Saving A Ball Python While waiting with anticipation for a clutch to hatch out during the 2007 hatching season, I had the opportunity to lend a hand in the survival of a Ball Python Hatchling. I had a clutch off 8 eggs from a wild stripe female bred to a Lemon pastel male that was beginning to hatch out. Three of the eight snakes died in the egg fully developed. All of the remaining eggs began to pip and the hatchlings began to show themselves to the world by poking there heads out of the egg for there first breath. All except one. After a day had passed, I decided that something must be wrong inside the single remaining unhatched egg. At this time I chose to cut the egg and peak inside. After cutting the egg, I noticed the snake inside appeared small and frail compared to the others. Moving the snake a little I noticed the yolk sac was large and none appeared to be absorbed. I had read before that sometimes the yolk sac can become twisted preventing the yolk sac from being absorbed. (The yolk sac is the snake’s life source for the first week or two of life.) Very carefully I removed the snake from the egg. It was very weak and lifeless. I noticed that indeed the yolk sac was twisted. I carefully untwisted it the best I could and placed it in a small dish with a moistened paper towel. I placed the small dish back in the egg box and back into the incubator. I checked it every now and then to see how it was doing. It began to look much better within a few hours and the yolk sac was shrinking in size. The next day the yolk sac was fully absorbed and just the remaining membrane remained attached to the umbilicus. I placed the snake in my hatchling rack on some moistened paper towel and she began doing very well. After about three days the remaining yolk sac membrane dried and fell off. She began to eat readily after her first shed and ended up being the best looking female pastel from that clutch. Dino White White Diamond Reptiles