Laying eggs and incubation?

[Morph]

Whats the best thing to do when a female is due to lay eggs? make sure there is a deep pot in their house so they can dig and lay their eggs?

Also can anybody help me on how to make a good home made incubator? When my chameleons breed i don't want to ruin the eggs so want to make sure everything is perfect

Thanks

 

[BocaJan]

For my veiled girls I have my playsand in a small trash can like the kind you would have in your bathroom. I incubate my eggs in a plastic shoe box with damp vermiculite and a lid with a hole (small) punched at each end. Make sure it is a little used closet. I checked the ambient temp in the closet for a week before putting my egg box in it to make sure of the correct temp.

For complete information go to this website created by our founder. It is all inclusive and has everything you might want to know as a chameleon person.

http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/

 

[Morph]

what about panthers?

 

[BocaJan]

The article can be used for panthers also. It is pretty generic, but with lots of specifics if that makes sense. Please read. Incubation of panther eggs are as I suggested and you can get temp specifics on the kitty site.

 

[Morph]

how do females become egg bound? how can you prevent it?

 

[Ryan Jarosek]

how do females become egg bound? how can you prevent it?

Make sure they have a laying bin available to them and control their diet when they are not gravid. Overfeeding leads to an abundance of eggs. Temperature can also help in reducing egg production.

most important is that they have a place to lay when they need to .

 

[Ryan Jarosek]

This may be helpful as well

http://www.adcham.com/html/taxonomy/species/fpardalis.html

 

[kinyonga]

IMHO its important to provide a suitable container of washed playsand in the cage of any sexually mature egglaying female chameleon all the time so that you don't miss the sometimes subtle signs that the female needs to lay eggs.

Its important not to allow the female to see you watching her when she is digging too.

Once she starts to dig she may dig several test holes and then should settle on one hole. She should dig that hole until she is satisfied with it...it may take more than one day and she may not do it all day. She should then turn around bum down and lay her eggs, fill the hole in and return to the branches. Its okay to feed and water her when she is up in the branches...but don't leave any uneaten insects in her cage....they may chew on her or the eggs when they are laid.

After she is finished filling in the hole and has returned to the branches you can dig up the eggs. Be careful not to turn them as you move them.

I use shoebox sized plastic containers with lids. I punch two tiny holes in the lid and fill the container about half full of slightly moist vermiculite (the coarse type). To test the vermiculite for moisture, take a fist full of it. You shouldn't be able to squeeze more than a drop or two of water out of it.

I lay the eggs in rows about 1" apart in dents made with my thumb. Put the lid back on and put the container someplace where the temperature is appropriate and its dark. Beads of moisture will be seen on the lid and the sides of the container.

Regarding eggbinding...generally its related to not providing a suitable laying site or to poor husbandry or two physical causes such as deformed/fused eggs, deformities in the reproductive system, etc. Overfeeding plays a part in it.

 

[Brad Ramsey]

For complete information go to this website created by our founder. It is all inclusive and has everything you might want to know as a chameleon person.

http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/

Just as a point of clarification, I am not the founder of the chameleon forums

I can only take credit for the site linked above.

BocaJan, you are not the first (or last) to make this mistake ... I get a lot of pm's intended for Brad.

-The Other Brad

 

[BocaJan]

BocaJan, you are not the first (or last) to make this mistake ... I get a lot of pm's intended for Brad.

OOPS! Nonetheless, it is a great blog and very informative. I still check it out now and then.

My apologies to the other Brad for not giving him the credit he deserves

 

[Orin]

how do females become egg bound? how can you prevent it?

I think putting an upside down bucket inside the egg laying cage seems to make a difference. It may simulate a large tree root in nature. I've had females dig around but every time they end up laying the eggs between the inner and other bucket. I originally did it to get the substrate depth up to 6-7 inches when I ran out of sand. In this setup I've not had a female take more than twelve hours to lay eggs (when she was ready to dig). I have put females in thinking they might be interested but they didn't dig at all. Usually it's really obvious when females are ready to lay since they generally don't run around the bottom of the cage otherwise but when they scratch the bottom it's a sure sign.

 

[Orin]

Obviously laying will always take place between the inner and outer bucket in this setup, I mean the eggs are always started right in the corner where the two meet.

 

[ciafardo 4]

What is in the bucket the whit plastic thing?

 

[Orin]

What is in the bucket the whit plastic thing?

That's the other bucket.
1-gallon in a 5-gallon.