Won't lay eggs! HELP!

Thompson said:
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 Info:
  • 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?
Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

--------------

Please Note:
  1. The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
  2. Photos can be very helpful.
Click to expand...
My chameleon - veiled, female, don't know the age as I wasn't told when I got her but my guess is around 8-9 months old. Has been in my care since 2nd Feb this year.
Handling - I handler her every two days for an hour.
Feeding - feed her every day. Three locusts and a few mealworms as a treat occasionally. Feed her in the morning at 8am. Also gets a small tray of greens
Supplements - sprinkle of Nutrobal on her greens every morning.
Watering - Twice daily by hand with room temp water. Don't see her drink
Fecal discription - never tested for parasites. Brown and white but a few days ago they had a small amount of blood in them.
History - no previous history that I can think of.

Cage info:
Type - glass. Length 17.5" on both sides. Hight 24"
Lighting - Unsure of brand, lights on at 7am and off at 8pm.
Temperature - basking spot is 60. Unsure of cage floor as we don't have anything to measure it with.
Humidity - don't use anything to measure humidity either.
Plants - not live
Placement - Wall beside my bedroom door. Is hidden by a chest of drawers. Always have my window open a bit for ventilation and the wholes on the top of her cage aren't covered. No traffic other than me going to bed and leaving in the morning. Is 1.5 metres off the floor.
Location - Northern Ireland

Current problem.
Has been ready to lay eggs for a week now but no tunnel she or I has built was the one she wanted and is giving up digging.
 
Khayward014 said:
Yesturday morning
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Okay, don’t know for sure and I’m no expert and don’t wanna give you false hope. However normally they stop eating before laying eggs, the first time mine laid eggs, she didn’t eat for a week. And last week she laid for the second time and then it was only 36h, because she knew what to do. So probably she’s still checking opportunities (and this is just my guess), the fact she still ate yesterday, would suggest she’s getting close to laying. So let her do her thing, they knew what to do, it’s only nerve breaking for use.

Only one thing to add, mine dug an enormous hole both times. You couldn’t see her anymore and doesn’t have privacy, only the foliage on the bottom, because she’s free range in a planter in the living room.
 
Khayward014 said:
Is there nothing I can do to help her start digging again?
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kinyonga said:
If she's been digging already with the intention of laying eggs (not for some other reason) there will only be so many days that she will dig before the hormones change and she won't have the urge to lay....so you need to get thing right ASAP so she not become eggbound....if she's not already. You need to not be constantly disturbing her to readjust things in her cage.

If she becomes eggbound, she will have to have surgery to rectify things or she will die....so you don't want her to get to that point.
If she shows signs of decline you need to get her to a vet before she gets too weak for the surgery.
Click to expand...
 
Sonny13 said:
Okay, don’t know for sure and I’m no expert and don’t wanna give you false hope. However normally they stop eating before laying eggs, the first time mine laid eggs, she didn’t eat for a week. And last week she laid for the second time and then it was only 36h, because she knew what to do. So probably she’s still checking opportunities (and this is just my guess), the fact she still ate yesterday, would suggest she’s getting close to laying. So let her do her thing, they knew what to do, it’s only nerve breaking for use.

Only one thing to add, mine dug an enormous hole both times. You couldn’t see her anymore and doesn’t have privacy, only the foliage on the bottom, because she’s free range in a planter in the living room.
Click to expand...
She did stop eating last Saturday when she first started showing signs of laying. Then on Tuesday she ate twp mealworms. Then yesturday she ate her normal amount... she slept in her whole two nights ago and I thought that she was laying bit I couldn't find any eggs.p
 
Bingo! Now let’s get to correcting the issues in your husbandry that might be leafding to the issue you’re facing. I can go through it thoroughly but I’m outside rn on my phone, but overall, your female is over fed, stressed and is not getting the proper supplements she needs (Calcium w/o D3 & one w/ both, and a sep. multivitamin supp). You need to figure out what lights you use and let us know which uvb lamp you use and strength. Please post a pic of her cage so we can see how you’ve set it up please. Thank you
 
Thompson said:
Bingo! Now let’s get to correcting the issues in your husbandry that might be leafding to the issue you’re facing. I can go through it thoroughly but I’m outside rn on my phone, but overall, your female is over fed, stressed and is not getting the proper supplements she needs (Calcium w/o D3 & one w/ both, and a sep. multivitamin supp). You need to figure out what lights you use and let us know which uvb lamp you use and strength. Please post a pic of her cage so we can see how you’ve set it up please. Thank you
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Okay i'll post a picture
 

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You may need to make a sep. laying bin outside her cage like a trash bin filled only about a foot high w/ washed plays and and coco husk.

also stop handling her as much in general. Chameleons might seem like they might not mind being held cus some are very docile, however, it does stress them out and too much of this will lead to health problems. I’m not sure you’re giving her the privacy she truly needs to feel secure and safe enough to lay her eggs. The way I use to check on my female when she laid w/o disturbing her was to cover her cage completely and just llisten to her, and I could usually hear her digging her tunnel and sometimes even laying her eggs. You don’t want to continue peering in on her really at all during this process. She’s worried about her eggs and if she sees you at all she might decide the area is unsafe to lay her eggs.
 
Last edited:
Khayward014 said:
She did stop eating last Saturday when she first started showing signs of laying. Then on Tuesday she ate twp mealworms. Then yesturday she ate her normal amount... she slept in her whole two nights ago and I thought that she was laying bit I couldn't find any eggs.p
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Okay 😒. That was the only sense full thing I could at and I will leave it further to the more experienced ones here, got all the trust in them guiding you through this. Hopefully it will turn out well 🤞🏻🤞🏻, egg laying can be horror-full .
 
Sonny13 said:
Okay 😒. That was the only sense full thing I could at and I will leave it further to the more experienced ones here, got all the trust in them guiding you through this. Hopefully it will turn out well 🤞🏻🤞🏻, egg laying can be horror-full .
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Thanks anyway and hopefully she lays soon. I think its something to do with the laying bin.
 
Khayward014 said:
She did stop eating last Saturday when she first started showing signs of laying. Then on Tuesday she ate twp mealworms. Then yesturday she ate her normal amount... she slept in her whole two nights ago and I thought that she was laying bit I couldn't find any eggs.p
Click to expand...
Mealworms are harder for them to digest due to the chitin in their exoskeleton, they shouldn’t be fed as a staple. Stick to roaches, crickets, silkworms
 
Thompson said:
You may need to make a sep. laying bin outside her cage like a trash bin filled only about a foot high w/ washed plays and and coco husk.

also stop handling her as much in general. Chameleons might seem like they might not mind being held cus some are very docile, however, it does stress them out and too much of this will lead to health problems. I’m not sure you’re giving her the privacy she truly needs to feel secure and safe enough to lay her eggs. The way I use to check on my female when she laid w/o disturbing her was to cover her cage completely and just llisten to her, and I could usually hear her digging her tunnel and sometimes even laying her eggs. You don’t want to continue peering in on her really at all during this process. She’s worried about her eggs and if she sees you at all she might decide the area is unsafe to lay her eggs.
Click to expand...
She is the one that is always scratching at the glass and wanting out and I let her because I can't help it. I've covered her tank this morning but ever since she hasn't moved the same spot. Like at all. And I don't know if she has given up wwith digging ro just doesn't like being able to see out because she is quite nosey. Also every time she did dig she would dig a crater and then a tunnel beside it which always hit the bottom of the tank. I'm not sure of moving her to a proper bin outisde of her cage is a good idea or if I should attempt to fit in more soil
 
Thompson said:
Mealworms are harder for them to digest due to the chitin in their exoskeleton, they shouldn’t be fed as a staple. Stick to roaches, crickets,
Click to expand...
I live in the countryside so it is very hard to get to places with such a variety. The guy I buy my food off of only sells locusts, crickets and mealworms. The crickets were a nightmare for her to eat as they were running away to quick for her tongue to grab
 
All you need for a lay bin is play sand. Coco coir is too loose and isn’t able to hold any form. I honestly don’t know if she’ll continue laying no matter what you provide her at this point. As @kinyonga said, ” there will only be so many days that she will dig before the hormones change and she won't have the urge to lay.”
If she doesn’t get those eggs out one way or another, feeder choices and other husbandry won’t matter at all. Waiting until she’s in absolute distress will decrease her chances of surviving if she needs surgery to remove the eggs. I think giving her until Monday to lay on her own is reasonable (although I may be wrong and she may need sooner) and taking her to a vet ASAP if she doesn’t. It would also be essential to let the vet know all of her behaviors and actions in the past few days. If she is eggbound and not given surgery to remove the eggs, she will die and it will be painful for her. I don’t want to scare you, but this is how it is and it can be very serious.
 
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