from you. Definitely a huge fan of this channel

[@OlympusReptiles]

Ck out our patreon, www.patreon.com/olympusreptiles

[@BlvckReptile]

So happy I came across this video. Really helped to re focus my priorities as I’m just getting started in the hobby. Thanks man!

[@-pissy-7595]

I stumbled upon this video about a year ago cause I wanting to do snake breeding for a while. I am now a well known breeder in my area :) this video helped me alot when I started. Keep up the great work (beautiful snakes by the way!)

[@drew6952]

I don’t know why I’m just now seeing this video but thank you. Iv been wanting to start breeding I feel very ready to start and your right that topic is lacking on KZbin so thank you for making it and making it easy to understand

[@rockymountainballpythons3417]

Great Advice , its so easy to get caught up in all the cool morphs and forget about the most basic of things like feed :)

[@OlympusReptiles]

rocky mountain ball pythons it really is!

[@shellyrees7946]

This was very educational for someone that really wants to go down that road...but is green. :) Thanks Matt.

[@OlympusReptiles]

Shelly Rees your welcome! I hope others can learn from my experience, and make it easier.

[@reesespythons]

Good Advise Some People Needed To Hear That

[@OlympusReptiles]

Reeses Pythons I hope it helps some. vi want people to be successful.

[@Crazytown54-g1t]

Olympus Reptiles Great advice! I’ve been doing the math and really considering getting into breeding, but as you mentioned starting small. What would you recommend as a good morph pairing to a very clean enchi male? I’m considering picking up two females. Thanks.

[@Alex-e6b2f]

I know this is a old video but just watched it. Great information! Totally helped keep me in check.

[@Finis08]

Really enjoyed this video and look forward to your future videos. I have recently started keeping snakes and would love to eventually get into breeding. I used to breed several species of fish and loved it so I feel this would be just as much fun. Keep up the good work with the videos.

[@OlympusReptiles]

FINIS08 thanks! it is a ton of fun.

[@jinxtowermorphs8834]

I am glad that you created this and I just got my first ball and I already want to breed him. This helped me a lot thank you.

[@OlympusReptiles]

Sara DeLaTorre you are welcome!

[@ErnsExotics]

That was very helpful. Definitely things to keep in mind. Love your vids. keep up the great work!

[@djskullballpythons158]

as always giving good intel!! I have 35 and just starting out in have everything that I'm interested in. go big or go broke! big enough for me though. thanks!

[@OlympusReptiles]

DJSkullballpythons 1 nothing wrong with that number at all, as long as you are prepared and it sounds like you are.

[@SnakeDaddyExotics]

I really like the idea of this series. You really need to think about things other then new animals when you get snakes. Financing for housing & food is especially important

[@OlympusReptiles]

Josh Knox thanks!

[@bec11mort]

THANK YOU! Someone needed to say this. I see too many people jump into breeding with just a spare 10 gallon tank or some such nonsense..

[@jasongrahamPUTTtheonly1]

Had um for right at a year and plan on breeding next year but don't want to many starting off

[@MrPolny1]

Hey Matt...I really enjoy your videos. I like the fact that you dont keep secrets and from your trials and errors, you advise of things to DO and not to Do, to us, new future breeders! I listened to what you said..."Dont start big" and it makes complete sense! I was always scared of snakes and i decided to learn more about them and purchased my first ball "Lesser" which it was sold as a pastel calico :) Found out it was not by Garrick Demeyer looking at pictures and told me it was a lesser....lol, well, i loved it and purchased a Super Pastel female( AME), Super Fire male ( Garrick) , Pied female(AME) and expecting a Coral Glow HET Pied ( from Garrick) soon. I love recessives so im planning on purchasing a pair of clowns ( maybe pastels). But my projects are really with the clowns and Pied, hoping to get a killer clown and some coral glow pieds to help me kick start my breeding and ball python business journey on a good note :) My lesser and Super fire are my two good old buddies, even though they are all still within 200 grams, they are sweet as candy! I hope you approve my projects and my number of snakes as a new future breeder :)

[@OlympusReptiles]

Pablo de los rios sounds like a good number! and definitely some awesome projects. I love the recessive stuff!

[@djskullballpythons158]

Yeah I really had a calling for it but didn't know it until I seen snakes that a co worker had and I didn't know they had that many morphs. still learning from you and others and trying to find ways to save on money is the key. I know what I'll produce will already exists but it will be something I helped in the process of making.

[@OlympusReptiles]

DJSkullballpythons 1 I get it man. for me, the animals are my Happy place. lowers my stress level, and keeps me grounded.

[@JonFitch10]

Thanks man I'm about to move out and get 2 snakes and raise them up for breeding in a few years so any advice is greatly appreciated love your videos man

[@OlympusReptiles]

ROGER Sawyers ty!

[@Makronim]

Man, i like ur content! Precious tips for begginer, for me. Im starting with 2 balls for now male and female, i will get another pair this year and we will se how it will develop :) Keeep going man!

[@jaclynbacci8361]

Matt this is great advice! I 110% agree to start small!

[@zackmorvant7372]

amazing vid guys! i may start breeding with only 3 snakes. i could see how the cost of food could get crazy. Thanks for the info. Maybe you could do some vids on breeding start to finish, or how you incubate and stuff like that. Keep it up Matt!

[@OlympusReptiles]

Zack Morvant we have an incubation video. we are working on a start to finish, but filming it all season so it will literally cover the year.

[@zackmorvant7372]

Awesome! looking forward to seeing more of your vids!

[@lonesteelwolfjacksonlonewo3412]

Subscribed this was a very good informative video thanks for posting and sharing 😀

[@dillsnickle]

Looking back at this video, I now have 2 ball pythons: a lesser and a mojave ball python, and am planning for a pastel and a spider, but that’s gonna take time. By the end of next year, i’ll have maybe 6-7 snakes, slowly building, and i’m gonna be building a rack here soon- making it so that i can stack grow out racks on top of the hatchling one, since mine are just on my dresser in shoebox tubs that will become hatchling quarantine in the future- but i do need to account for eventually breeding rats. Right now i’ve just got f/t from a pet store.

[@rickyburrus8688]

That is real true I had a point of time where I could take care of all of my but it gets hectic sometimes because how much I got but I'm not giving up I love it I love my animals and I want to keep doing it

[@ellisfamilypythons.8614]

thanks alot for the advice it helps me out alot as a future breeder

[@javiervalencia1068]

great video bro. exelent advise, I'm thinking about getting in to the Hobby and this was great to hear thanks

[@OlympusReptiles]

Javier Valencia the hobby is very rewarding!

[@melissalariviere267]

Oh wow that is the ringer champagne I was there when she was fresh hatched! I still have video of it I think! She is gorgeous

[@OlympusReptiles]

Melissa Marshall thanks! she is still a favorite!

[@justindees8798]

I know I am super late to the party but is there any videos about the energy costs of rack systems? I have 1 right now my electric bill went up by about 15% in the first month and a solid breakdown would really help me get my overhead sorted out. All my snakes are sub adult I'm still about a year from my first season

[@jasongrahamPUTTtheonly1]

First was a WC male then a pastel then a lesser to more pastels and majove and phantom and a bumblebee

[@pythonicknowledge3529]

I have 6 ball pythons, a bumblebee, 2 fires, fire ghost/fire hypo, a normal and a pastel. They all live in the same enclosure happily but I need to get a rack system with proper heating and temperature reading and heat tape, but I’m unsure of where to find a good rack system for cheap.

[@803nigel]

Anthony Artale just build it urself it only cost about $150-$200. It doesn't make since to spend hundreds or even a thousand on a snake rack when all it is is a simple shelf.

[@lonniw]

Anthony Artale - really old reply but I just happened to be going back through his vids and saw this comment. Just in case others happen to see it and think the same thing, I wanted to reply as well. I agree with 803nigel, even if you don't think you can build it, you'd be surprised. Just like getting into the hobby, the building can be fun, interesting, cause you to drop a few swear words and whatnot, but it's all part of the process. Just like with breeding snakes, at the end of the day, you made that rack. I always tell folks new to making things out of wood, just own your mistakes, redo what you can't live with, and for the most part, consider the rest unique to yourself. You still made it. It's awesome, it's yours, and you saved money doing it. What can be better than that?

[@Ochibason]

You have a vid on how to set up mouse and rat rearing? Where to get rat mouse breeding stock up keep etc.

[@rebelreloading5265]

Thanks for the tip !

[@dannycarsyes9624]

Thanks for the advice.. new at this..

[@chirstenstanley363]

Thank you, this made me rethink a lot of things.

[@LionelMPhd]

very good video man I almost had this happen I got that burn out feeling in the beginning and you feel like it's not worth it now I feel like it's easy and nothing.don't really spend much money finally producing and feeding almost for free !

[@OlympusReptiles]

LionelMPhd awesome man!

[@nathanbunby2155]

What morph is it you get out between the champaign and the het ghost spider @5:50

[@OlympusReptiles]

Nathan Bunby lesser pastel

[@nathanbunby2155]

Olympus Reptiles thanks, that helps a lot.

[@CBU2221990]

I want to make a video request but first off I just want to say your videos are great & informative. I'm definitely a faithful subscriber as of this moment to your channel. I'm sort of new to the hobby & I've only kept 2 ball pythons in the past & got out of it. However, I'm looking into coming back in the hobby & breeding ball pythons. Unfortunately, it's hard to find videos of how to incubate ball python babies & what you do after you cut out the eggs like I have so many questions as to how to remove the eggs from the female if they're sticking , & how long do the new hatchlings that you cut have to stay in the egg and what to do after you cut & open the eggs do I just leave the babies there after they get out I mean just everything regarding the before or after breeding & producing baby ball pythons & what to do after like when do I feed them after they come out the egg? & how long before I feed them & know when they're ready to be delivered to a customer? & how to set up my egg tub with vermiculite & how do I know which is the right position to lay my egg so it's not to turn over the egg and kill the snake before it even hatches. I mean overall just everything in terms of breeding ball pythons & it's before & after on what I need in terms of proper ways to set up vermiculite, incubator temperature & how long do I wait before my babies hatch & my do's and don'ts after they hatch. I hope you find this message & you get back to me it would mean the world to me with my appreciation if you make a video like that thank you so much!

[@CBU2221990]

I understand what you said in the video & I'm the same way, I plan before I know what I'm getting into. I know this hobby is going to take a considerable amount of budget to make it even possible to sell, breed & keep all these snakes but I looked into it based on my situation of where I'm at & I take those considerations to really look if I can make this possible as a hobby that I can enjoy & manage my money at the same time. I've considered all the variables & I do this as a passion & a hobby & a love for reptiles not to make a living out of the money I get for selling snakes that I will one day produce like most reputable breeders do. So far I have a very good job with good pay in which managing everything regarding these snakes monetary wise with equipment, food is perfectly convenient & a schedule to handle everything my way without any sort of hassle getting in the way to detain me from keeping these reptiles & my hobby to a close. So yes the comment I left here asking a question about breeding is definitely something I want to know because I can do it with the money & the time I have in this hobby through throughly thinking beforehand & looking at my current situation to see if I can manage what I'm about to get into.

[@CBU2221990]

The other question I forgot to ask is after I cut & open the eggs when the ball pythons are ready to hatch & keep them on the egg where do I put them in a tub with them inside the egg still & slide the tub in? Or just keep them all in the tub before they're ready to come out on their own & how long will that take? Please make a video of this thank you

[@OlympusReptiles]

We might be able to do one, but give me some time. Would film it from beginning of an eggs cycle, tell the end and release it all as one.

[@CBU2221990]

Olympus Reptiles thank you so much please inform me as soon as possible I really appreciate you going out your way in doing this have a good Christmas

[@Vikingking19787]

can you do a video or advice on how to marketing hatchling ball pythons for new breeders

[@OlympusReptiles]

jeremiah tanner we can. that is a great idea.

[@crazyaboutreptiles8833]

I use paper towels not bedding and I have a breeder of rodents I buy from I buy 10 packs I have 22 snakes I would breed my own but live in apartment.

[@eccentricdetectorists9754]

I live in Oregon. An thinking about breeding Green anaconda's. Any feed back would be appreciated.Great video .

[@OlympusReptiles]

Eccentric Detectorist's I have cared for a green anaconda, but never tried breeding.

[@Tisisweee]

I live in Oregon too! I haven't bred green anacondas before because you need a permit to own them in Multnomah County (Portland)

[@nicolawelling654]

I really don't think green anacondas are a good choice for breeding. They are huge, very very specialised animals. Not going to sell well and will probably end with animals being ill cared for or given up when they become too large to handle. I'd definitely say the colubrids or smaller pythons and boas are the best bet for a sustainable business xx

[@Spiritwingz56]

Where are the best places to look up information about breeding certain breeds? I don't have a ball python, I've got a Mexican black King, and I gotta wait until my female is like 3 years anyways but I'd like to know where to start looking up things.

[@OlympusReptiles]

Old forums are pretty good

[@Spiritwingz56]

@@OlympusReptiles what do you mean? Just old forums anywhere?

[@teamliquify6614]

I have a lemon blast in my hands right now what do u think of pairing her with a pied

[@elchuzalongo4339]

Go for it, a lemon blast pied would be VERY cool

[@sheldoncooper9000]

Gr8 vid guys, could you do a vid on getting into recessive morphs? Right now I only have 0.1 pastel, I only want a 4-6 snake collection.

[@OlympusReptiles]

sheldon cooper we can do that.

[@seandobbs1164]

So, if you become a rat breeder and people want frozen rats how are you killing them? I live in Texas. We already breed super worms for our bearded dragons. My wife has been very successful with that. So if we wanted to get into breeding rates for our ball pythons what's your suggestion on how to do what your describing?

[@alexmontague6089]

where did you guys get those black racks? above your bigger rack. I have 6 ball pythons, and I'm looking for a good rack.

[@OlympusReptiles]

alex montague I think they are manufactured by c serpents

[@alexmontague6089]

Olympus Reptiles thank you so much!! these videos have helped me out so much! thank you again

[@melissahead8055]

I so want a ball python

[@rebelreloading5265]

Melissa Head I hope you got one, life is short, do what makes you happy

[@Bridgetwehde]

Did you originally start with normals in the very beginning?

[@janetgriffiths7200]

Your big rack is not ugly. It does what you need it to do.

[@OlympusReptiles]

Janet Griffiths exactly. it don't need to be pretty

[@nitsanshaked2379]

Hey Matt I really love your videos and I'm learning a lot from them. I'm thinking about starting my own business breeding balls. Is there any way I could contact you to ask you a few questions on how to get started? Thanks, Nitsan

[@OlympusReptiles]

Nitsan Shaked thanks!! Best way is through Facebook. But honestly, just start as a hobby and let it grow. With a little luck you will have a small business

[@nitsanshaked2379]

How can I find you on Facebook?

[@OlympusReptiles]

Nitsan Shaked just look for Olympus reptiles

[@ookamidavid]

how many would you say is a good point to start with ? I have 3 girl and 3 boys. my list is: lesser 1.0 spider 0.1 bumblebee 1.0 fire 1.0 butter vanilla 0.1 albino 0.1

[@OlympusReptiles]

ookamidavid 6 is good. really no magic number, just what you can support. sounds like the start to a good collection.

[@solitario7713]

I have a question. What would be a great first snake to get that will be my queen bee snake to breed

[@OlympusReptiles]

I think you mean to breed to a queen bee? Pretty much anything just avoid spider, woman and spotnose.

[@yosefbenyah]

Curious to why your catch phrase slogan is, “ own the gods “. Are you claiming the serpent as divine?

[@OlympusReptiles]

Nope. It is all in the name. Olympus Reptiles. As in Mt. Olympus. Greek mythology. God's lived on mt. Olympus

[@pittsburghballz5504]

so i just started in ball python world about 7 months ago and i found this out fast lol i have a pastel male who wont be able to breed for a year or more hes only 2 foot and i have a 3+ foot spider ball i just bought 2 months ago. now when i breed them will 1 look be more dominant then the other? and do you have any pics or videos to what babies might look like?

[@OlympusReptiles]

Jacob Freed watch any of our bumblebee clutch videos. neither will be more or less dominant, each have same odds. goal would be a bumblebee (pastel spider)

[@pittsburghballz5504]

Olympus Reptiles ty very much its just hard to keep up with combos

[@Vegan_water-xd7ob]

I was thinking that when I get my two fav snakes the panda pied ball python and a brazilan rainbow boa I wanted to breed them will that work or no

[@punchycat6570]

No, a ball python and a rainbow boa are different species, just because they are both snakes does not mean you can breed them. You can however breed a ball python and a ball python and a rainbow boa to rainbow boa, but you can't make hybrids

[@Vegan_water-xd7ob]

All For The Pythons oh ok

[@punchycat6570]

No problem XD

[@Vegan_water-xd7ob]

All For The Pythons Xd

[@Vegan_water-xd7ob]

All For The Pythons um......... this is getting awkward um bye

[@Bridgetwehde]

Thank you!!!! Do informative!

[@JU1CYFRU1T]

I realized when I got to 5 snakes that there was NO POSSIBLE WAY I was going to be able to stay in this hobby and purchase feeders. Add into your math the fact that hatchling snakes eat every 5 days instead of 7, and when females are building they can become garbage disposals... and I would have gone broke! Can you do a video on your rat-breeding setup? Specifically the racks, how you do your water/food/etc. I know there are some really good videos on KZbin, but I'm sure your audience could appreciate seeing your setup. Maybe go into how many feeders you would suggest per snake, how you deal with lulls in production (if any), etc. If we are talking about infrastructure, let's help people start right. Just like I would NEVER tell someone to raise a BP in a terrarium, I wouldn't suggest raising breeders in one either... but people do it all the time. Let's help them start off the right way.

[@OlympusReptiles]

Juicebøx we can do that. can't really say how many per snake though, as our breeding now supports a retail store too.

[@JU1CYFRU1T]

LOL. I have my numbers, personally... I was more referring to "on average, you'll want XX breeding females per adult BP. XX number of breeding females per _____ boa, etc." Just so someone doesn't try to setup their own colony of rats, and gets 25 females to support 5 snakes. They'd be overrun so quickly it wouldn't be funny. I don't have anything other than BPs, so I can't speak to how many females other species would need.

[@jacobkantor3886]

do you sell online or at expos n stuff?

[@OlympusReptiles]

Jacob Kantor I do both

[@jackw4700]

Would I be able to start with 1Male and 2 females

[@OlympusReptiles]

Sure

[@robbysimpson9849]

you should do a video about how to cost effectively breed rodents

[@OlympusReptiles]

Robby Simpson we do have a rat breeding video up. it was our old location.

[@robbysimpson9849]

Olympus Reptiles sweet I'll make sure to check it out

[@hardrocker2010]

What do i get if i breed a female Mojave with a male normal?

[@OlympusReptiles]

Mojave and normal

[@shaunmabey9790]

I've I sold 1 or 2 rats a month that would cover me for feeding my rats

[@CyndiBall]

You are such a cute person😘. I enjoy your videos 😜

[@OlympusReptiles]

Cyndi Ball thanks. making me blush.

[@djskullballpythons158]

Yeah it does!

[@lizcoandrade1604]

great video i wish you would have made it ten years ago lmao but all good advice

[@hakkunuzimaki1686]

Hey Matt, do you ever convert your snakes to frozen? I know you and Kurt breed your own rats I was just wondering if you euthanize them yourselves or what happens

[@stevietaylttv2225]

start with small snakes

[@OlympusReptiles]

stevie miles Taylor good advice. I don't keep giants at my house, just because the space.

[@stevietaylttv2225]

Me too

[@Kingbuzz92]

Well said brother. If you guys have a moment check out some of my reptiles.

[@charlestate3005]

can I buy a snake from you

[@OlympusReptiles]

Charles Tate hell yeah you can. contact me via Facebook.

[@fatgzyezziirr8188]

Lmaoo Kirk don't like to talk much you need to put him in the front of the camera one time

[@evelynmendez9798]

Do need a license to breed reptiles

[@OlympusReptiles]

Depends on where you live

[@madeyalookc5319]

i have 7 snakes and i want 10. and then im done lmao 🐊🐍🐍🐍🐍🐍🐍🐍🐍🐍🐍🐉🐶🐸🐡😅😂😂😅😂

[@aes8302]

I wanted 1 now I have 4 lol I don't know if I'll be able to stop haha