i need help about eggs

[ashley9333]

hello I have a veiled chameleon shes about 1yr and a half. was my sister but she gave to me. she has not laid any eggs im starting to get worry. No she has not mated but i was on a website that said they lay eggs so to but sand in a dish/pan or something. well i did about 4-5 months ago. she didnt notice the sand untill she fell into it but shes ok so shes been digging in the sand now for 2-3 months. but i seen no eggs. the other day i found her sleeping in the sand and i picked her up she was really cold. i got her warmer then she was fine i put a elec. heater in front of her cage and hung sheet around to keep heat in since she live in a full mesh wire cage thats 6ft tall and 5ft wide. i have a heat lamp and the uvb lite but its small but shes also next to a window that i have clear plastic on for the sun to come in. she digs in the sand like 7-8 mins at a time and does it like 10 times a day please help

 

[Olimpia]

How deep is the bin you've provided?

It should be at least 12" deep of washed sand and around 7-8" wide minimum. The sand should be moist enough to hold a tunnel but not be super wet.

Also, once you have this set up, try not bothering her. Females will often abandon their tunnels if they are disturbed too often, and if they stop laying they may hold it in too long and get really ill. So if you see/hear that she starts digging in the new bin I'd hang a sheet over the cage to give her full privacy. They will lay through the night sometimes too, so don't worry if you hear her at work at night.

 

[ashley9333]

wow i didnt know that the sand had to be wet and 12'' deep the web site i think i went to well i google female veiled chameleons and went to a lot of the web sit they said only 4-5 in deep dry sand and you could used something else. if i wet the sand it will be cold and it could freeze them

 

[Olimpia]

No, it won't freeze her. She can stand temperatures down to 50-55*F, so a little moist sand will be fine. This is how all of us do it with lots of success, so don't worry You can also use moist organic dirt if you have that on hand, but if she's digging she probably needs the laying bin today if you can put it together.

I've used a kitchen trash bin before, filled with 12" of moist soil and left her in there with no way out. She started digging in 15 minutes and was done 24 hours later with the whole process.

 

[camimom]

AS a side note, UVB rays do not pass through plastic, so if you think that her being by a window gets her natural sunlight for UVB rays, it wont work.
Also, I would suggest finding jannb's blog on egg laying, it would really help you out.

 

[lindawaz]

Here is Jannb's blog on laying bins-
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/jannb/345-egg-laying-laying-bin.html

 

[ashley9333]

ok i put a bucket filled with wet sand in her cage and put her in there and shes digging her hole now so im hoping for the best on this. o and what do i do with the eggs just throw em away bc she has not mated. what if she wants out of the bucket and will she lay all eggs in one spot

 

[kinyonga]

Please fill out the questions in the "how to ask for help" thread at the top of the health forum so we can help you better. Please be specific about things like the light (brand and type), supplements (brands and how often). The more information you can give us the better!

When the female is digging do not let her see you watching her or she will abandon the hole thinking that its not a safe place to lay the eggs. If it happens too often, she can become eggbound.

She might dig several holes but should settle on one and dig it until she is satisfied with it. She should then turn around, butt down and lay the eggs...usually in the evening. She should fill in the hole and tamp it down and return to the branches. She should be thirsty and hungry.

Once she is back up in the branches, you can dig up the eggs and count them. Let us know how many there are. If they are definitely infertile, then throw them away.

Good luck!

 

[ashley9333]

ok well last nite she laid sum eggs now shes digging again and shes been in the bucket for 22hrs no water no nothing

 

[Olimpia]

It's ok, mine worked for 24 hours, and some females have worked two days on it. She'll be ok, but very hungry and thirsty when she's done.

 

[ashley9333]

ok well she was trying to climb out of the bucket so i got her out and put her in her tree and sprayed her off and now shes climbing to the top to her heat lamp im going to fed her and how many eggs should be there she does look skinny but how many eggs should be normal for her first time laying

 

[kinyonga]

You said she laid some eggs and then started digging again....did she bury the first eggs you are talking about or just drop them on the surface?
Did she bury the rest?

 

[ashley9333]

o by the way she laid 70 eggs she laid them in a whole then she burried them . i dont know the reason for her to start digging again but there was no eggs anywhere else so she really didnt dig a whole the second time

 

[jannb]

o by the way she laid 70 eggs she laid them in a whole then she burried them . i dont know the reason for her to start digging again but there was no eggs anywhere else so she really didnt dig a whole the second time

Instead of digging, could she be covering the eggs up? 70 is a really big clutch. You need to cut back on her food and heat to reduce the size of her clutches. This blog will tell you how to do it. http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/2007/12/keeping-female-veiled.html

 

[ashley9333]

ok well first off if she laid 70 eggs does than mean that i was feeding her to well and her lights are to much. bc to be completely honest i feel like i not taking care of her rite. i have her in a wire mesh cage thats 6ft tall 5ft wide i have a fountain in there it has a light to keep water flowing also just put the dripper but she drinks from both or i put ice up there. ok now i have a heat lamp and a uvb light it small. um shes next to a window that has clear plastic on it now due to the draft bc of winter. (now i talked, read, search stuff about the ubv rays going thru plastic.) ok umm i keep a steady supply of greens/ collard and kale in her cage. also i only feed her about 4-5 crickets a day most of the time she wont eat all of them so she would go 2-4 days without crickets so but i have a elect. heater in front of the cage bc its cold in my house i dont know the temp of her cage but she seems to be ok o and i mist her 2-3 times a day

 

[kinyonga]

Starting at the beginning of this thread since there are things that are bothering me about it all...
You said..."shes been digging in the sand now for 2-3 months. but i seen no eggs."...and..."she digs in the sand like 7-8 mins at a time and does it like 10 times a day please help"...they should only dig for a few days when they are looking to lay eggs. Are you sure that she was really digging a hole...or is she just pawing at the sand because she wants out of the cage?

You said the cage is next to the window and its cold there....you might end up with her developing a respiratory infection. I would move the cage away from the window. There won't be any UVB passing through the glass or plastic that's between her and the sun...so there's no real reason to keep her cage there.

You said..."i didnt know that the sand had to be wet and 12'' deep"...for future reference...the sand should only be moist enough to hold a tunnel...not sopping wet.

You said.."if she laid 70 eggs does than mean that i was feeding her to well and her lights are to much"...I don't think it has to do with the lights being strong at all. I'm not a vet and this is just what I think...but if you feed a veiled well for a couple of days after she lays the eggs and then cut her back on the feeding she will produce less eggs or no eggs. For the first clutch, its hard to determine when to cut them back since you don't know where she is in her cycle....this might help to explain it...
http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/2007/12/keeping-female-veiled.html

You said..."i have a fountain in there it has a light to keep water flowing"...a light to keep the water flowing?? Can you explain please? Also, fountains are not recommended since they are hard to keep clean.

Since you've been having an issue with her tongue and her egglaying (large clutch) and you are interested in breeding could you fill out the questions in the "how to ask for help" thread at the top of the Health forum so we can see if there are any other changes you need to make?

 

[ashley9333]

wow im not going to breed her soon or ne thing thats gonna be like next yr or so lol. no i saw on a website to put a container in the cage full of sand i did she fell into it she was ok though. she started digging and digging and digging and so on for like 3 months or so. Then i found this site a sign up and they told me it had to be wet sand. wow idk b/c it didnt tell me that it just said sand wow retard smack to the head lol