Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Is it normal for a turtle to lay one egg at a time? My three-legged EBT Speedbump laid another egg today on the paper towel floor of her hospital tank. We placed this egg into incubation with the other one.

She is acting normally (eating like a champ and as social as ever), but don't normal turtles lay clutches of eggs, rather than singular eggs? Could this strange laying behavior be due to the lack of nest sites?

Just curious

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1.0.0 Jack Russel Terrier: Skipper
0.1.0 Miniature Pinscher: Bambi
1.2.1 Eastern Box Turtles: Dozer, Daisy, Speedbump and Magnum
0.1.0 Red Eared Slider: Rosie

You said she is in a tank at the vets office? Does she have a place to dig an lay eggs?

She knows that the eggs will be wasted if she just lays them on the surface so she doesn’t want to drop the entire clutch and have them go to waste. Try giving her some loose soil to dig around in.

Turtles put a lot of effort and recourses into egg production, they wont just lay them if they know they will be destroyed. She will hold for as along as possbile until conditions are right.

hope that helps

I think that's a good observation. She may feel too stressed laying them in such a small tank with a strange feel under her feet.

Beautiful turtle, oger. What a neat shot too.

Unfortunately she has to stay in the hospital tank until her stitches are removed (vets orders!!!) She is supposed to have her stitches removed tonight so hopefully tomorrow I can put her in some dirt so she can lay the rest of her eggs.

Thanks so much for the advice! I thought it was peculiar she was just dropping eggs like this
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1.0.0 Jack Russel Terrier: Skipper
0.1.0 Miniature Pinscher: Bambi
1.2.1 Eastern Box Turtles: Dozer, Daisy, Speedbump and Magnum
0.1.0 Red Eared Slider: Rosie

I know it is a mute point now, since you will be putting her on soil tomorow, but I thought I would offer this for future anyway, but you could use a box or tub of inert perilite or vermiculite as a nesting box and still remain reletively sterile enviroment and keep the risk of infection reduced, which is the point of a soiless hospital tank. Having said that I just realized the risk of getting perlite or vermiculite in the wound is probably not a good idea either so scratch that idea. Wonder if some pea sized plastic beads in a next box would have worked though?
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Jeff Benfer

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