Veiled Laying Eggs?? (New to Chameleons)

[TragicComic87]

Hi everyone. I posted on this forum when we first rescued our female veiled and found everyone to be really great and we had a crash course in learning about her.

We've heard about chameleons wanting to lay eggs and we "think" that is what's happening right now, but we're not sure nor are we sure exactly what to do. We read about them being at the bottom of their housing and beginning to dig, etc.

Tonight, my wife walked by her and heard her hissing loudly. I am attaching a photo of what my wife saw when she looked in her container. She's got the bark from the bottom all in her mouth and her tail is tightly wrapped around the branch on the left of the photo. She's also a color we've never seen her before. If we get anywhere near the cage, she hisses loudly.

So, if this is her needing to lay eggs (or go through the motion), what exactly do we do for her? We've heard about a bucket or garbage can with dirt or something to that effect, but we need to know how big and what to place over her, etc.

Help!

Thank you in advance for any instructions.

Rick & Karrie

 

[Dez]

You may find my video helpful

https://www.chameleonforums.com/laying-bin-set-up-educational-video-77225/

 

[SipeCsus]

You may find my video helpful

https://www.chameleonforums.com/laying-bin-set-up-educational-video-77225/

This video is very helpful.. If she does layy b sure 2 hydrate her nd feed her.. I just lost my girl veilded 2 days after she layed.. gudd luck to you nd ur chamm tho!!

 

[TragicComic87]

You may find my video helpful

https://www.chameleonforums.com/laying-bin-set-up-educational-video-77225/

Thank you! Great video. Helped a lot.

 

[kinyonga]

I'm concerned with her having the bark in her mouth and hissing...hope she didn't swallow anybody it or hasn't got some stuck in her throat.

 

[TragicComic87]

Unfortunately, she didn't make it through the night. We still can't be sure what it was - it could have been the bark (bought at a reptile store and we were told it was ideal for chameleons). We think she may have tried to get a cricket on the ground and brought it into her mouth/throat with too much bark. We tried to get it out with tweezers, but she "passed out", got cold and stiff.

My wife put a heating pad near her and tried to bring her temperature up (heat lamps), but we could never get her to wake back up again. Her breathing was very labored until she stopped breathing around 3am.

 

[Rodcham]

What a tragic story Thoughts are with you!

 

[TragicComic87]

What a tragic story Thoughts are with you!

Thank you. My wife is a wreck - second guessing herself as to what she could have done.

One thing is that she was a rescue - seriously near death when we got her. We don't think she'd been fed for several weeks. We had her for six months and fattened her up. She was very healthy, but still on the small side - a local breeder thought she was six months old, but she was 2 years old. My wife had read about some of the issues with malnourished chameleons and how they can suffer from health problems if they don't have the nutrition to fully form into adults. Just a thought...

The "good news" out of our experience is that we are now chameleon lovers and will eventually get another one (male this time...my wife insists - lol).

 

[Hroetman]

I have a female veiled and she's actually gravid right now. I put a lay bin in her enclosure to ensure that she has the right laying environment. Anyways, when my female is gravid she has these 2 jellybean shaped bumps on her lower back closer to her tail. My female also has a different color pattern when she is pregnant. This will be her second clutch. The only advice I would have is make sure to keep an eye on her and if you really think she needs to lay eggs soon, look up online how to set up a laying bin. I just use moist sand (moist enough to were the sand won't collapse on her when she's digging) and put it in a pretty good sized bucket, leave a few climbing branches in the bucket so she can climb in and out of the bin, and then leave her alone, 100%. If you disturb your female while she's laying her eggs, she may not lay all of them (if any at all) and become egg bound and you don't want that. They can take a really long time to actually lay their eggs so don't be worried if she's in her bin for a long time. They have to make their hole for their eggs "perfect" and if they aren't satisfied with it they will cover it up and start over. My female has taken 12+ hours to lay her eggs. I hope this helps!

 

[Hroetman]

Unfortunately, she didn't make it through the night. We still can't be sure what it was - it could have been the bark (bought at a reptile store and we were told it was ideal for chameleons). We think she may have tried to get a cricket on the ground and brought it into her mouth/throat with too much bark. We tried to get it out with tweezers, but she "passed out", got cold and stiff.

My wife put a heating pad near her and tried to bring her temperature up (heat lamps), but we could never get her to wake back up again. Her breathing was very labored until she stopped breathing around 3am.

So sorry for your loss! Good thoughts are being sent your way!