Egg laying question

[AnnaSun1618]

Hello guys, my female veild has been test digging holes for about 2 weeks. Yesterday morning she went to her lay bin and started going at it. She was there even when her lights go off for the day, so i turned them off and went to bed, i woke up multiple times to check on her, saw she was still digging. I woke up around 9 am and she was still digging so i put a light blanket over the front so she cannot see me, i didnt turn her lights on or give her a morning misting to not disturb her. ive been peeping about every 6 hours, i was very very careful to make sure she didnt see me. It has been about 24 hours and she is still digging, i saw every now and again she will have her bottom in the hole then she changes and has her head in the hole digging more. My question is, will she be okay without her basking or her uvb? Will she be okay without water until she is done? She is a rescue, and her previous owners arent really sure when she had her last batch. She has not left her bin since going at it yesterday morning.

 

[twistychams]

What are you using for soil for her to dig in? I usually use play sand mixed with coco fiber(roughly 70% sand and 30% coco) Wet enough for her to dig a hole without it collapsing. I would think weeks of digging holes and 24 hours straight digging is pretty long... in my opinion she should be ok without the lights directly over her but she will need light to see where she is digging(im sure you gave her some light to see). The less she sees you the better, thats why I bought a cheap "WYZE" camera($20 on amazon) and threw it in while shes laying just to keep an eye on them. You can check the camera whenever you want through the app. Whenever she is done she is going to be very hungry. Thanks!

 

[AnnaSun1618]

What are you using for soil for her to dig in? I usually use play sand mixed with coco fiber(roughly 70% sand and 30% coco) Wet enough for her to dig a hole without it collapsing. I would think weeks of digging holes and 24 hours straight digging is pretty long... in my opinion she should be ok without the lights directly over her but she will need light to see where she is digging(im sure you gave her some light to see). The less she sees you the better, thats why I bought a cheap "WYZE" camera($20 on amazon) and threw it in while shes laying just to keep an eye on them. You can check the camera whenever you want through the app. Whenever she is done she is going to be very hungry. Thanks!

I am using 45% coconut fiber husk and 55% play sand . It came in a brick form and i sat it in water to expand. I made have been making sure it is damp enough to make a tunnel and hold. Her habitat in front of a window so i cracked the black black-out curtain about half a inch. Her front is completely covered. Im going to look into getting a cheap camera. Less stress on the both of us.

 

[janjan20]

They can make many test holes and can take up to 24hrs to lay. When she comes back up hopefully she will look skinnier. Keep the privacy sheet up and continue with the normal lighting if you can turn it on and off without disturbing her. Could her eggs be fertile? Just asking since she is a rescue. After she lays there are some husbandry tweaking that should be made to keep her from laying large clutches in the future.

 

[AnnaSun1618]

They can make many test holes and can take up to 24hrs to lay. When she comes back up hopefully she will look skinnier. Keep the privacy sheet up and continue with the normal lighting if you can turn it on and off without disturbing her. Could her eggs be fertile? Just asking since she is a rescue. After she lays there are some husbandry tweaking that should be made to keep her from laying large clutches in the future.

Hello, i am now on day 3, she hasnt moved much since last night but i did see maybe 10 eggs just now, i dont think her eggs of fertile, she was given away to be on craigslist and the previous owners had no idea when her last clutch. They had her since she was a baby and never had her around another cham. They fed her about 8 crickets a day. Which i knew was way to much so the day i got her i limited her to 3 every other day. I thought maybe it would help this clutch size, even this far along. It took her 3 days to lay these eggs, now she has to bury them and i heard it takes up to 24 hours. Will she be okay without her food and water until she is back up on her branch? I have gave her complete privacy still, today i have turned her light on and she is still laying.

 

[janjan20]

When cutting back on the feeding it should have be done before she became gravid but that's not your fault since you just got her. Cutting back now probably didn't have any effect on the clutch size. But that's ok, better late than never. She will be fine without food but she should still have access to water even if it is just through misting. If she was by herself then they are infertile. If she is still down below just peek to make sure she is ok. When she comes up hopefully she will be much much skinnier. Give her a good amount of food and lots of water. Do you have calcium to dust the feeders? I'm going to tag @kinyonga, hopefully she can help out too if I missed anything.

 

[kinyonga]

@AnnaSun1618 said.... "I did see maybe 10 eggs just now"...did you dig up the eggs and count them?
You said...""she has to bury them"... Did she bury them and return to the branches? How is she doing? Can you post a photo please.

@janjan20 said.."Cutting back now probably didn't have any effect on the clutch size. But that's ok, better late than never"...I'm sure it wouldn't affect the clutch but I'm not sure it's good to cut back during the time she's working on the clutch...IMHO you want to make sure they have the nutrients needed to get the clutch finished properly....no proof as such...just my opinion.
Once she's laid the clutch feed her well for a COUPLE of days and then cut her back. Again...no proof....but I think this helps to limit the number of follicles that will form eggs. There are more studies needed on chameleon reproductive issues.

 

[AnnaSun1618]

Hello, she is still in her lay bin, she is doing the same head in the hole then bottom in the hole. The reason i know there is about 10 at that time is because she was digging but i can see the eggs around her, (beside her, behind her, in front of her.) Im not sure if she is still laying or if she is possibly pushing her eggs into the hole and is about to bury.
Im not home at the very moment to take a picture but i have a video i took eariler today. Ill screenshot parts of the video. It may be difficult to see her, i tried to be as private as possible.

 

[janjan20]

When she’s done she she should come up to the top unless the lights go out and she sleeps down there. If she’s laying the eggs outside the hole too she may be trying to cover those as well. She should look much skinnier after laying those eggs. Kinyonga has lots of experience with females so whatever she recommends I would do lol.

 

[kinyonga]

Please keep this all in one thread so we can follow what's going on.

She should have dug the hole deep enough that all the eggs were in the hole....it can be a sign of reproductive issues or just because the bin wasn't suitably set up.

I hope she doesn't retain any eggs.
Keep us posted.

 

[AnnaSun1618]

Please keep this all in one thread so we can follow what's going on.

She should have dug the hole deep enough that all the eggs were in the hole....it can be a sign of reproductive issues or just because the bin wasn't suitably set up.

I hope she doesn't retain any eggs.
Keep us posted.

At this moment, she is head first in the hole, she has been like this for about 6 hours. I can tell she is alive by her eye movement. Her eggs are still around her. Im hoping she will finish tonight when it is dark. She hasnt been moving as much with her lights on. Should i keep her lights off until she is finished? I was told to just continue her normal day/night cycle.
In the picture i have attached you can see her head in the hole and 2 eggs near her

 

[kinyonga]

Is she digging or just sitting it's her head in the hole?

When they're laying eggs you can just continue the regular light schedule.

 

[kinyonga]

Did she lay the eggs yet?