Is my chameleon ready to lay eggs?

[emelielovesmoss]

Hello! My female veiled chameleon has been showing signs of her getting ready to lay eggs, and recently I have been seeing her grow larger, she has had some behavioural changes and I've even seen a few bumps. She is about 1 year and I have had her for about 4 months. I have set up a laying bin that a chameleon owner tipped me about but I am worried that my chameleon won't lay and become egg bound. Do you guys think that she is ready to lay, or that she is egg bound?

 

[GrannyK]

Hello and welcome to the forum! Looks to me like she is carrying eggs. Do you know if she’s ever laid before and what does your laybin look like? Our girls can be very picky and there is only a short window of time she will get the urge to lay.

 

[GrannyK]

I have screenshot what a lot of keepers here use in case you have been given incorrect information on the bin and contents. It seems to work for many with great success. Also how has she been acting? Roaming to the bottom at all, less appetite? What is her feeding schedule and temperature at basking area? Sorry to ask a lot of questions but more information the more helpful. I’ll post the husbandry form for you to fill out so the experienced keepers can get a better idea of her situation.
Also, chameleon academy, Neptune the chameleon and the resources page on this forum are great guides in keeping out little one’s healthy. If you haven’t seen them I recommend reading and watching, it’s a wealth of information.

 

[GrannyK]

Here is the form! You can copy and paste right in this thread.

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. long has it been in your care?How
Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
Location - Where are you geographically located?

 

[Beman]

Yeah she is holding eggs... can you post a picture of the enclosure from the lights down and the lay bin so we can see what your working with for her?

 

[emelielovesmoss]

Yeah she is holding eggs... can you post a picture of the enclosure from the lights down and the lay bin so we can see what your working with for her?

 

[emelielovesmoss]

Your Chameleon - Female veiled chameleon 1 yr, has been in my care for about 4 months

Handling - I hold her for about 10 min everyday, then I let her roam around or sit in her little tree for an hour or more.

Feeding - Crickets, about 5-6 a day, usually after 4 but on weekends I feed her around 11 and then again at 15 or 18. I give the crickets carrots or cucumber.

Supplements - Reptimineral C which has vitamins and calcium

Watering - Spray bottle with filtered water. Everyday multiple times and I spray a little longer after I see water droplets on her plants.

Fecal Description - Orangey and white for one part and the other is brown. She has not been tested for parasites.

History - She used to live in a small terrarium



Cage Info:

Cage Type - Glass cage with net top. 90 h 60 w 50 d

Lighting - I Lights on at 7 to 9 lights off is at 20 or 20:30

Temperature - Temp is around 30 Celsius now it is 26 C

Humidity - Last time I checked it said 90%

Plants - using Monstera and a fern plant of some kind

Placement - In corner at about 150 from floor to light

Location - Europe

 

[emelielovesmoss]

I have screenshot what a lot of keepers here use in case you have been given incorrect information on the bin and contents. It seems to work for many with great success. Also how has she been acting? Roaming to the bottom at all, less appetite? What is her feeding schedule and temperature at basking area? Sorry to ask a lot of questions but more information the more helpful. I’ll post the husbandry form for you to fill out so the experienced keepers can get a better idea of her situation.
Also, chameleon academy, Neptune the chameleon and the resources page on this forum are great guides in keeping out little one’s healthy. If you haven’t seen them I recommend reading and watching, it’s a wealth of information.
View attachment 343235

Yeah she is holding eggs... can you post a picture of the enclosure from the lights down and the lay bin so we can see what your working with for her?

I have put a much larger and deeper laying bin in her enclosure, I put in some of her plants to cover it but now I am worried that she already is egg bound. I handled her for about 15 minutes and for about 10 of them she was completely still and backed into me as I held her close to my body. Could this just be her reserving energy or should I be worried...

 

[Beman]

I have put a much larger and deeper laying bin in her enclosure, I put in some of her plants to cover it but now I am worried that she already is egg bound. I handled her for about 15 minutes and for about 10 of them she was completely still and backed into me as I held her close to my body. Could this just be her reserving energy or should I be worried...

Hey there I am going to go through your entire husbandry form.

You want to get washed playsand for the lay bin. The soil will not hold tunnels on its own so if she does try to dig in it then the tunnel will collapse on her.
A lay bin should be added as a permanent fixture by the time they are 6 months old so they get used to it and it does not cause stress.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/threads/laying-bin-set-up-educational-video.77225/

 

[emelielovesmoss]

I had the plastic one since the first day she was with me, I will add some sand

 

[Beman]

See my fedback in red bold. This will be a lot of info. Just take it piece by piece and let me know what questions you have.


Your Chameleon - Female veiled chameleon 1 yr, has been in my care for about 4 months

Handling - I hold her for about 10 min everyday, then I let her roam around or sit in her little tree for an hour or more. You want to not be removing her while she is gravid. She will need to stay in her space so that she finds the lay bin and starts digging. By taking her out she will look for other places to lay which is not what you want right now.

Feeding - Crickets, about 5-6 a day, usually after 4 but on weekends I feed her around 11 and then again at 15 or 18. I give the crickets carrots or cucumber.
You will want to reduce her feeding amounts when she gets through laying this clutch. She should be eating 3 days a week with 3-4 feeders each feeding. Gutload needs to be expanded on see image for proper gutloading. So you will feed her well the week after feeding but then she must be taken down in amounts.

Supplements - Reptimineral C which has vitamins and calcium Please post a picture of the label of your supplements. I need to know exactly what it is so I can tell you if it is correct or not.
They should be getting a plain calcium without D3 at all feedings and then 2 times a month say the 1st and the 15th you would give a multivitamin that has calcium with D3 and Vitamin A in it. Reptivite with D3 or repashy calcium plus LoD are two good multivitamins that work for this. Supplements being correct and UVB are extremely important when it comes to females and laying without issues.

Watering - Spray bottle with filtered water. Everyday multiple times and I spray a little longer after I see water droplets on her plants. Make sure you are misting long enough. It can take a full two minutes for them to start drinking. Automatic misting systems like the mistking are good for this because it takes you out of the equation and runs on a timer.

Fecal Description - Orangey and white for one part and the other is brown. She has not been tested for parasites. The urate portion should not be more than 50% orange. The more white it is the more hydrated she is.

History - She used to live in a small terrarium



Cage Info:

Cage Type - Glass cage with net top. 90 h 60 w 50 d. This is on the small side. You want 24x24x48 inches tall for an adult veiled.

Lighting - I Lights on at 7 to 9 lights off is at 20 or 20:30. Lights should be on a 12 hour cycle. 12 hours on and then 12 hours total darkness. No night time heat lights. no red lights these are bad for their eyes. I also am not seeing the correct UVB lighting. You want a linear T5HO fixture with a 5.0 or 6% uvb bulb. This should run the width of the enclosure and she should have vines running 8-9 inches below this for proper UVB exposure. Without the correct UVB lighting she is high risk for Metabolic bone disease. Look into the Arcadia Pro T5 with the 6% bulb this is typically available in Europe. Correcting the UVB is first priority.

Temperature - Temp is around 30 Celsius now it is 26 C This is going to be too hot for a female. With females we control clutch size by limiting food intake and reducing basking temps. Basking temp for a female should be 26 C. The ambient temp of the cage should be 21-22 C.

Humidity - Last time I checked it said 90% This is a bit high for daytime. Daytime you are looking for a humidity level of 30-50% max. It can spike after a misting session but should fall back to these levels. At night when lights are off and temps are below 20 C you can have higher humidity.

Plants - using Monstera and a fern plant of some kind. The log at the bottom can be removed this is not something a chameleon will need. I would pull out the rope as well. They can get their nails caught up in it and tear them out. See veiled tested plant image below.

Placement - In corner at about 150 from floor to light

Location - Europe


Female info:
Feed 3 days a week with 3-4 feeders each feeding . You want them to be on this schedule by the time they are 9-10 months old.


You will not ever want basking to be over 78-80 for her. Very important for females because as she ages she needs this temp no higher at basking to help control the amount of eggs she produces. The hotter the temp they more their metabolism speeds up so we have to keep the temp lower since we are doing lower food intake.

A lay bin should be added as a permanent fixture by the time they are 6 months old so they get used to it and it does not cause stress.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/threads/laying-bin-set-up-educational-video.77225/