My 4 year old veiled is having hard time laying her eggs.

TheLizardKing

New Member
Hello, my female veiled is getting old and she was supposed to lay her eggs weeks ago. She did develop an infection on the top of her nose, which spread towards her eye. I took her to the vet and they prescribed me medicine for her. They told me Vitamin A will probably work best, which i give her Vitamin A everyday and powdered on her dubias and crickets. Her infection is still there but has been better than before.

But i have tried many methods to help her lay her eggs but she is having a very hard time. She will dig a hole to lay her eggs but ends up stopping and goes back to her branches. She attempts to lay her eggs at least 3 times a week now. I think it may be the infection that is holding her back.

She still eats but not as much as normal. She is still drinking water as well.

I used sand mixed with dirt for the laying substrate. Usually i have her lay her eggs in a pot and she did very well with it. But when she started to have a hard time, she didnt even attempt to lay the eggs in the pot. So i just covered the whole bottom of her cage of around 8 inches of the substrate.

Any tips of what i should do to help her get through this?
If the eggs need to be surgically removed, around how much would it cost?

She has all the proper care she needs so please do not ask me to fill out a survey.
 
I'm sorry to hear about your female. Are you positive she has eggs? Has she been x-rayed? Normally the vet will give oxytocin to help them lay and if that doesn't work surgery. The price would be different per vet. If she needs surgery I highly recommend a vet with allot of surgery experience with chameleons. I might be able to have you find a vet like this if you share your location with me. This is a really good chameleon vet that has done this surgery before. I believe she is in the Denver area.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/members/ferretinmyshoes/

When she's digging can she see you? Often they will abandon the hole if they don't have complete privacy. My veiled girls always like 10 to 12 inches of washed play sand to lay in and I always dug a started hole for them and they often used it. You might find my laying bin blog helpful attached below.

Also the infection on her nose, please post a photo of her. Normally my vets open up these and clean them out and then put them on an antibiotic. I don't believe the antibiotic alone will work.

The very best of luck with her.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/jannb/345-egg-laying-laying-bin.html
 
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What meds did the vet prescribe?
Was a culture and sensitivity test done?
How long did you use the vitamin A...and was it prEformed?

When did she start trying to lay this clutch? Before the infection?
Does she fill the holes in or just keep digging new holes? Does she see you watching her when she is digging?

One of the problems with prEformed vitamin A is that it is antagonistic to the D3 somewhat and can lead to calcium issues if too much is given. If there's an imbalance in the nutrients it could be playing a part in the egglaying....but you need to see a vet to find out.

Please answer the questions in the how to ask for help thread at the top of the health forum so we can help you better
 
Have you been giving her vitamin A from beta carotene which comes from plant matter? Or Preformed vitamin A which comes animal matter?
 
I'm sorry to hear about your female. Are you positive she has eggs? Has she been x-rayed? Normally the vet will give oxytocin to help them lay and if that doesn't work surgery. The price would be different per vet. If she needs surgery I highly recommend a vet with allot of surgery experience with chameleons. I might be able to have you find a vet like this if you share your location with me. This is a really good chameleon vet that has done this surgery before. I believe she is in the Denver area.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/members/ferretinmyshoes/

When she's digging can she see you? Often they will abandon the hole if they don't have complete privacy. My veiled girls always like 10 to 12 inches of washed play sand to lay in and I always dug a started hole for them and they often used it. You might find my laying bin blog helpful attached below.

Also the infection on her nose, please post a photo of her. Normally my vets open up these and clean them out and then put them on an antibiotic. I don't believe the antibiotic alone will work.

The very best of luck with her.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/jannb/345-egg-laying-laying-bin.html




I am very postive that she has eggs. She hasnt been xrayed yet tho. And im three hours from Denver so i will try to get a hold of that vet of i have to.
I will see if using just wet sand will help her lay the eggs.
I really appreciate the advice!
I have posted a picture of her infection. And the vet did not clean out the infection.

I really hope she does well. She has produced many healthy beautiful babies.
 

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What meds did the vet prescribe?
Was a culture and sensitivity test done?
How long did you use the vitamin A...and was it prEformed?

When did she start trying to lay this clutch? Before the infection?
Does she fill the holes in or just keep digging new holes? Does she see you watching her when she is digging?

One of the problems with prEformed vitamin A is that it is antagonistic to the D3 somewhat and can lead to calcium issues if too much is given. If there's an imbalance in the nutrients it could be playing a part in the egglaying....but you need to see a vet to find out.

Please answer the questions in the how to ask for help thread at the top of the health forum so we can help you better



The medicine that they gave her was called baytril. And yes they did a culture on her and said it was a minor infection.
I have been using the vitamin A for around two months now.

She started having the infection around three months now and she has been trying to lay her eggs for two-three weeks.

She digs the hole and then leaves it. And when she is digging, i give her full privacy.

The type of calcium that i give her is called Repitive, which has D3 and vitamin A in it.
I usually dust only one roach with calcium when i am feeding her. She usually eats 4-8 roaches each day.
 
TheLizardKing said..."The medicine that they gave her was called baytril. And yes they did a culture on her and said it was a minor infection"...she should be on the right medication then. The infection should have been cleaned out completely though. Chameleon pus is thick and can't be penetrate by the antibiotics and will usually come back if not cleaned out.

You said..."I have been using the vitamin A for around two months now"...you have to be careful with prEformed vitamin A as I said.

You said..."She started having the infection around three months now and she has been trying to lay her eggs for two-three weeks" ...Hope the supplementing hasn't been playing a part in the egglaying issues.

You said..."She digs the hole and then leaves it. And when she is digging, i give her full privacy"...digging it and leaving it then starting another is normal when getting ready to lay eggs as long as she's not being watched.

You said..."The type of calcium that i give her is called Repitive, which has D3 and vitamin A in it"...do you mean Reptivite?

You said..."I usually dust only one roach with calcium when i am feeding her. She usually eats 4-8 roaches each day"...its recommended that you dust the insects just before feeding them to the chameleon with a phosphorous-free calcium powder at most feedings and twice a month with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene (prOformed) source of vitamin A and twice a month with a phosphorous - free calcium / D3 powder. If the chameleon needs prEformed vitamin A then you can use Reptivite once a month instead of the beta carotene form.

You need a vet to tell you if she has an imbalance.
 
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