What are some of the bad effects of inbreeding on corn snakes

We immediately check each specimen for any signs of disease and verify that they are strong enough and well-conditioned for breeding. We also use this time to select which males will be placed with which females to produce the desired offspring. We feed heavily during this time, after allowing the snakes a week to warm up to the idea. We find it best to feed small meals at first, gradually increasing to full-sized meals by the end of March.

Usually, the males will all shed their skins around the end of March, although this varies a bit. Make a note of this, as it serves to signify he is ready for breeding.

April

We are now feeding very heavily, and our work load is becoming tremendous, with hundreds of hungry mouths to feed and even more cage cleaning to do. Averaging two weeks later than the males, all of the females will now shed their skins, almost en masse, something that amazes me every year. It's as if the brumation period has served to reset every snakes' internal clock. It's absolutely critical to take note of this shedding, as it is the marker for the beginning of introductions for breeding. Many males will be seen to be restless, wandering around the cages endlessly - they can smell all those freshly shed females nearby!

Once the female has shed, we begin introducing her to the males' cage. You can do it the other way around, doesn't seem to matter, we just like to do it this way. If all is well, the male will show interest immediately, often pausing to smell the female as she glides by. Once he has determined that she is full of developing eggs, his interest will quickly grow and he will begin chasing the female about the cage. Things can get a little wild here, and we recommend removing the water bowl lest it be overturned. More mature snakes seem to do less chasing and often simply get right to 'business'. here's a typical chase scene, with the male (a Butter) trying to position himself on top of the female (a Caramel). You can see he is trying to get her to lift her tail section a bit by forcing his tail under hers.