we have a problem !

MangoTango

Established Member
so my veiled cham is about to lay eggs; stopped eating and roaming the enclosure and all that (and obvi has her big girl colors). this is our first time so i’m nervous. the biggest problem is yesterday she dug a little, but today she was really digging. she dug all the way down, which was about 7 inches! but once she was done digging and didn’t lay the eggs, the hole filled up with water! what do I do? I don’t want to mix it around and mess up her hole and bother her, I have a wet vac that can probably suck It up in a second but again I don’t want to bother her or make her feel like her bin isn’t safe. it’s been in there as soon as I saw she was receptive. I don’t want her to become egg bound 😞 the bin is half soil half play sand. the mister is facing away but it hits the leaves and the water drips into the bin. what do I do
 
As a temporary solution, is there any way to punch a small hole (or holes) in the bin to let the excess water drain out and away? :unsure:

After she's done, you can patch the hole(s) and come up with a better drainage solution for the bin.
 
As a temporary solution, is there any way to punch a small hole (or holes) in the bin to let the excess water drain out and away? :unsure:

After she's done, you can patch the hole(s) and come up with a better drainage solution for the bin.
it’s plastic so i’m not sure I can do it quickly
 
Hi. Eesh! You need to somehow get the water out. Unfortunately you’ll have to disturb her to do this, which is not at all ideal. If it were me, I’d try to be sneaky and go in when it’s dark and she’s asleep…I’d put in another bin (one with some drainage holes in the bottom) that I’d have dug down to the bottom at an angle near one of the corners and then very gently switch her from watery bin to fresh bin. I’d only put about 4-5” of play sand or soil in the new bin so she won’t have to work so hard if she rejects the little tunnel I created for her. You could try drilling some drainage holes as close to the bottom of the current bin too, but again, I’d take action in the dark. If you choose to try drilling, it won’t need to be near her tunnel and keep distance from her to avoid risk of injuring her. They have very poor hearing, so be quick and she shouldn’t be too disturbed.
@kinyonga what are your ideas?
 
Hi. Eesh! You need to somehow get the water out. Unfortunately you’ll have to disturb her to do this, which is not at all ideal. If it were me, I’d try to be sneaky and go in when it’s dark and she’s asleep…I’d put in another bin (one with some drainage holes in the bottom) that I’d have dug down to the bottom at an angle near one of the corners and then very gently switch her from watery bin to fresh bin. I’d only put about 4-5” of play sand or soil in the new bin so she won’t have to work so hard if she rejects the little tunnel I created for her. You could try drilling some drainage holes as close to the bottom of the current bin too, but again, I’d take action in the dark. If you choose to try drilling, it won’t need to be near her tunnel and keep distance from her to avoid risk of injuring her. They have very poor hearing, so be quick and she shouldn’t be too disturbed.
@kinyonga what are your ideas?
the bin is pretty heavy I think if I tried to move it it would shake the whole enclosure 🥺 its been difficult getting it in and out. what about the shop vac idea? I would literally just take a second. it would fix the situation for now but if there’s more water hidden under other areas I can’t really get to that
 
Hi. Eesh! You need to somehow get the water out. Unfortunately you’ll have to disturb her to do this, which is not at all ideal. If it were me, I’d try to be sneaky and go in when it’s dark and she’s asleep…I’d put in another bin (one with some drainage holes in the bottom) that I’d have dug down to the bottom at an angle near one of the corners and then very gently switch her from watery bin to fresh bin. I’d only put about 4-5” of play sand or soil in the new bin so she won’t have to work so hard if she rejects the little tunnel I created for her. You could try drilling some drainage holes as close to the bottom of the current bin too, but again, I’d take action in the dark. If you choose to try drilling, it won’t need to be near her tunnel and keep distance from her to avoid risk of injuring her. They have very poor hearing, so be quick and she shouldn’t be too disturbed.
@kinyonga what are your ideas?
alright so I had to do the shop vac idea. I can’t tell if I got all the water tho. we were only 2 minutes but unfortunately she woke up and got a little puffy :( she seems to be a light sleeper, I feel so bad
 
Can‘t you drill from underneath a few holes in the lay bin and put a bucket under the enclosure. Normally the bottom is plastic so it should be easy to drill a hole in, assuming the lay bin rests on the bottom. 🤞🏻🤞🏻 she goes through the whole process
 
Can‘t you drill from underneath a few holes in the lay bin and put a bucket under the enclosure. Normally the bottom is plastic so it should be easy to drill a hole in, assuming the lay bin rests on the bottom. 🤞🏻🤞🏻 she goes through the whole process
the whole enclosure sits on one of those plastic shoe mat things, and then I usually suck up the water. but if it’s okay to take her out then maybe I can try to get it out and fix it. thoughts?
 
How much more soil is in the bin? I mean 7 inches is a lot already there can't be that much more??? Can you not try to take a drill with a long bit on it and drill a few holes from where she has already dug down. So it is draining?
 
How much more soil is in the bin? I mean 7 inches is a lot already there can't be that much more??? Can you not try to take a drill with a long bit on it and drill a few holes from where she has already dug down. So it is draining?
I put about 6-7 inches of soil so what i’m saying is the hole she made goes all the way down to the bottom of the plastic bin and the water is sitting there. I can try the drill idea, but is it going to drill through the plastic shoe caddy that her whole enclosure is on? and can I take her out to do that?
 
I have a camera set up and I just watched her look in the hole, then paw at some other places in the bin, look back in the hole and then go up her branches 😣
 
I put about 6-7 inches of soil so what i’m saying is the hole she made goes all the way down to the bottom of the plastic bin and the water is sitting there. I can try the drill idea, but is it going to drill through the plastic shoe caddy that her whole enclosure is on?
Ohhhh Yeah I don't know how yours is set up. So if your plastic bin is right on the bottom of the cage then it could drill through. Other option slide it out halfway have one person hold it while the other drills small holes from the bottom.
 
I have a camera set up and I just watched her look in the hole, then paw at some other places in the bin, look back in the hole and then go up her branches 😣
If there is still water she may abandon the bin. You may just need to pull it out fix it and put it back in. I would make your depth 4-6 inches next time.
 
If there is still water she may abandon the bin. You may just need to pull it out fix it and put it back in. I would make your depth 4-6 inches next time.
ik that’s why i’m panicking 😣 can I just take her out and then take the whole bin out and replace it ?
 
I put about 6-7 inches of soil so what i’m saying is the hole she made goes all the way down to the bottom of the plastic bin and the water is sitting there. I can try the drill idea, but is it going to drill through the plastic shoe caddy that her whole enclosure is on? and can I take her out to do that?
You can carefully slide a piece of scrap 1x between the bin and shoe caddy. You still need to go slow, but the drill will go into the 1x and not penetrate the caddy.
 
Do you have to remove her from the cage to take it out?
yes, I don’t have a 16x16x36 enclosure (ik, not the right size, I can’t afford a bigger one rn) and the potted plant that I have sits in the branches like a hammock. when the bin is in there I have to push that to the side, so when I take it out it swings back to center
 
yes, I don’t have a 16x16x36 enclosure (ik, not the right size, I can’t afford a bigger one rn) and the potted plant that I have sits in the branches like a hammock. when the bin is in there I have to push that to the side, so when I take it out it swings back to center
ohhhh... Can you post a pic of your girl for us so we can see how she is looking. While your at it see if there is water in the hole. IF the hole was disturbed that may be why she went down and then left again.
 
ohhhh... Can you post a pic of your girl for us so we can see how she is looking. While your at it see if there is water in the hole. IF the hole was disturbed that may be why she went down and then left again.
yea there’s water in it. would the vibrations from drilling bother her ?
 

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