How common is it for bearded dragons to have eggs in the winter?

[lizdragon]

My bearded dragon Liz is very prone to laying lots of eggs--one year she laid 8 clutches back to back. She normally starts laying the spring or summer months and is done by September. However, the past few days she's been extremely restless. She won't stop running around her cage just like she does when she has eggs. Is anyone else's beardie laying eggs in the winter?

What surprises me is that my old home was always very hot in the winter but my new home is cooler (we have to work harder to keep her temps up) so I'm not sure why she would be inclined to lay eggs now. I'm also not sure if maybe the stress from my newborn making noise all the time is bothering her and making her run around her tank. She doesn't seem to like him or his loud toys. She let out an audible breath today after walking around a lot which I've never heard. I checked and the humidity levels are perfect at 30 degrees Fahrenheit. Unfortunately if it is eggs it means we need to cancel Christmas plans visiting my mom--when she has eggs she needs completely daytime supervision because she has MBD and sometimes flips herself from moving too much. Thanks in advance everyone.

 

[Toothless37]

Hey there, my beardie Toothless has had the same thing by this year. She just laid 22 tonight actually lol. This is the first time I’ve had a winter clutch too but I might have an idea as to why. I don’t know about you but I’m in Canada and we had some pretty cold weather and snow in early November but then it recently switched to mild and rainy. I by no means am an expert but maybe that could explain it. I’m sure there are many other reasons but just my two cents. Hopefully that was of at least some assistance

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

A lot of times they tend to lay or develop eggs during the wintertime. How long has she been acting this way, a few days?
She should be fine for a short while if you aren't going to be gone for too many days.
Can you possibly move her into another area where it might be more quiet for her to ease any stress?
I realize it is after Christmas now, please let us know how she is doing.

Tracie

 

[Gormagon]

Well I can surely say that YES they will lay eggs in winter months in captivity. Mine put out 3 out in the viv floor and 38 more in her lay box last week (infertile of course).
I believe that dragons live on instincts. Seeing how they originated from Australia and it is the dead of summer there, it stands to reason.

 

[lizdragon]

Hey there, my beardie Toothless has had the same thing by this year. She just laid 22 tonight actually lol. This is the first time I’ve had a winter clutch too but I might have an idea as to why. I don’t know about you but I’m in Canada and we had some pretty cold weather and snow in early November but then it recently switched to mild and rainy. I by no means am an expert but maybe that could explain it. I’m sure there are many other reasons but just my two cents. Hopefully that was of at least some assistance

Oh could be! I'm in NYC. It's been a pretty mild winter here so far. Hopefully Toothless is done for the season! Unfortunately Liz usually lays multiple clutches in a row..

 

[lizdragon]

Hello,

A lot of times they tend to lay or develop eggs during the wintertime. How long has she been acting this way, a few days?
She should be fine for a short while if you aren't going to be gone for too many days.
Can you possibly move her into another area where it might be more quiet for her to ease any stress?
I realize it is after Christmas now, please let us know how she is doing.

Tracie

Yeah, a few days. She actually laid an egg last night and also one this morning. This isn't abnormal for her, she often lays an egg here or there before she's ready to lay the rest of the clutch. The hard part is that when she's in egg laying mode she is very restless, and multiple times a day she will flip on her back and cannot flip herself back. Someone has to be home watching her at all times to make sure she's okay. This was doable when I figured she only laid eggs in the spring and summer, but now I realize that I have to be prepared to be home during the winter as well. I really want to find out if there's a way to help her MBD because as much as I don't like to admit it, I think she's gotten worse in the past few years. My care for her has not changed, but back in 2019 I never had to worry about her flipping herself. I don't know if I need to go back to giving her liquid calcium. Luckily I'm a stay at home mom so I don't really need to be somewhere everyday, but it'd be nice if I could trust that she could be okay by herself for a few hours.

Also, about an hour ago my husband was transporting her to her lay box, and in the five seconds he was moving her she pooped and some of it got into my baby's play area. He almost always puts something underneath her but didn't this time for some reason. I cleaned the area as best as I could, but now I'm worried about my baby getting salmonella. What a mess this week has been.

 

[lizdragon]

Well I can surely say that YES they will lay eggs in winter months in captivity. Mine put out 3 out in the viv floor and 38 more in her lay box last week (infertile of course).
I believe that dragons live on instincts. Seeing how they originated from Australia and it is the dead of summer there, it stands to reason.

Wow 38!! That's quite a clutch. The most eggs Liz has laid at a time was 33. Your dragon must have been exhausted after that.

 

[blue11]

My bearded dragon Liz is very prone to laying lots of eggs--one year she laid 8 clutches back to back. She normally starts laying the spring or summer months and is done by September. However, the past few days she's been extremely restless. She won't stop running around her cage just like she does when she has eggs. Is anyone else's beardie laying eggs in the winter?

What surprises me is that my old home was always very hot in the winter but my new home is cooler (we have to work harder to keep her temps up) so I'm not sure why she would be inclined to lay eggs now. I'm also not sure if maybe the stress from my newborn making noise all the time is bothering her and making her run around her tank. She doesn't seem to like him or his loud toys. She let out an audible breath today after walking around a lot which I've never heard. I checked and the humidity levels are perfect at 30 degrees Fahrenheit. Unfortunately if it is eggs it means we need to cancel Christmas plans visiting my mom--when she has eggs she needs completely daytime supervision because she has MBD and sometimes flips herself from moving too much. Thanks in advance everyone.

Hey there!

Just curious - how old is Liz? You may have mentioned it and I’m over looking it … but I’m super curious b/c I have a girl that will be 11 on this coming Feb 5 - and she’s never laid at all. I always wonder - will she ever? She is definitely 100% all girl. So I was just curious how old Liz is. Thank you!

 

[lizdragon]

Hey there!

Just curious - how old is Liz? You may have mentioned it and I’m over looking it … but I’m super curious b/c I have a girl that will be 11 on this coming Feb 5 - and she’s never laid at all. I always wonder - will she ever? She is definitely 100% all girl. So I was just curious how old Liz is. Thank you!

Wow, I'm so jealous you've never had to deal with eggs! Liz will be six years old in March. She's been laying since she was two and a half.

 

[blue11]

Wow, I'm so jealous you've never had to deal with eggs! Liz will be six years old in March. She's been laying since she was two and a half.

Oh man, wow - I actually feel kinda lucky too! It seems like an ordeal for the female dragon and us as well. I truly don’t know why she has not - I know that some girls just won’t lay in their lifetime, but I have also always still wondered why she hasn’t.

Has Liz ever been housed in the same room with another dragon by chance (male or female) … like, the same vicinity? Again, just curious!

Sounds like you have had to become quite the pro with a gravy’s dragon and egg laying - if my girl suddenly ever decides in her older age to lay - I know who to come to with questions !

 

[lizdragon]

Oh man, wow - I actually feel kinda lucky too! It seems like an ordeal for the female dragon and us as well. I truly don’t know why she has not - I know that some girls just won’t lay in their lifetime, but I have also always still wondered why she hasn’t.

Has Liz ever been housed in the same room with another dragon by chance (male or female) … like, the same vicinity? Again, just curious!

Sounds like you have had to become quite the pro with a gravy’s dragon and egg laying - if my girl suddenly ever decides in her older age to lay - I know who to come to with questions !

I think with most dragons it's not so bad, but because Liz has MBD she struggles a lot when she has eggs. Nope, she has never been housed with a dragon apart from when she was a baby in a pet store. I'm not sure why she lays so much. Just to torture me I guess.

Thank you! Though I hope you never have to deal with eggs!

 

[blue11]

I think with most dragons it's not so bad, but because Liz has MBD she struggles a lot when she has eggs. Nope, she has never been housed with a dragon apart from when she was a baby in a pet store. I'm not sure why she lays so much. Just to torture me I guess.

Thank you! Though I hope you never have to deal with eggs!

Awwww I’m so sorry - I missed the part or any earlier posts you have put up regarding MBD! Poor girl. I had a rescue about 7 years ago who had a really bad case of MBD - I know how much she (and myself) had to go through in order to get things under control as much as possible - so I’m sure that does make things harder on Liz for sure.

Thanks for for the no egg well wishes - I really would be JUST fine if she never does! Thanks for replying, I appreciate it! I wish you and Liz the absolute best always!

 

[lizdragon]

Awwww I’m so sorry - I missed the part or any earlier posts you have put up regarding MBD! Poor girl. I had a rescue about 7 years ago who had a really bad case of MBD - I know how much she (and myself) had to go through in order to get things under control as much as possible - so I’m sure that does make things harder on Liz for sure.

Thanks for for the no egg well wishes - I really would be JUST fine if she never does! Thanks for replying, I appreciate it! I wish you and Liz the absolute best always!

Oh no worries! Liz has had MBD since I adopted her from my family when she was two and a half (she actually laid her first clutch the day before I got her). It's very difficult, to be honest. I have to watch her really well when I'm gone in case she flips over because she can't always flip herself back. Since you have experience with a dragon with MBD, did you ever feel you were able to treat them so that you could trust them to be okay by themself for longer periods of time? I've taken her to so many exotic specialists and I follow their advice, but she has not improved to how she used to be before MBD. She can't run or even walk properly. And she has some trouble getting on her basking spot (which we had to keep pretty low, it's just a ramp).

Thank you so much for the well wishes.

 

[blue11]

Oh no worries! Liz has had MBD since I adopted her from my family when she was two and a half (she actually laid her first clutch the day before I got her). It's very difficult, to be honest. I have to watch her really well when I'm gone in case she flips over because she can't always flip herself back. Since you have experience with a dragon with MBD, did you ever feel you were able to treat them so that you could trust them to be okay by themself for longer periods of time? I've taken her to so many exotic specialists and I follow their advice, but she has not improved to how she used to be before MBD. She can't run or even walk properly. And she has some trouble getting on her basking spot (which we had to keep pretty low, it's just a ramp).
.

I totally TOTALLY understand this question! Yeps!

So as far as her being at home alone - which she was when we went to work - all the surfaces were soft and fluffy - her substrate was a towel, her basking spot was a small decorative pillow (same one I use for my older healthy dragon now) - with a towel on it - nothing was high up at all that she could fall and end up upside down - because had she flipped over - I’m like you - I don’t know if Lexi could have gotten back up. Basically her basking pillow was like a low ramp - very similar to how you described Liz’s!

She was seriously SO neglected for the first 5 or 6 years of her life (never had a UVB source - abused - no anything - she had a broken jaw /rubber jaw - severe MBD - beyond skinny - severely malnourished - paper thin - and much more - until we ended up with each to other.

Her set up with me, I kept so so so simple - and it was not an large 85 gallon viv like my other dragon had …she was in a 35 or 40 gallon *long* which was best for her … too small for a healthy active regular dragon - perfect size for her, enough to hold a decent temp gradient, but not too much space as to be overwhelming or allow her to get in spaces that she couldn’t get out of. All soft items, all the time. Plus, she ended up being soooo social, developing massive trust with me considering the abuse she endured by her previous humans, that she was out each day getting her exercise once I got her health turned in the right way and she was able to walk / march around. The walk was never ever “normal” - but it was her and she loved to explore. It was 24/7 care for about 4 months to get her to a point where she seemed finally able to be more independent.

She was alone for around 8 hours a day while we were at work - the way we had the tank set up, I didn’t really worry so much. Soft, low, simple, not too big for her wake up on the cool side and walk to her basking pillow. Had I taken the “go big go hard” route - I would have worried excessively. I think the way you are keeping things low is crucial. In my opinion, that’s 100% the right way to go !

You can find my old thread on here probably! Search “Taking on a new dragon Lexi” as key words and you can see her entire process. But trigger warning - the intial photos are really disturbing. She lived and thrived for about 4 years past her rescue date I think. She was a true angel. She was one tough little soldier!

I’d love to know more about Liz! You can PM me anytime regarding Lexi’s story - and all the things that us peeps with sweet special MBD dragons do actually have to deal with.

PS - I traveled out of state each Christmas- she came with me. And she did great! There was no way I could leave her … even if I did have someone check on her. Her level of care was too complicated for me to put on anyone.

 

[lizdragon]

I totally TOTALLY understand this question! Yeps!

So as far as her being at home alone - which she was when we went to work - all the surfaces were soft and fluffy - her substrate was a towel, her basking spot was a small decorative pillow (same one I use for my older healthy dragon now) - with a towel on it - nothing was high up at all that she could fall and end up upside down - because had she flipped over - I’m like you - I don’t know if Lexi could have gotten back up. Basically her basking pillow was like a low ramp - very similar to how you described Liz’s!

She was seriously SO neglected for the first 5 or 6 years of her life (never had a UVB source - abused - no anything - she had a broken jaw /rubber jaw - severe MBD - beyond skinny - severely malnourished - paper thin - and much more - until we ended up with each to other.

Her set up with me, I kept so so so simple - and it was not an large 85 gallon viv like my other dragon had …she was in a 35 or 40 gallon *long* which was best for her … too small for a healthy active regular dragon - perfect size for her, enough to hold a decent temp gradient, but not too much space as to be overwhelming or allow her to get in spaces that she couldn’t get out of. All soft items, all the time. Plus, she ended up being soooo social, developing massive trust with me considering the abuse she endured by her previous humans, that she was out each day getting her exercise once I got her health turned in the right way and she was able to walk / march around. The walk was never ever “normal” - but it was her and she loved to explore. It was 24/7 care for about 4 months to get her to a point where she seemed finally able to be more independent.

She was alone for around 8 hours a day while we were at work - the way we had the tank set up, I didn’t really worry so much. Soft, low, simple, not too big for her wake up on the cool side and walk to her basking pillow. Had I taken the “go big go hard” route - I would have worried excessively. I think the way you are keeping things low is crucial. In my opinion, that’s 100% the right way to go !

You can find my old thread on here probably! Search “Taking on a new dragon Lexi” as key words and you can see her entire process. But trigger warning - the intial photos are really disturbing. She lived and thrived for about 4 years past her rescue date I think. She was a true angel. She was one tough little soldier!

I’d love to know more about Liz! You can PM me anytime regarding Lexi’s story - and all the things that us peeps with sweet special MBD dragons do actually have to deal with.

PS - I traveled out of state each Christmas- she came with me. And she did great! There was no way I could leave her … even if I did have someone check on her. Her level of care was too complicated for me to put on anyone.

Oh wow! I've never spoken to anyone else who had a similar experience raising a special needs dragon on Liz's level. I'm so jealous of people who can make fun elaborate tanks for their beardies and don't need to worry about them flipping over and getting stuck. It sounds like you took amazing care of Lexi. That's so sad to hear she was mistreated for so many years, but I think she would thank you for saving her life.

Liz was bought from Petsmart back in May 2016 by my family as a gift for my 7 year old sister's birthday. Now we realize what a horrible idea that was. Liz definitely was not receiving the proper care but to be fair, my family was following the instructions that the pet store gave them. They should have done more research though. I was an adult so I was not living with them or involved in her care back then. She had a UVB, but it was only a spotlight and her diet wasn't great either, so overtime her condition got worse. I went over to their home one day and saw that she couldn't walk properly. I took her to the vet and she was diagnosed with MBD which is when I asked if I could take her from them even though I had no experience with reptiles. I have learned a lot in the past few years! But it makes me sad when I remember how easily Liz could move around back when she was a baby. Her tank sounds similar to the way you had Lexi's--she has a felt mat as her substrate and a sock she loves to rest on, and her basking spot is a low ramp with a t shirt inside of it. Generally she's okay to leave alone as long as she's not laying eggs, but never for very long periods of time.

So on Christmas we just went to see my mom, who lives nearby. I bought a google nest camera so I could watch Liz at all times and she did flip once, so my husband drove 5 mins back home and saved her. Not ideal but we're hoping she never has eggs on Christmas again. I can 100% relate about their care being too complicated for anyone else to understand. My husband and I are likely going to have to go to California in late 2022 and I'm already stressing about how she will do with someone else watching her. She doesn't need constant supervision when she's not laying eggs, but now that she seems to lay eggs at any time of the year I don't know when it's ever "safe" for me to leave her with someone else. I thought winter time was fine to be away but I guess not. I may pay for her to be boarded at a vet's office, but I'm even a bit nervous to do that.

Anyways, sorry for the long comment. Actually I might PM you in a little bit because I would love to hear more about your care for Lexi. I really want to see if there's anything I can do (going back to liquid calcium, for example) to improve Liz's health.