Fact or fiction?

[Keeneye]

Is there any level of truth to the idea that if not bred her first time a veiled chameleon will die eggbound?

 

[AngieL]

Hi! That's utter rubbish a chameleon will get egg bound for multiple reasons- not enough calcium for the eggs to form properly, improper laying conditions, or she just has trouble laying! I'm sure there ate other readons too but not being bred isn't one of them.

 

[DavidBuchan]

Agreed, it's total nonsense. In fact, many on here will recommend letting her lay an infertile batch first time. That's what I did with my female Veiled and she is in great shape. I can personally guarantee that she didn't die from not being bred .
Welcome to the forum, and here's the general caresheet I always recommend to new people with Veileds - https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/chameleonsinmyhouse/395-veiled-chameleon-care-sheet.html

 

[Keeneye]

Thank you!!! My female is displaying her blue spots but she is only 5 months old! I never intended on breeding her so young but got worried when I read that if not bred her first time she may die eggbound. It sounded strange and seemed like breeding her this young would cause her more harm than good. Thank you again...

 

[DavidBuchan]

Your instincts were right then, we generally recommend that a female should be at least a year old and in good health before being bred. Here's a great blog on laying bins too - https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/jannb/345-egg-laying-laying-bin.html

 

[Olimpia]

Yes, that's a complete myth. It's normal for females to start making infertile clutches at about 5-7 months of age, but it's generally preferred not to breed her with a male until she's over a year old. We try to keep the girls from making infertile eggs whenever possible but it happens and it won't cause problems in and of itself.

The important thing is to keep her calcium intake up (I dust my females' insects a little more heavily and more often) and to provide a good place for them to lay eggs if they have to. The link David gave you is a great one, and there is an excellent video on how to make a laying bin in the breeding section of the forums. As long as her nutrition and supplementation is great and she has somewhere appropriate to lay, egg binding issues become a lot more unusual, at least from what we see here on the forum.

 

[Keeneye]

Thank you! Egg laying bin just completed and set in the bottom of her cage just in case. And I dust with calcium an d3 regularly but will put a little extra on. Now my male is insistently climbing out of his cage and over to hers but displaying signs of aggression as soon as he sees her. I guess he's going to be unruly until this passes.