Ack...maybe gravid?

[mom2twinsplus2]

OK...we are a little worried now.

Yesterday, all of a sudden, our young female (I would have called her sub-adult but I guess maybe she is not a full blown adult..who knows...we got her at 11 inches last August, I think), looks really, really fat and when I feel her belly from the side, she feels a bit lumpy to me. She has never met a male beardie and has only seen our other young beardie female from a distance. Do you think she could be gravid or is it unlikely? Will she reabsorb the eggs if we ignore it or do I need to offer her something special to use to lay them. Obviously, there is no breeding issue here, I am just concerned for her safety.

FWIW, we did not in any way encourage bruminating...she lives in my son's 72-ish bedroom and her lighting never changed all winter...but she did go under her tree and go to sleep for a few weeks anyhow during a cold snap we had about a months ago.

Any thoughts?

Thanks so much!

Alison

who might want to try breeding one day but would prefer not to have to deal with eggs till then!

 

[Buggsy]

How long have you had her? Females can actually produce and lay eggs without ever seeing a male (believe me i know!!) like a chicken they will not be fertile, but they are produced. Usually at about 2yrs they will begin to lay eggs, but there have been cases of younger. If you can feel them, they are most likely eggs now, and not follicles that can be resorbed, but i cant really say as i can never feel Gizmos eggs.

is she still eating? if not she may have a week or two before she wants to lay. As they eggs develop and take up more space her appetite will decrease, its very normal. She will all of a sudden get very restless and begin to scratch and dig. You need to put a lay box in for her. This is usually a large plastic container filled with moist top soil or washed play sand, think sandcastle consistency not dripping wet, enough for it to hold its shape. As its her first time you may need to pop her in and start a little hole. It may take a while for her to get the idea, but she will dig a tunnel/hole, turn around and lay the eggs then replace the soil, usually with her head. You can then put her in a nice long bath and giver her all the feeders she wants for a week.

You will also need to start increasing her calcium intake, to help make the shells.

You may just want to let the vet know, as its her first time its always the most problematic. If she scratches without laying, or seems to be in any distress whip her to the vets for an x-ray as egg binding is very serious.

Its a very nerve wracking time and we are all here to talk you through. i think i have covered everything i know, but i have only experienced one clutch and one resorbance, so someone with more experience may want to jump in and add some things.

 

[mom2twinsplus2]

She is still eating...not a ton but she hasn't been eating a ton all winter..but definitely still eating a few roaches or supers every couple of days. She has never been a salad eater...the stinker...we are working on it. We have had her since August and she is definitely no where near 2...more like 1. I am really hoping I am wrong about what is going on here. I am not sure what I am feeling...I was just kind of surprised by her girth-LOL.

I guess it can't hurt to put in a lay box for her...how big does it need to be?

Thanks so much for your help!

Alison

 

[Buggsy]

At least 6" deep, 12" is better. She may just need a poop lol! stick her in a nice warm bath and see what happens, if thats all it is at least your prepared!

 

[mom2twinsplus2]

LOL...tried the warm bath and she did poop but the huge somewhat lumpy tummy was post poop/bath.

I have a bunch of playsound. I guess I will get a box full for her just in case...is a shoebox sized tupperware a good choice?

Alison

 

[Freeie]

I just went through this with my 2 females. 1 was a few days under a yr and the other was a week or so over 1 yr. 20 eggs from one and 26 from another. Boy did i learn a lot. I was scared too. I never felt the eggs with either of them. The first one became restless and stopped eating for about 2 weeks or so. I could only get a little bit of babyfood mix in her. I always offered food. She ate a full salad and 10 supers the next morning she laid the eggs in her viv I had no idea she was even gravid since it was my first time. For the second girl i seen all the signs of the first one so i knew she was gravid. I noticed she spent time scratching in one spot in her viv so i put her in the lay box. The next day she laid her eggs. I used a laybox outside of the viv. This is the link to my thread people gave me tons of advise I dont think i would of made it through it with out it. http://www.beardeddragon.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=49&t=100295&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&start=435