Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My female box turtle appears to be laying eggs this evening, and I'm not sure what to do? Any help and or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Chris

is she kept outside,or is she an indoors pet?if she's kept outside,i would carefully excavate the dirt from the top of the assumed nest,if there are eggs,carefully fill it back in,and put a wire cage around it,to keep predators out and babies in.
if she lives indoors,just get a disposable tupperware container (like gladware,etc),fill it halfway with plain old topsoil and sphagnum moss(slightly moisten the whole mix),and bury the eggs 2/3 of the way,being careful to not roll them when you are transferring them(you can kill the embryo that way-the eggs must remain in the same position as you unearth them.make a small mark with a soft lead pencil on the top of each egg,to ensure proper orientation).then,poke about 4 or 5 1/4" holes in the lid,and just put the whole shebang on top of the fridge,as close to the back as you can.i've been incubating turtles this way for years,with very good hatch rates.why buy an incubator if you don't have to,ya know?
if you incubate them yourself,just check on them every couple days.if the dirt mix starts drying out,just add some water(not much,just a couple tablespoons or so)around the edge of the container(never directly on the eggs themselves).if you start to get condensation on the lid,just crack open one corner of the lid,which will provide a slope for the water to run off the lid.
either way,give it a couple months,and you should have some feisty little boxies!
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1.1 spotted turtles 1.3 ltc eastern boxies 0.1 cb'06 eastern boxie 0.1 cb'09 eastern boxie 0.0.2 cb'09 razorback musks 0.0.1 cb'09 eastern mud 0.0.1 cb'09 reeve's turtle 1.0 cb'09 crested gecko 1.1 steno geckos 1.2 redeye croc skink 1.2 cb'09 kenyan sand boas(albino,anery,normal) 0.1 albino hedgehog
1.0 cb '03 homo sapien(kaelan,7)
"jesus is coming-when i count to 3,everyone jump out and yell SURPRISE!!"

I would just leave them in the ground. Mark the spot and place a hardware cloth screen around the nest. Your chances of success are probably just as good, if not better, if you've never hatched babies before.
jsc
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"As hard as I've tried, just can't NOT do this"
John Crickmer

Thanks! Chris

Thank you. She's outside. I screened the nest and will hope for the best. Cheers.
Chris