Carrying eggs or just fat?
- Thread starter ConfusedHornwormGuy
- Start date
cammythechameleon4
Member
a few questions-
-what is her age
-do you have a laying bin
-has she showed colors that go along with being gravid such as mostly black with bright colors like blue or yellow?
-what and how much do you feed her and how often
-what is her age
-do you have a laying bin
-has she showed colors that go along with being gravid such as mostly black with bright colors like blue or yellow?
-what and how much do you feed her and how often
cammythechameleon4
Member
also if you could fill this out it would be helpful too
Chameleon Info:
--------------
Please Note:
Chameleon Info:
- Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
- Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
- Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
- Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
- Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
- Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
- History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.
- Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
- Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
- Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
- Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
- Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
- Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
- Location - Where are you geographically located?
--------------
Please Note:
- The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
- Photos can be very helpful.
ConfusedHornwormGuy
Avid Member
-what is her age
Got a letter in the mail from a petshop that sparked this concern because it was a birthday letter, but I wasn't told her age when I purchased her so I had estimated about 6 months 1 month prior to getting the anniversary letter but my estimate could be wildly off
-do you have a laying bin
Yes with play sand and also a pothos with a small amount of organic soil and fertilizer, but mostly wet/washed playsand and packed for her to dig
-has she showed colors that go along with being gravid such as mostly black with bright colors like blue or yellow?
Overall when she isn't being handled or bothered she is light green or normal colors, she has had a little bit of dark patterning but I'm like 90% sure it's because I just removed a large tree from her enclosure to make room for the new lay bin.
However I have caught her climbing around at the bottom of her enclosure, it could be related to trying to lay eggs but I think she believes she can pass through a small gap in a cardboard screen I have placed between 2 cages to block viewing of another chameleon, which I'm planning to correct momentarily because I just caught her doing it/trying to push her way through the mesh to get through the space under the cardboard.
I personally don't think she is ready to lay yet but she may be producing eggs.
-what and how much do you feed her and how often
Crickets or mealworms or super mealworms, wax worms, or hornworms she is still small so I feed her daily when she doesn't have food left in the bowl.
I feed according to the size of the insect and also with crickets take into account that she wont catch all of them/some die I usually put extra in there so sometimes she gets a lot sometimes a little, I dust all of them with calcium daily and multivitamin every other sunday/twice a month.
Whenever I buy new feeders I try to pick up a variety of insects to keep their diet as diverse as possible, but my primary feeders are crickets and mealworms.
She has had 2 super mealworms in her dish for a couple of days and seems to be tapering off her eating.
Couple of questions if she may be preparing to lay is, should she be handled or bothered at all right now, and is it necessary to cover the cage right away or how do you know when the right time to cover their cage is?
How long after covering their cage (if necessary at all) does it usually take for them to start laying?
Got a letter in the mail from a petshop that sparked this concern because it was a birthday letter, but I wasn't told her age when I purchased her so I had estimated about 6 months 1 month prior to getting the anniversary letter but my estimate could be wildly off
-do you have a laying bin
Yes with play sand and also a pothos with a small amount of organic soil and fertilizer, but mostly wet/washed playsand and packed for her to dig
-has she showed colors that go along with being gravid such as mostly black with bright colors like blue or yellow?
Overall when she isn't being handled or bothered she is light green or normal colors, she has had a little bit of dark patterning but I'm like 90% sure it's because I just removed a large tree from her enclosure to make room for the new lay bin.
However I have caught her climbing around at the bottom of her enclosure, it could be related to trying to lay eggs but I think she believes she can pass through a small gap in a cardboard screen I have placed between 2 cages to block viewing of another chameleon, which I'm planning to correct momentarily because I just caught her doing it/trying to push her way through the mesh to get through the space under the cardboard.
I personally don't think she is ready to lay yet but she may be producing eggs.
-what and how much do you feed her and how often
Crickets or mealworms or super mealworms, wax worms, or hornworms she is still small so I feed her daily when she doesn't have food left in the bowl.
I feed according to the size of the insect and also with crickets take into account that she wont catch all of them/some die I usually put extra in there so sometimes she gets a lot sometimes a little, I dust all of them with calcium daily and multivitamin every other sunday/twice a month.
Whenever I buy new feeders I try to pick up a variety of insects to keep their diet as diverse as possible, but my primary feeders are crickets and mealworms.
She has had 2 super mealworms in her dish for a couple of days and seems to be tapering off her eating.
Couple of questions if she may be preparing to lay is, should she be handled or bothered at all right now, and is it necessary to cover the cage right away or how do you know when the right time to cover their cage is?
How long after covering their cage (if necessary at all) does it usually take for them to start laying?
ConfusedHornwormGuy
Avid Member
Well she looks hefty in the belly there but she could be puffing up from the stress of being taken outside.
Personally I think she is old enough to move to 3 days a week feeding of 3 feeders. No more meal worms or wax worms. Meal worms are not nutritionally dense and wax worms are all fat. Basking temp no hotter then 78-80max. No covering the enclosure. I do not think she is that close yet. And you need to be able to watch her to know.
Make sure the lay bin is set up correctly with ways into it. Not packed so tight that it is going to be hell for her to dig.
Personally I think she is old enough to move to 3 days a week feeding of 3 feeders. No more meal worms or wax worms. Meal worms are not nutritionally dense and wax worms are all fat. Basking temp no hotter then 78-80max. No covering the enclosure. I do not think she is that close yet. And you need to be able to watch her to know.
Make sure the lay bin is set up correctly with ways into it. Not packed so tight that it is going to be hell for her to dig.
ConfusedHornwormGuy
Avid Member
This is part of keeping females... They will inevitably lay eggs. So it becomes more a situation of making sure husbandry is spot on. Feeding amounts, Basking temps, supplementation, and having a permanent lay bin that is set up correctly. If husbandry is correct the chances of egg binding is greatly reduced. Because the chameleon is healthy and laying a smaller clutch.
ConfusedHornwormGuy
Avid Member
It's organic potting soil with organic fertilizer, inevitably if I'm going to place a live plant into sand it will need some soil and proper nutrients surrounding, it's not a ton of soil but not something I can really avoid without having the plant completely die. I figure if she's digging she won't be too worried about eating fertilizer considering she knows where her food source is, and I think she'd eat a leaf before a small quantity of fertilizer.
ConfusedHornwormGuy
Avid Member
Well I get that but I just don't know when she's ready to lay
ConfusedHornwormGuy
Avid Member
Because chameleons sometimes like to lay clutches next to plant root systems, it helps to stop from collapsing the little tunnel they dig
ConfusedHornwormGuy
Avid Member
ConfusedHornwormGuy
Avid Member
That's a fantastic point if I were breeding her tbh, but fortunately for the eggs they will not be fertilized by veiled chameleon semen or fertilizer. Unless you think the fertilizer will cause the eggs to hatch into plants LOL.
Thank you for the advice, it makes sense what you're saying now if the eggs were fertile.
ConfusedHornwormGuy
Avid Member
The fertilizer in the soil is organic as is the soil itself, yes I was making a joke, no the eggs probably won't turn into plants from the fertilizer. Anyway thanks for the help.
Ok but that is her job. As long as you have provided the correct husbandry and correct lay bin and material then she will take care of the rest.
