Now im worried!!

[nottscami]

Cami is on day 34 and after a week of digging she has finally made a tunnel she's happy with! Only now she's been in it for the past hour and a half i cant even see her!! Is this normal?? Should i be worried?? Will she get too cold in there?? Should i still turn her lights off 2nite??

 

[Chameleons Northwest]

Greetings. Congratulations, and that is totally normal. She will likely spend hours in there. I even use a stethoscope to listen at the side of the tub when our female veileds disappear from sight. They dig loooong tunnels, and I can hear them scratching around under there for hours.

I do peak over the top of the tub now and then to check the surface to be sure there are no cave-ins.

Other than that I leave them alone, and I really try to not let them see me peak over the top.

If you do take a peak, you may see her nose poking from the tunnel, meaning she is laying her eggs. This she may do for hours, as well.

Eventually you will see her back end, as she fills in the tunnel.

But, be forewarned, there are some females who will spook if they see you peak in. They may then stop laying, and could become egg bound. It does happen, so, the best thing to do is to leave her alone completely.

 

[nottscami]

its mid winter here in the uk im worried if i turn her lights off and go to bed now she will get too cold in the sand! also when she went into the tunnel she went in head first instead of backing in. Will she get stuck??

 

[Chameleons Northwest]

They do go in head first. She will dig the laying area at the base of her tunnel, and then turn around. She won't get stuck in a tunnel she dug by herself. The only risk is a cave-in, but that is very rare, and won't happen if your soil is moist enough.

I do leave the lights on for my girls when they lay at night. I generally stay up for them to finish, or get up in the middle of the night to check on them. And I do find them back in the little tree I place in there, sound asleep, even with the heat light on. But not all keepers do this. Some turn off the lights. This is just my preference because we, too, live in a cool climate.

 

[Lancecham]

They will walk into the tunnel head first. When females reach the area to lay her eggs, she will dig out an area so that she can turn around and lay he eggs in. When she is done, she will exit the tunnel head first.