Reproduction
Female Basins breed once every two years upon reaching sexual maturity at four years of age. We start reducing our nighttime temperatures in the November timeframe for both female and males from a high of 82 degrees to a low of 75 degrees in order to stimulate courting, copulation and ovulation. Our daytime highs remain at 86 degrees through the mating process. It is important to maintain daytime high temperatures so that your Basins have the opportunity to warm up during the day. Males are periodically introduced to females for a few weeks at a time from November through March to insure that copulation has occurred. Ovulation occurs in the female in the February/March timeframe. Birth occurs approximately 140 days from the time of the female's post-ovulation shed. Typically the female will have between 8 and 15 live young.

We house our neonate Basins in Habitat System racks. It is important not to feed new born Basins for at least two weeks from birth at which time they have shed and absorbed their yoke.

Next: General Practices

Barbie, neonate undergoing color change
Barbie, neonate undergoing color change
Brenda, pregnant Amazon Basin
Brenda, pregnant Amazon Basin