How many Females to a Male?

[dprince]

I would definitely not breed your male to 40 females. First of all, that's a huge strain on him, and as it has been mentioned before, he will have a much higher chance of prolapsing. Then, your investment (and likely the whole breeding season) will be kaputz. Much safer to breed to a smaller amount - the six people mentioned sounds OK.

Something else to consider - if you produce that many enigmas, are you going to have to price them "cheaply" to move them? No one wants to be "the one" that drives down the market like that........seriously. And if you are a first year breeder attempting to sell that high end of animals, you may come across some issues with lack of reputation......ie: not being able to sell your enigmas for the prices others can get because people don't know you well enough yet, or not being able to sell them at all. ESPECIALLY if you're trying to move boatloads of them. Just some food for thought.

 

[RoyalCityReptiles]

I would definitely not breed your male to 40 females. First of all, that's a huge strain on him, and as it has been mentioned before, he will have a much higher chance of prolapsing. Then, your investment (and likely the whole breeding season) will be kaputz. Much safer to breed to a smaller amount - the six people mentioned sounds OK.

Something else to consider - if you produce that many enigmas, are you going to have to price them "cheaply" to move them? No one wants to be "the one" that drives down the market like that........seriously. And if you are a first year breeder attempting to sell that high end of animals, you may come across some issues with lack of reputation......ie: not being able to sell your enigmas for the prices others can get because people don't know you well enough yet, or not being able to sell them at all. ESPECIALLY if you're trying to move boatloads of them. Just some food for thought.

valid point... I am new to the business side of leos, which is why i ask 'stupid' questions...

-Nate

 

[fallen_angel]

I'm sure everyone on here will tell you that no question is a stupid question. You are a better person for asking other people's opinions, as opposed to just doing it and finding out what happens..

 

[dprince]

valid point... I am new to the business side of leos, which is why i ask 'stupid' questions...

-Nate

They aren't stupid questions. They are valid questions, and you deserve honest responses. And if you have questions, please don't hesitate to ask. I'd rather people ask questions and get answers than not ask at all and have lots of problems.

You are in for an exciting year for sure. Best of luck. :main_thumbsup:

 

[dprince]

I'm sure everyone on here will tell you that no question is a stupid question. You are a better person for asking other people's opinions, as opposed to just doing it and finding out what happens..

Amen to that. :main_yes:

 

[RoyalCityReptiles]

Something else to consider - if you produce that many enigmas, are you going to have to price them "cheaply" to move them? No one wants to be "the one" that drives down the market like that........seriously. And if you are a first year breeder attempting to sell that high end of animals, you may come across some issues with lack of reputation......ie: not being able to sell your enigmas for the prices others can get because people don't know you well enough yet, or not being able to sell them at all. ESPECIALLY if you're trying to move boatloads of them. Just some food for thought.

If I were to have boatloads, I don't think I would drop the price too much, but I would be more open to trades.
I do believe that we already have a fairly decent reputation (thanks mostly to Debbie, lol) and I really don't think I would have an issue selling enigmas up here in Canada..
you don't think people will be able to tell that my offspring will be enigmas??

-Nate

 

[goReptiles]

I think that you would have to drop the price in order to move them. But, the more you put out into the market, the more the overall price drops. Even know, I've seen very attractive enigmas with great genes for 700 shipped, versus other breeders with higher reputation selling the same thing (virtually) for over 2 grand.

Plus, the newness factor does play into affect. I kind of doubt you'll be able to sale them for as high a price as HISSS or other breeders that have a grand reputation with leopard geckos. It's not just the reputation overall, it's also your reputation with a particular species. First year with leopard geckos, means probably not a reputation with them (if that makes sense), which means that fewer people will know whether you are genuine and whatnot towards that species.

I'm not sure what "you don't think people will be able to tell that my offspring will be enigmas??" means.

 

[dprince]

What Whitney is saying is correct. The more of anything on the market, the more prices drop, etc. And believe me, people will talk about who is responsible for the dropping out of markets, right or wrong..........and that is not a good reputation to have. :main_no:

And as far as reputation, it's not only having a GOOD reputation, it's being well known for leopard geckos like Wendy says. The only thing that remedies this is time, experience, and multiple good/great dealings with people....and you're in!!

I also don't know what you mean by your last statement. I hope I've not said anything to the effect that people won't know what enigmas are..........:main_huh:

Something to also consider, with that many offspring, you're also going to have about 1/2 normals and 1/2 enigmas..........do you have a venue to sell all of these babies (shows, website, etc.?) And house that many babies? With 40 females, you could easily produce over 400 geckos............in an economy such as ours, it's something to think about.

I'm not trying to be critical at all, just trying point out some things that only you can answer and decide for yourself. :main_yes:

 

[RoyalCityReptiles]

If I were to have boatloads, I don't think I would drop the price too much, but I would be more open to trades.
I do believe that we already have a fairly decent reputation (thanks mostly to Debbie, lol) and I really don't think I would have an issue selling enigmas up here in Canada..
you don't think people will be able to tell that my offspring will be enigmas??

-Nate

I would like to clarify, when I mentioned 'Debbie', I was meaning my girlfriend, not Debbie Prince from The Gecko Prince!!!!

 

[RoyalCityReptiles]

Something to also consider, with that many offspring, you're also going to have about 1/2 normals and 1/2 enigmas..........do you have a venue to sell all of these babies (shows, website, etc.?) And house that many babies? With 40 females, you could easily produce over 400 geckos............in an economy such as ours, it's something to think about.

I'm not trying to be critical at all, just trying point out some things that only you can answer and decide for yourself. :main_yes:

I am going to clarify something else, lol, originally, I was wondering, hypothetically, if it was possible to breed him to 40 females. I do have the space for all of those potential babies, and am working on making more!!

We do have several shows up here, and this year will be our first time vending. And I don't want to be 'that guy' that ruined the market, so thank you for making me aware of that mistake I could have made!!

-Nate

 

[dprince]

I would like to clarify, when I mentioned 'Debbie', I was meaning my girlfriend, not Debbie Prince from The Gecko Prince!!!!

Phew!! So glad I didn't forget a name!! :main_laugh:

 

[Baysidegeckos]

I have about 8 females or less per male and mine do just fine, I have a high percentage of fertitlity and my males stay at a good consistant weight.

 

[dprince]

I am going to clarify something else, lol, originally, I was wondering, hypothetically, if it was possible to breed him to 40 females. I do have the space for all of those potential babies, and am working on making more!!

We do have several shows up here, and this year will be our first time vending. And I don't want to be 'that guy' that ruined the market, so thank you for making me aware of that mistake I could have made!!

-Nate

I think several folks have addressed your first question. No confusion there.

Nate, only you can decide what's best for you to do. Do your research, take your time, and you'll figure out the best course of action for you and your business. Something else to think about, Marcia posted her thoughts in a thread that I think EVERY gecko breeder, new or not, can gain some valuable insight on.

http://www.geckoforums.net/showthread.php?t=18931

Best of luck in whatever you decide.

 

[Kimjorg]

About the vending at shows...Just because you have a few shows in your area does not mean that you should simply rely on selling your geckos mainly through that resource. There are many times that we have been to or vended at shows when no one was really looking for leopard geckos...You may also come across vending at a show with other breeders who can afford to price the same types of morphs you have for lower therefore selling more while you are "stuck" with selling only a few geckos or nothing that you counted on selling. Reputation plays a HUGE part in show vending along with any other sales you are trying to pursue. It is very important that you establish yourself as a great small breeder before you try to compete with the big guys who already have a fantastic reputation and a great (repeating) customer base. Hopefully that makes some sense.

 

[mynewturtle]

Hi Nate,

As you probaly know the gecko market in Canada is a bit smaller then the one in US. That being said if you produce say 50 and are trying to sell them 1000+ your expecting us to have $50,000. You don't want to produce 100s if the community doesn't have the money, or isn't big enough. You aren't likely going to have someone buy 3+. Mostly in 1s so you got to find 40-50 people to buy these. I know this has been said but some people aren't familiar with canadian market.

 

[Mel&Keith]

One think to think about as far as local shows is whether or not people are actually selling their Leopard geckos. Our Local shows here are almost not even worth vending it we barely broke even on our table last year. Most people didn't even want to spend $15 on a sub-adult Tremper or nice SHTCT.

 

[ataber]

i have to agree with mel the 2-3 shows that are local to me dont see many leopard geckos sold but some and unlikely to sell any for the price of enigmas even on the lowest end of the price range

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

I guess the question remains... what's more important? The health and well-being of your geckos, or cranking out a bunch of sellable offspring?

No judgement passed here. I know plenty of people who rely on gecko sales to pay their mortgage. I know several breeders who allow females to reproduce at 36 grams... knowing full well that they will die within 2-3 years. If it's the idea of getting rich on producing Enigmas that sounds seductive and lucrative, you will be in for a big disappointment!

I'm not like everyone else, so my thoughts are skewed. I always think of the well-being of the geckos FIRST. My customers come second... because if my geckos aren't the BEST, then my customers aren't happy. I think of dollars third.

If my geckos aren't beautiful, healthy, and robust... then my customers will not be happy. If my customers aren't happy, then I will not be able to sell my geckos. It's simple. The geckos come first.

 

[RoyalCityReptiles]

I guess the question remains... what's more important? The health and well-being of your geckos, or cranking out a bunch of sellable offspring?
The health of my animals is also first and foremost, but I am still trying to make a viable business with my animals

No judgement passed here. I know plenty of people who rely on gecko sales to pay their mortgage. I know several breeders who allow females to reproduce at 36 grams... knowing full well that they will die within 2-3 years. If it's the idea of getting rich on producing Enigmas that sounds seductive and lucrative, you will be in for a big disappointment!
I am not looking to get rich from leos, I am getting into balls and retics for that!!

-Nate

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

Right on, Nate! :main_thumbsup: