Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I got a pair of cresteds in early June. When I bought them (from the Reptile Center on Long Island - awesome place) the guy told me the female had just laid her first pair of eggs. Now its been more than two months and I haven't observed any mating behavior between the two. I check the female for bights, and she hasn't had any. Both are eating well and are healthy. Am I being impatient? And does anyone have any ideas as to how to encourage them? The female is a yellow dalmation, and the male is hard to describe, but a sort of green flame. I would be really excited to see babies!
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Corn Snakes: Eden, Mars, Sierra, Lavendar
Crested Geckos: Parker, Emily Dickinson, Bonnie, Unnamed 1 & unnamed 2
Leopard Geckos: Paris, Helen, Annabelle
Bearded Dragon: Humphrey

I wouldn't worry too much about them yet. I have a new breeder that took nearly 5 months to start laying eggs for me. If your male is inexperienced... it may take him a little time to figure out which end is which. (I know, I know... but the new guys get confused.) Also, some males are extremely gentle and don't leave any bite marks behind, so there's the possibility that they are mating, but he's just not tearing into her like a more, shall we say, "enthusiastic" male might.
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~Sarah~
www.crestedlady.com
High-Quality Crested Geckos

"Am I being impatient?"

i would have to say yes to that one. it can be a matter of several months before you start to see eggs. and if you bought a female that had already started laying (fertile) eggs, my guesses are she should continue laying fertile eggs for several months, as i have observed in a female of mine ive had separated from males for nearly 6 months now. my first breeding pair took 6 months to get the ball rolling, so you just have to sit back and wait, let them do the work. it will happen.
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-Mike Martin
North Carolina

I just started breeding my crested geckos. The female has laid three clutches already. I was going to seperate the pair after six clutches. Will the female continue to lay after that. I dont want to put that much stress on her.

the females can lay up to 6 months after separation. also, she may lay infertiles indefinitely after being separated. try cooling down to the low 60's and they will usually stop.

yea my female hasnt laid eggs nearly as regularly, but shes still going after being separated a nice long time.
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-Mike Martin
North Carolina

if, after seperating a female from a male, you introduce the female to a new male, how can you be sure which male sired the offspring?

for example, i have a yellow female currently housed with a dark flame male. i recently acquired a great looking yellow male that i'm currently quarantining. the plan is to pair the yellow male & female. since the female appears to be gravid, when i introduce her to the new male, how (if at all possible) can i be sure she's laying his eggs?

you will have no idea which male the offspring came from. it could all be from the first, all from the second, or one from each.
it is however more likely that it will be from the more recent mating, due to the fact that the new sperm will be most viable.
the only way to know for sure is to wait until the female either lays an infertile clutch, or stops laying for over a month. even so it's not 100% unless you can wait for 4-6 months and have several months without any egg laying whatsoever.

I had my first pair housed together for about a year and nothing. I swore he thought she was ugly or one of them was gay. I introduced another female and the male went hormone crazy. I got him a few more females and got eggs every thirty days from then until I sold my collection. -Joe