How far pregnant?

[Jakama]

I am owning a chameleon for the first time and I bought a female who was about 5 months old. I have owned her for a month and a half, and she is now heavily gravid. I have asked about the community, and determined that she had not been impregnated when I bought her. She was kept in a tiny enclosure with many other chameleons, but it seems like the conditions would be too stressful, and the participants too young, for any mating to take place. Here are some pictures of her that I took today:

Those are not her normal colors, she was just a bit stressed out by the photoshoot.
How long do you think it will take until she lays? It was about a month ago that I first started noticing some signs of gravidity.

 

[jannb]

Poor little girl. I hope she is not carrying eggs at that age and if she was kept with a male the eggs could very well be fertile. That is way too young for eggs. Buy some liquid calcium and start now giving her a few drops each week. I'm attaching two links for you. The first for general care and the second for egg laying and the laying bin.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blo...-keepers-young-veiled-panther-chameleons.html
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/jannb/345-egg-laying-laying-bin.html

 

[Jakama]

Thanks for the links. What are the benefits of liquid calcium over calcium dust?
Also, do you think she might have just started her infertile cycle at this age, or is it very likely that she was impregnated?
And finally, if they are indeed fertile, should I bother with trying to raise them? We are already pretty strapped for cash with one chameleon, and I don't have any of the necessary supplies (incubators and such).

 

[Jakama]

I hate to bump this thread up again, but I am pretty concerned about this issue. Anyone have any insight into this?

 

[pssh]

If you cant afford it then dont. Just throw the eggs out. She may be fertile if she was kept with others her age. After this clutch, cut back on food to try and prevent any more clutches. If you're giving her the right nutrition, she should be just fine and should continue to grow normally after this clutch. Just make sure you're taking really good care of her. They are, after all, made to lay eggs young in the wild; when the conditions permit it anyways.

 

[kinyonga]

You might be able to find a member who would take the eggs if they are fertile rather than destroying them. They would be fine at 74F until someone could pick them up.

 

[Jakama]

Thanks for the advice, this is really helping. I guess I am still curious, though, how long do veiled chameleons gestate for? I am mostly concerned because if she was impregnated at the pet store when she was little then her eggs have been gestating for at least 1.5 months, and she hasn't been active in her laying bin yet.

 

[Olimpia]

Just as something for you to try, several of us have girls that are reluctant to use their laying bins of their own volition so we've resorted to sort of forcing them into it. I use a kitchen trash bin with 12" of organic moistened dirt, put a single small branch in there diagonally so she has something to grab on to, but still leave enough room towards the top so that she cannot climb out. Mine didn't like the situation very much but after 10-15 minutes of scratching to get out she set right to work, and 24 hours later she'd laid 35 eggs. If you think she's starting to act restless but isn't using her bin, it might be worth a shot?

 

[Jakama]

That's a fantastic idea! I will try that later tonight. She certainly looks big enough to lay, and the added weight seems to be making her cumbersome by this point.

 

[Olimpia]

Hopefully it works for you! It might be a little late in the day so I hope she doesn't fall asleep in there, but leave her in tomorrow to see if she becomes inspired.

 

[pssh]

I had a female in a bin for more than a week. She was very stubborn and confusing. She wasn't too pleased so I planted a small plant in the bin with her (for cover)

 

[Jakama]

Did that work?

 

[pssh]

Yeah. She finally laid. She was unusual though. She had a gestation period of 55 days (usually it's under 40.)

 

[Jakama]

Alright, as of 1:00 PM today, I have my little laying bin set up with a heat lamp, a little bit of bamboo to maybe make her feel more at home, cardboard set up around the laying bin's edges, and a mirror placed so that I can see her without her seeing me. Let's hope it works!

 

[Jakama]

Some pictures of my setup:

 

[pssh]

How big is the tub?

Be careful about the mirror. My chameleons utilize mirrors when they have the chance! I have a free range in my bathroom and whenever I walk in, the lizard stares at me through the mirror!

 

[Jakama]

Yeah, I have noticed that she looks at me through the mirror. Still, a little less disruptive than peering over the side of the tub, especially since I don't have a webcam that I could use for this. The tub has about a foot of soil/sand mixture and has a ten inch diameter.

 

[kinyonga]

Don't let the female see you watching her while she's digging.

 

[Jakama]

How long should I leave her in there? I've been checking on her every half an hour, and she has seen me, but I haven't seen her start digging at all. Do you think she might start if I leave her alone for a few hours? I'd like to get her back to her cage soonish.

 

[farrahsc]

She won't if she keeps seeing you. Just leave her alone for the rest of the night.