Fat Cham?

britteny123

New Member
I have an approx 5.5 month old female Cham and she is super fat it seems like. I try and limit her intake to 10 large crickets every other day. Am I doing the right thing? I will try and post pictures but from what I see online she looks huge compared to them. Any advice/comments/suggestions are welcome :) thanks for looking.
 
I have an approx 5.5 month old female Cham and she is super fat it seems like. I try and limit her intake to 10 large crickets every other day. Am I doing the right thing? I will try and post pictures but from what I see online she looks huge compared to them. Any advice/comments/suggestions are welcome :) thanks for looking.

could she be pregenent?
 
please post a picture. measure her head to tail in inches, then head to vent in inches. then measure a cricket. we can tell you from there
 
I will try and measure her and there is no way she could be pregnant. She has never been around a male. Someone told me she may be making eggs so I made her a nesting box and she just likes to eat the dirt which I herd was ok.
 
dirt eating is a no no, it could cause her to get impacted, which ultimately could be deadly.
 
She doesnt have to be near a male to make eggs.
Females can begin producing eggs around 6 months of age.
bred or not, they can and do make eggs and then need to lay them.
if they dont lay, they can become egg bound and die.
Please post a picture so we can see if she could have eggs.
 
Check out this blog: https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/jannb/345-egg-laying-laying-bin.html

Very moist sand is a better egg-laying medium that dirt because it will usually hold better when she's digging holes. Dirt is more likely to cave in. Also, the laying bin needs to be at least 12 inches deep. Remember that if she can't find a place that she feels is suitable to lay eggs, she will very likely become eggbound and die. Some people even have to put their chameleons in a large covered trash can with nothing but moist sand to encourage their females to dig down and lay their eggs.
 
Dirt isn't a bad egg laying medium, I've started using it and actually prefer it to sand. But it comes down to preference. It should be moist enough to dig a little tunnel in and not collapse. And like other have mentioned, it should be about 12" deep and at least 7-8" across. I am one of those that uses a kitchen trashcan and leave her abandoned in there when I notice she seems fidgety but won't use her bin. But they will usually lay in their cage, unless you get a really picky girl!

Egg laying seems like the most likely possibility but we'd like to see photos too if you have them so we can make sure.
 
Just to clarify, I didn't say dirt was bad. For me, dirt has dried out faster and I just think it's easier to keep sand moist enough all the way through to hold a solid tunnel. Dirt works fine as well, but sand seems to be the more common recommendation across the board. But yes, in the end it comes down to personal preference, just like almost everything else. Lol :)
 
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