GS Reptiles

18/03/2024

Just posted (2) - CBB '23 Well-Established Cyclops OC Neos at VERY Reasonable Pr*ces on MM. The Dam of these Babies is a "One of a Kind" Cyclops. (GSReptiles on MM)

08/06/2022

A group of Baby Basins I recently added to my collection.
GSReptiles on YouTube

10/02/2022

2021 Pure Manokwari Chondro
on YouTube

08/02/2022

2021 Reduced Patterned Diamond Python Female. NFS
on YouTube

01/10/2021

**New Video Release**

* Complete 2021 Room(s) Tour
* Enclosure, Rack, & Incubator Guidance
* Arboreal Perches
*

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-gA2JyIDi8&t=6s

USARK - Please Donate! Diamond Python Expertise -Joshua Easter on FacebookArboreal Perching - Specialty Enclosure DesignsEnclosures - Boaphile & Focused Cube...

07/05/2021

**New Video Release**

*Visiting Mike Z's Collection with Baby Basin Emeralds
*Wild-Caught Emeralds - Can we please stop buying them?
*A visit with Bitchin' Boas featuring an awesome Red Boa
*My First Eggs of the 2021 Breeding Season
*The Potential Downside of a using Substrates

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wae0as2opg0&t=3s

A visit with Bitchin' Boas / Slavic Shvarts on Instagram Visiting Mike Z's Baby Basins on InstagramPlease Stop Buying Wild-Caught E...

31/07/2020

*New Video* Released Today
https://youtu.be/AZ2Mnpiyzrg

Complete Collection Tour - Savu Python Ovulation - More Baby Conicus Born - Green Tree Python Egg Update - Amazon Basin Emerald Update & Spotlighting "old" animals which recently laid eggs / gave birth to offspring.

Complete Tour of my collection including equipment. Savu Python Ovulation, More Boas Born, Green Tree Python Egg Update, Amazon Basin Emerald Update, and Spo...

30/07/2020

Special thanks to Robyn Markland and The Reptile Report for always being so supportive of me, GS Reptiles, and the entire reptile community.

22/05/2020

Please check out my latest video "My 2020 Breeding Journey", and if it makes you smile at least once, all I ask is that you subscribe to my channel and "like" the video. Thanks! (Lots of chondro stuff!)
https://youtu.be/ORD69RZsw_8

16/05/2020

Imagine not having your reptiles during this pandemic.
How bored would you be without them?
Every single day USARK is fighting for our right to keep them, and they ask for very little in return.

So if you want to help, but don't have the time or a lot of money, here's a quick solution........ Click the link below & donate $5.00 per month. It's right there......just click on it, and make it happen.

https://usark.org/members…/bronze-sustaining-member-signup/…

12/05/2020

If you have not already, please subscribe to my new YouTube Channel. Hopefully you'll learn a thing or two, and have a few laughs! https://youtu.be/xwaWbBn5sts

Information you should know before buying your first Green Tree Python or Emerald Tree Boa. How difficult are they to keep? Who should I buy it from? What sh...

25/04/2020

Some recent photos of my room. While it looks large in the photos, the room is only 13' x 18', and "yes", I am well out of space.
To those building rooms now, or in the future, I can't stress enough to build your room larger than you think you will need it!

4' Cages - BoaphilePlastics
Arboreal Caging - PVCCages.com
Racks by ARS
Incubators - Nature's Spirit

24/04/2020

*Nest Box Tip*

Every breeding season, I read many questions about Nest boxes, so I thought I would share a tip that has worked well for me. I do not use nest boxes, and eliminating them has made the entire breeding season far less stressful.
I simply line the bottom of my animal's enclosure with several layers of newspaper, then SECURELY tape it so the animal is not able to go underneath. I then cover the newspaper with a couple of inches of Coco Chips/Mulch (pick your favorite brand), and then place a 1/2 log of Cork Bark in the enclosure. The animal will use the 1/2 log as a hiding/nesting site, and it can be easily lifted/moved (see above photo), to check for eggs. In addition, regardless of where the animal lays its clutch in the enclosure, it will be on the mulch. In the case of chondros, I also remove all but the lowest perch. By doing so, even if my girl drops her eggs from the perch, it is only a few inches from the ground, and they'll land on a soft mulch cushion.
Many have success using nest boxes, but in my experience, they only add a potential complication should your female decide not to use it.

24/04/2020

Pic for Attention

"I recently acquired a Baby Emerald Tree Boa / Baby Green Tree Python, and it will not eat. WHAT SHOULD I DO?"

I'm seeing this post on a regular basis, and while THERE ARE EXCEPTIONS, 99.9% of the time, here is what you should (and should not), do, when your new baby arboreal will not eat. (I am referring to babies that were eating for their previous owner, and now refuse to eat for their new owner. I am not referring to babies that have never taken a meal before).

1. DO NOT be so quick to blame the seller. Baby arboreals stress easily after being shipped/moved, and it is not uncommon for them to take some coaxing to eat when you first get them home.
2. DO NOT try feeding them immediately. Let them settle in for a few days before offering their first meal.
3. DO NOT take them to a vet if they do not eat. It is stressful for the animal, and most likely there is absolutely nothing wrong with your animal. Non-feeding newly acquired baby arboreals typically do not eat due to the inexperience of the new owner. Rarely is it because they have anything wrong with them. I have complete respect for vets and use one regularly, however a vet will not help you when it comes to getting a baby arboreal feeding. In fact, they typically do more harm than good.
3. DO NOT be overly concerned with cage conditions. "Yes", pay attention to temps, the size of your perches/branches, and enclosure size (Keep it small!), however as long as each parameter is within an acceptable range (Use "thin" perches for babies, temp range should be 81-84 degrees, and use SMALL enclosures (12-15 quart at most!), your newly acquired baby arboreal should eat. If it is not eating, most likely, it is solely due to the feeding technique used by the inexperienced keeper.
4. DO NOT be overly concerned with the food item being offered. Offer fuzzy mice (NOT pinky mice) to baby emeralds, and pinky mice to baby chondros. If you are offering Frozen/Thawed prey, HEAT IT UP. Hotter is better, and while chick scenting will help coax either species to eat, there is never a need to "split brains" of a rodent to feed your arboreal. If your baby arboreal was eating prior to you acquiring it, and it's now even refusing heated & or scented prey, most likely it is due to your feeding technique, and not the prey item being offered.
5. Most importantly...DO NOT post on Facebook looking for help. Many (not all) of those posting trying to help have good intentions, however most have only slightly more experience than you, and they may unintentionally send you down the wrong path.

So what should you do?
1. Read as much as you can prior PRIOR to acquiring your animal, and ask a lot of questions.
2. Contact an experienced arboreal keeper on Facebook via IM, and ask for their advice if your new arboreal baby will not eat. If I were just getting started, I would also ask if they were willing to become my mentor moving forward. Most experienced breeders/keepers will respond if contacted directly as opposed to a public posting, and most will want to help. (I won't because I'm old and crotchety, however most will.)

Lastly, I am not coming down on new arboreal keepers. We were all "new" at one time, and we all needed help. (I continually request help and guidance on a regular basis, as I am always learning from my peers.) My only goal of this post is to simply offer guidance for new keepers, and most importantly, save the lives of newly acquired arboreal babies.

24/04/2020

RIs in Chondros - I DO NOT CLAIM this will work every time for every animal, however it has worked every time for me.
Like anyone who keeps & breeds chondros, I've lost my share of animals over the years, however it's been quite some time since losing one from an RI. Therefore before calling a vet, I suggest at least trying this very simple, yet effective approach.
The key to this method is utilizing an incubator. This will provide a constant temperature & humidity level which is crucial for a favorable result. You will NOT get the same result by simply raising your cage temp, or by placing your animal in a Rubbermaid tub and sticking it in a rack system. Neither of these methods will provide the constant temperature & humidity level required to treat the animal properly.
The Process: After setting your incubator to 86 degrees, line the bottom of a 12qt Rubbermaid tub with damp paper towel. (My tubs do have a few air holes in them, and I do not place a water bowl in the tub.) Place your animal in the tub, close the lid, and place in the incubator. After 24 hours check on the animal, and typically you will already see an improvement. In the case of my animals (3 out of 4) it took a full 48 hours to completely wipe out the RI. In the case of the 4th animal that did not respond to this approach, I repeated the very same process, however this time, instead of damp paper towel (very high humidity), I used DRY paper towel (very low humidity).
In the case of this 4th animal, 48 hours later, the RI was also completely gone. (To summarize - try 100% humidity for 48 hours first. If that does not work, then try almost no humidity for 48 hours.)
Now admittedly in some cases, RIs did resurface a few days later after animals were placed back in their normal enclosures. 48 hours later however after a 2nd session in the incubator, again the RIs were wiped out, and the animals continue to show no signs of RI more than 2 years later.

In closing, I understand this is a form of nebulization therapy (without any type of medication being administered) which hobbyist have been using on reptiles for years, and I am not claiming to have reinvented the wheel. However with so many variations of this method being thrown around, my ONLY goal is to provide a specific comprehensive blueprint that has worked flawlessly for me, which my fellow hobbyist can easily duplicate.
Good luck, and if you are open to trying this approach, please send me a message sharing your results.