Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I've got a female veiled, about 6 months old, who's recently started digging. First on the bottom of her cage, now in a bowl with play sand (washed) in it. How long (if at all) before she starts to lay eggs? She's never been bred, so they'll be unfertile. I'd like to get them out of the cage before they become a mess.

Thanks!

Howard
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1.0.0 Bearded Dragon (Digger)
1.2.0 Golden Geckos (Bob, Betty & Bea)
1.1.0 Tokay Geckos (Stanley & Helen)
2.2.0 Leopard Geckos (Jack, Janet,Chrissy & Larry)
1.0.0 Ambilobe Panther Chameleon (Mr. Spock)
1.1.0 Jacksons Chameleons (Melvin & Gertrude)

You said..."How long (if at all) before she starts to lay eggs?"...some females dig a few test holes first. Some dig one hole for more than a day before they lay the eggs. Often the female will start to lay them in the evening. Do not let her see you watching her when she is digging....it can make the female abandon the hole and this can push her towards eggbinding if it happens too often. Let her dig the hole, turn around with her nose out and lay her eggs. Then let her bury them and return to the branches. Then you can dig up the eggs.

One more thing...I always leave a container of washed playsand in the female's cage to show me when she is ready to lay. If the female can't lay the eggs when she is ready she can become eggbound.

Good luck!

Thanks for the info. She's been digging in the sand for at least a week now, just digging, covering back up, digging, etc. I have checked, no eggs in there. Just wondering if she really has eggs, or since she's still young, could it be "practice". I thought that if she did have eggs, she'd have laid them by now!

Thanks again,

Howie
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1.0.0 Bearded Dragon (Digger)
1.2.0 Golden Geckos (Bob, Betty & Bea)
1.1.0 Tokay Geckos (Stanley & Helen)
2.2.0 Leopard Geckos (Jack, Janet,Chrissy & Larry)
1.0.0 Ambilobe Panther Chameleon (Mr. Spock)
1.1.0 Jacksons Chameleons (Melvin & Gertrude)

You said..."She's been digging in the sand for at least a week now, just digging, covering back up, digging, etc. I have checked, no eggs in there. Just wondering if she really has eggs, or since she's still young, could it be "practice". I thought that if she did have eggs, she'd have laid them by now!"...if she is digging and filling in the hole and tamping it down, it concerns me. A female could dig more than once, but she shouldn't fill holes in intentionally and not have laid eggs.

Well, she's STILL just digging in her "bowl". She'll dig, come up to get warmed under her basking light, then go back to it. No problems eating or drinking, but seems like all she wants to do is keep digging. Should I be concerned?
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1.0.0 Bearded Dragon (Digger)
1.2.0 Golden Geckos (Bob, Betty & Bea)
1.1.0 Tokay Geckos (Stanley & Helen)
2.2.0 Leopard Geckos (Jack, Janet,Chrissy & Larry)
1.0.0 Ambilobe Panther Chameleon (Mr. Spock)
1.1.0 Jacksons Chameleons (Melvin & Gertrude)

I should have asked you this before...you keep saying "bowl"...how deep/bit is it?? It needs to be at least 10" deep and big enough for the chameleon to fit into when its empty with several inches around her on all sides including above an below her.

Also...you said..."she's STILL just digging in her "bowl". She'll dig, come up to get warmed under her basking light, then go back to it. No problems eating or drinking, but seems like all she wants to do is keep digging. Should I be concerned?"...its good that she is still digging...but if the container isn't suitable this might be why she's not getting the job done and it needs to be corrected right away.

Sorry I didn't pick up on you using the word "bowl" before this.

Also...did I mention not to let her see you watching her when she's digging?