Egg laying questions.

[kelsxox]

Ok so i've got a vielded chameleon, she's around 8 months old.. I think she might be mature enough to be laying eggs.. Also she looked a little bloated and refused her food for a couple a days.. but that could have been caused from picky-ness cause i was giving her meal worms OR because she was constipated and finaly pooped today after a couple of days!..

ANYWAYS, i went and picked up a bucket and some sand.. there's not enouph room in her cage for it.. I uncluded pictures, and i added water to it so it would be wet and not colapse when she's digging.. how will i know if she's ready to lay? Like should i just leave her in there and see if she starts digging or what? cause i read you should leave a branch so she can climb back into her cage when she's done.. any imput would be awsome! and addition tips and adviceee

 

[Elizadolots]

Did you read Jann's blog? She explains what you need to look for.

I think I'd pictured something more like this minus the lid:

That might easily fit in the cage.

However...what might be the easiest thing to do at this time is put a shallow (2 to 3 inches deep) pan in the cage full of sand and watch for her to start scratching around. Once that happens, it's time to put her in the laying bin.

 

[kinyonga]

Do you only have one female veiled chameleon?

 

[chameleoman]

is that a reel picture of you? next to your username?

 

[kelsxox]

Do you only have one female veiled chameleon?

yes kinyonga i only have one chameleon, my female alexa

& yes chameleoman that is me in my icon..why ? :s

 

[Elizadolots]

yes chameleoman that is me in my icon..why ? :s

umm....because he's a man and you're hot? I'm just guessing here.

 

[kelsxox]

LOL.. shieet, but yea back to tha subject.

 

[kinyonga]

You said..."how will i know if she's ready to lay?"...she should drink more, roam the cage looking for a spot to lay the eggs, may cut down on the amount she's eating...all subtle indications that can easily be missed....which is why its recommended that there be an appropriate container of washed playsand in her cage so she can show you that she's ready to lay and won't become eggbound.

You said..."Like should i just leave her in there and see if she starts digging or what?"...if you do this you might end up having to leave her in there for weeks...not the best option IMHO.

 

[chameleoman]

umm....because he's a man and you're hot? I'm just guessing here.

mind reader. . . jk

 

[Elizadolots]

Question kinyonga. She says she can't put any sort of usable laying bin in the cage.

Do you have a suggestion on what she can look for before moving her chameleon to the laying bin she's set up?

Do you agree with my suggestion to put a shallow container in the cage and, when she starts scratching at that, move her?

 

[chameleoman]

i herd a lot of people just saying that they wait until they see there females on the bottom of the cage pawing at it and constantly on the floor then they put them in the sand bucket/ egg laying container with a heat lamp on top, leave and check back in a while to see if there laying and if not try every other day till she lays.

 

[kinyonga]

Elizadolots..In another thread she said she had a large repti breeze. They are 18" x 18" x 26" so it should be big enough for a 12" deep x 12" x 8" container of sand in the bottom of it.

 

[Zen Reptiles]

My females have always pawed at the ground before laying, that is the last sign they are ready to lay after they stop eating for a while.

Some have laid in the plant pots, some in buckets of sand/soil, and once I had a female plop half her eggs on the floor before digging a hole.

Make sure the temps are a nice 85F+ for her, many egg-laying animals can sense the temperature of the soil they lay their eggs in....too cold and they will retain the eggs.


I would ditch the ORANGE bucket though, the color might be a turn off for her. I usually use large opaque ice cream buckets. But like I said, sometimes they prefer the plant pots

It is stressful when you have to deal with egglaying chameleons. She will lay long after you think she is overdue. Just be sure not to stress her out. Let her do her thing, let nature take its course. I cover the front of my cages with a black garbage bag when I notice my females are ready, and I keep it there until they've laid their eggs.

 

[Elizadolots]

kinyonga, I agree with you, hence my suggestion...but she doesn't seem to think she can, so I was hoping for some way to make it work for her.

 

[kelsxox]

Elizadolots..In another thread she said she had a large repti breeze. They are 18" x 18" x 26" so it should be big enough for a 12" deep x 12" x 8" container of sand in the bottom of it.

I could , i'd have to take all the plants and vines out.. i have a hard enouph time trying to get my plant to fit.. i could just be thinking she's ready to lay and she may not even bee.. but i'm DEFINATLY going to but some kind of bucket with sand at the botttom of her cage to see if she scratches at it.. and ill see what will fit!

 

[Branman]

mind reader. . . jk

Haha lmao..

 

[Elizadolots]

I could , i'd have to take all the plants and vines out.. i have a hard enouph time trying to get my plant to fit.. i could just be thinking she's ready to lay and she may not even bee.. but i'm DEFINATLY going to but some kind of bucket with sand at the botttom of her cage to see if she scratches at it.. and ill see what will fit!

I'm sure you'll figure out something. While 12 inches deep is the ideal, people have used 10 inch deep bins very successfully. And, the top doesn't need to be 12 inches by 12 inches as long as it's big enough for her to turn around and move about. Remember to provide easy access. Build a ramp with dowels or hang a vine.