Re: obsoleta

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Posted by KJ on June 28, 1999 at 06:40:35:

In Reply to: Re: obsoleta posted by Kevin on June 27, 1999 at 21:16:39:

Make sure you look at that picture real well, Don. Recognize it? I can't stop laughing -- this is just too dang funny. Heck, compare that actual animal to the real snake when you get a chance.....lol. Man, my sides hurt. (BTW Kevin, i'm not picking on you, but you'll see what's so funny sooner or later. I only caught it myself by accident.)

Don, I strongly believe that there are no pure Luecistic Rat snakes...I have no definitive proof that this is true, but I think it is a case where the SELLER needs to prove HIS story and not vice versa (err on the side of conservation, remember?). Ask the breeder this: who hatched the first PURE Luecistic Black Rat? Why hasn't anyone heard of it? Why has it seemed to pop up in unrelated lines all over the place? Who caught the first Leucistic Black Rat? Where? Then contact anyone they answer with and ask them......see if you can trust THAT person.

I've never held the crosses in my hand or saw them personally, but I remember as long as 3-5 yeasr ago seeing people selling the crosses via the net. The reason: to breed the docility of Black Rats into Texas Rats. I was sick to my stomach because there is no real way tell if a Leucistic rat is pure black, pure Texas, or mixture composed of both but containing disproportionate amounts of one. Now that enough time has been around for 2 or more generations, Leucistic Black Rats are available and not leucistic "BlackXTexas Rat crosses" -- matter of fact, now that the crosses should be available, NOBODY is selling that cross...or at least I haven't seen a webpage doing so. Funny, huh? You are able to draw your own conclusions as I have done. This is about the same story as we are experiencing with albino Texas rats, but "more so."

As far as the breedings dg suggested, i'm not so sure it'll work. Everyone is aware of how variable Black rats are in coloration (from near-solid black to chocolate brown in the wild) but they tend to forget how variable Texas Rats are in the wild (from orange and yellow backgrounds to very, very dark in the wild). How would you know if the breedings showed something odd or just natural variation? Personally, I bought my Leucistic Texas Rats from a trustworthy breeder times past and decided that I will never allow another animal into that breeding group. I'm just outcrossing like heck with WC stock to improve the line AND increase genetics. I can reach the same docility results this way as any of those "intergraders/hybridizers" can while still maintaining the integrity of the subspecies...it'll just make my project longer-lasting and more worthwhile with every step I gain.

Take Care, Don,
KJ

KJUN Snakehaven

Follow Ups:

I'm still laughing myself..... dg 6/28/99 (1)
- Re: I'm still laughing myself..... Don 7/02/99 (0)

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: Make sure you look at that picture real well, Don. Recognize it? I can't stop laughing -- this is just too dang funny. Heck, compare that actual animal to the real snake when you get a chance.....lol. Man, my sides hurt. (BTW Kevin, i'm not picking on you, but you'll see what's so funny sooner or later. I only caught it myself by accident.) : Don, I strongly believe that there are no pure Luecistic Rat snakes...I have no definitive proof that this is true, but I think it is a case where the SELLER needs to prove HIS story and not vice versa (err on the side of conservation, remember?). Ask the breeder this: who hatched the first PURE Luecistic Black Rat? Why hasn't anyone heard of it? Why has it seemed to pop up in unrelated lines all over the place? Who caught the first Leucistic Black Rat? Where? Then contact anyone they answer with and ask them......see if you can trust THAT person. : I've never held the crosses in my hand or saw them personally, but I remember as long as 3-5 yeasr ago seeing people selling the crosses via the net. The reason: to breed the docility of Black Rats into Texas Rats. I was sick to my stomach because there is no real way tell if a Leucistic rat is pure black, pure Texas, or mixture composed of both but containing disproportionate amounts of one. Now that enough time has been around for 2 or more generations, Leucistic Black Rats are available and not leucistic "BlackXTexas Rat crosses" -- matter of fact, now that the crosses should be available, NOBODY is selling that cross...or at least I haven't seen a webpage doing so. Funny, huh? You are able to draw your own conclusions as I have done. This is about the same story as we are experiencing with albino Texas rats, but "more so." : As far as the breedings dg suggested, i'm not so sure it'll work. Everyone is aware of how variable Black rats are in coloration (from near-solid black to chocolate brown in the wild) but they tend to forget how variable Texas Rats are in the wild (from orange and yellow backgrounds to very, very dark in the wild). How would you know if the breedings showed something odd or just natural variation? Personally, I bought my Leucistic Texas Rats from a trustworthy breeder times past and decided that I will never allow another animal into that breeding group. I'm just outcrossing like heck with WC stock to improve the line AND increase genetics. I can reach the same docility results this way as any of those "intergraders/hybridizers" can while still maintaining the integrity of the subspecies...it'll just make my project longer-lasting and more worthwhile with every step I gain. : Take Care, Don, : KJ

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