Mellers Issue-Dropping Eggs...

[Julirs]

Major is indeed a GIRL! Not what I had thought at all. About a week and a half ago she stopped eating and looked a little grayer than normal, quite a bit grayer. I thought she was stressed when I brought Oscar in and set him in a different room but where she could see him. Mid week last week she started eating again, and started looking normal colors. I was out of town over the weekend and came back to 7 eggs on the cage floor, and a normal colored eating and drinking Mellers. I am preparing egg laying medium and a tote for her cage now, but there cannot just be 7-there have to be more.
Suggestions?
I have had Major since the day after she hatched, and she is now 2 1/2 years old. Never bred, but housed next to a Mellers approx the same age that I do not know the sex of.

 

[Jimturner]

Neat.. The only similar experience I can share is way back in the 90's when Tina, my fem iguana, surprised me with eggs on the cage floor. I hurried and assembled a laying bin and successfully saved the rest of her and Ike's clutch. I would imagine a laying bin for a melleri would have to be HUGE! For Tina I used a large rectangular trash bin, fastened the lid on, laid it on it's side and cut a large hole in the side that was now on top. It wasn't the deepest but it was large enough for her to be concealed and feel secure enough to lay. Maybe look at laying bins for large species like monitors and iguanas

 

[kinyonga]

Hope she will use the egglaying container and lay the rest of the eggs for you.

 

[Julirs]

It was close to bed time, so all chams are sleeping. You would never think she was gravid looking at her. I guess time will tell or an x-ray will be in order.

 

[summoner12]

Exciting!!!

It's awesome to finally learn a melleri's sex!!!

Throw her into a large laying bin... aka trash bin. If she has more to lay, she should start to dig if left alone. Be sure to not check on her and place her in a room or area where she won't feel people walking around. There should be more than 7 eggs. If she has no interest in laying, check her plants.... How is her feeding? is she a fatty? how do the eggs look? small? I am not 100% on the size of a melleri's first clutch being large or small, but 7 doesn't sound like shes done.

Lenny looks ready to pop at the moment... i should prolly drop her into her laying bin tomorrow morning and see if she has any interest. She went off food for a couple of days last week but has been coming to the front of the free range the last couple of days when she sees me....

here are some pics of her laying bin from last year, same setup I use for my vield and panther.

 

[Julirs]

Kev-she started eating last week again, and is pretty much back to her normal colors. I would think she needs to lay more. I will see what the laying bin (large tote filled with my normal laying mix) does today, if not will drop her in one like yours.

 

[laurie]

Good luck Julie. Now at some point if you want you could actually have Mellers babies well, maybe. But that is a long way down the road.

 

[Julirs]

I know Laurie-to think I may very well have a CB unrelated pair is pretty exciting. I just want to get Major through this with all OK, and I am going to build a nice big walk in cage and see if they will live together.

 

[summoner12]

Kev-she started eating last week again, and is pretty much back to her normal colors. I would think she needs to lay more. I will see what the laying bin (large tote filled with my normal laying mix) does today, if not will drop her in one like yours.

I didn't notice any color changes with Lenny really. This is Lenny the day she laid. The stress spots are from me handling her. It's her typical "um, why are you holding me?'

Just a note... if she can climb out of the bin, she will, even is she needs to lay. Lenny scratched and clawed at the laying bin for some time.... a couple of hours later Renee found her laying her eggs.

 

[chams1]

Oy - haven't been on here in ages!

I wish I could help you here, Juli. But, as many of you know, my egg-laying fiend, Newbie, does everything against the book. For all of her 3 clutches she has laid, at no time did she ever gain weight, look abnormal, or go through any of the signs that she was even remotely gravid - and each time proceeded to lay all her eggs in her food bucket......after she had eaten all her food.

It is good that at least you know the sex now. On another good note, I just caught Newbie and Magna Cham mating again on Sunday. Let's just hope I can get yet another clutch from Newbie and try it again. A few lessons learned with the last batch.

 

[jannb]

Juli, I sure hope that Major will be ok. Have you thought about getting an X-Ray to see if there are any more eggs?

 

[Julirs]

Yes-I will get an xray if I see ANY negative signs, but as stressed as she gets I will wait on that for now. She is eating, drinking, begging for food. I think there are a few more eggs on the floor, but it does look like she checked out the bucket. Hopefully she will get them all out and we can go from there.
It is just a bad week here I swear. I lost Oscar and Remy seems to be crashing-Remy I would expect-I have gotten him through this far with with severe MBD, farther than I ever expected to. I sure will miss handfeeding that little begging monster-he had won my heart. On a good note Evil is doing really well, looks like he is getting vision back as he is almost ripping my arm off during hand feeding.

 

[jannb]

I am so sorry to hear about Oscar. I know you have had him for a long time. I can remember post on him since I joined the forums. I've got my fingers crossed for Remy that he will will do a fast turn around.

 

[Julirs]

Thanks Jann. It surely is hard to lose these guys-you just get to "know" them, know their routines. Wasabi is still such a clown-she is so wacky! She has to come out everytime we open the cage, so she now gets to walk around with me watering everyone else! I have to say that she is hands down the most beautiful female Veiled I have ever laid eyes on. She is showing receptive coloring now and is just stunning. I had showed her to Leon, and she was ready to get in the cage with him! She has a little more growing to do. Even as big as she is, he is 3x her size!

 

[jannb]

Thanks Jann. It surely is hard to lose these guys-you just get to "know" them, know their routines. Wasabi is still such a clown-she is so wacky! She has to come out everytime we open the cage, so she now gets to walk around with me watering everyone else! I have to say that she is hands down the most beautiful female Veiled I have ever laid eyes on. She is showing receptive coloring now and is just stunning. I had showed her to Leon, and she was ready to get in the cage with him! She has a little more growing to do. Even as big as she is, he is 3x her size!

Yes this little animals sure have a way of getting right to our hearts.

When things calm down a bit at your place post a picture of Wasabi. I'll love to see her. She was one special little baby. Being the largest I always knew who she was and she got lots of special attention. I'm glad that she’s staying friendly for you.

 

[Miss Lily]

I'll agree with you and Jann, Juli! Chams are such special creatures, and now you know just how wonderful it is to have a friendly one in Wasabi! Amy is receptive too and is a pain in the bum, lol, she begs to come out of her viv if I so much as look at her or walk past. Gotta love them though, eh? I know that once the receptive phase is over she'll go back to her usual miserable self so I am making the most of it while it lasts!

So sorry you lost Oscar, sometimes we don't realise quite how attached we are until they are gone and it hits so hard. Keeping everything crossed that Major lays those eggs for you.