Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My Cyclura, Petra (5 yr old female) has been going insane due to her gravid-ness and recently we gave her the entire downstairs bathroom to have as her enclosure. Somehow she decied that climbing the walls or something was a great idea and I noticed today that she has hurt her tail, at the part where she "uses" it, as a foot.

It is not a break, or a bad one, and she doesn't seem like it hurts to the touch. but she is dragging her tail where she used to keep it up in the air (all bendy like)

I'm really upset about this, and she's ready to drop her eggs any day down, but her madness is causing harm to herself. Any suggestions on what to do about the bend? Should I ice it? (i would think this isn't going to help at this point...)

Also, does any one else's adults have kinks in thier tails at that midpoint? is it natural for this to happen? I'm thinking once she heals and fattens up she will be back to normal (b/c her tail has lost a ton of weight due to the gravid-ness)

maybe this is a dumb question, but do you have a nest box set up for her? Does it have a heat pad under one corner or some other sort of heat? A nice damp soiled nest box with a temperature gradient should keep her busy digging. My females only start going crazy at the end and as soon as there is a nest box they redirect there energy do digging. Just a thought

As much as this sound ridiculous I have never given her a traditional nest box, and the past two years have been fine. The first year, she wound up laying them in her food dish, and while I gave her a "nest box" she just ate the sand/gravel (I saw her crunching down on the rocks) and didnt bother digging. 9 eggs.

Year 2, had a great idea. Since she doesnt live on dirt, and she likes to dig in my bed, why not blankets and sheets?
Great. She layed 15 literally inside layers of sheets in her cage. Perfect.. Still nutty as ever.

This year, year 3. Lots of nose rubbing (i have a HUGE dog crate for her) so out she goes into her own private bathroom. As everything is fine...untill the tail problemo. She seems to be fine... If this continues I might have to make witnh the nesting box. Right now she has a kiddie pool FULL of various blankets sheets and towels, as well as a space heater (where she hasnt attempted to go)

Personally I would provide a nest box. Instinct will tell her to lay them where they have a possibility of hatching. Without a nest box they tend to hold the eggs as long as possible and then "dump" them when no suitable area is found. That would scare me as it is risking the eggs calcifing. If reptiles hold eggs to long they can become egg bound not from the size of the eggs, but from the eggs sticking together if that makes sense. A great nest box that my females lay in is a big plastic tub with a sand/dirt mix up to within 4-5" of the top. Cut a hole in the top of the lid in one corner and put a heat pad in the bottom on the opposite corner. I know she has laid them in years past, but I would still try it. I wouldn't really worry about her eating some of the sand as long as she is still drinking. They need to eat a ton of it to become impacted. With her being gravid, she shouldn't have enough of a appetite or room for that to become a problem.

As with the tail kink, I know of a couple females that have developed kinks due to the egg development. I have never seen it personally. It just because her body is using her reserves for the eggs. Not sure if it will straighten out or not.

I made an appt. with the vet tomorrow. Gonna make a nest box today. Thanks for your advice

Keep us informed. I have had females dump eggs, yet it was only in there first year when I didn't think they were gravid. Now I put nest box's in with everyone. I don't want to take chances