OK - here is my story. I am a mother of 4 boys (ages 6,6,6,8 - yes triplets) who love reptiles. So we started out with a couple of tree frogs & some anoles. Easy huh? Then the boys found a couple of baby garter snakes ... still easy. Then my brother in law bought three chameleons and abandoned them - left them with my in-laws. So my in-laws ask us if we would mind looking after them until my brother-in-law wants them back.... that was about 6 months ago (May) -- I think they are ours now. Anyway - we received two juvenile chameleons (appx 3 mos old at the time??) and one older veiled chameleon. We knew nothing about caring for chameleons but did some research and have been doing our best. I took them all to a vet a couple of months ago and he said they appeared to be in good health so I guess I'm doing ok. Anyway.... when we got the chams we were very careful to keep them in the same cages that they had been in when my brother-in-law had them b/c we figured he must know what to do..... he had the two juveniles in a cage together. We didnt know if they were male or female and didnt know if they were even the same species. Turns out it was a male veiled and a female panther. When they got bigger and began getting aggressive w/ each other we got them a new larger cage but kept them together (I know... bad, but I didnt know then ... oops). Anyway, early october she started turning really cool orange/black color (I now know this means she had mated? right?) and mid october she layed 10 eggs. My husband was feeding them and she just started laying eggs in the bottom of her cage - in the substrate material. We watched her and did some research quick on the internet - I made an incubator for the eggs. It's been 2 months. The eggs still look good - I took them to the vet and he said he thought they looked good. So.... my first question is.... is it possible for them to successfully cross-breed like this (ie.. panther/veiled) or are these eggs destined to never hatch??? Second question - If eggs are layed which are not fertile - how long does it take for them to shrivel up? If they still look the same after two months as when they were layed, does that mean they are likely fertile?
FYI - I have now separated the two. Our older veiled died last month
and I purchased a new male panther to try and breed with our little egg laying machine. I figure, if she's gonna lay eggs every 3-4 months anyway, I may as well get her a suitable boyfriend right?? So here is my next question. She layed eggs about 2 months ago. To my knowledge, she has not mated again b/c her new panther boyfriend is not yet sexually mature. She is getting pretty fat and getting a bit of an attitude recently. She does not, however, have the gravid coloring. If she lays eggs again in the next month, but never shows gravid coloring, does that mean that the eggs are not fertile? I read somewhere that the sperm can actually be stored in the female and can fertilize 2 clutches of eggs without another mating.
Sorry so long - I have read a number of books but none have addressed my strange situation. I truly am trying to take care of them properly. Hope using this forum some helps. Thanks. - fullhouse
FYI - I have now separated the two. Our older veiled died last month
and I purchased a new male panther to try and breed with our little egg laying machine. I figure, if she's gonna lay eggs every 3-4 months anyway, I may as well get her a suitable boyfriend right?? So here is my next question. She layed eggs about 2 months ago. To my knowledge, she has not mated again b/c her new panther boyfriend is not yet sexually mature. She is getting pretty fat and getting a bit of an attitude recently. She does not, however, have the gravid coloring. If she lays eggs again in the next month, but never shows gravid coloring, does that mean that the eggs are not fertile? I read somewhere that the sperm can actually be stored in the female and can fertilize 2 clutches of eggs without another mating. Sorry so long - I have read a number of books but none have addressed my strange situation. I truly am trying to take care of them properly. Hope using this forum some helps. Thanks. - fullhouse
