What age should a panther be before 1st breeding?

[jannb]

I have a friend with a young female panther maybe 5-7 months old and he's already got her in the cage with his male to breed. Is this safe to breed at such a young age? To me she doesn't even seem that healthy. He was having to force feed her up until recently because she wouldn't eat on her own. He is one of those "KNOW IT ALLS" and doesn't read the forums. I know nothing about breeding other than the few things I've read on here. I only have one male Veiled pet (my little love bug) and I never plan to breed him. It seems like alot more things health wise can go wrong when breeding and I personally don't want to take ANY chances with mine. Maybe if you guys can educate me a bit on this issue, I can try to talk to him. Thanks!!! Jann

 

[Brad Ramsey]

I would not consider subjecting a female to breeding before she was one year old.
It takes a tremendous amount of calcium to create her eggs ... calcium she should be using to grow strong bones in the first year of her life.

-Brad