Emily

[Tonja]

Emily is almost two years old and 578 grams todays weigh in. I don't feel anything on her tummy and I know that doesn't always mean anything. I hope I am wrong in my thoughts but, the last couple of days she is digging under her hammock a bit then lays down like she's backed herself in under it. She's not in any stress that I can tell, she's nice and white on her belly. I know she is of a egg laying age. I am going to make a lay box just in case. What I want to know is if she has eggs, what do I watch for in signs of egg binding and how deep should the sand be in her lay box? Thanks!

 

[AHBD]

Tonja, it may be that she's looking for a place to brumate, or do a little winter slowdown.

Some signs to look for if you suspect eggbinding is that she may just look miserable + sick. Especially if you actually see her strain to push , but nothing comes out, that would be a big sign. For a laybox you can use a small or medium tote, dampened sand or sand/topsoil/eco earth mix. Pile it up about a foot high on one end + start a tunnel by digging a hole into the pile, most beardies will continue it. There's more info in the breeding forum at the sticky at top of the page.

But it's more likely that she's looking for a sleeping spot.

 

[Tonja]

thanks hun. I do know shes going to sleep earlier than her usual 8:30-9:00 pm. Shes under her hammock with her head buried sound asleep at about 5:30 pm so I go ahead and turn off her lights which leaves her a good 9 hours of lights. I know the norm is 10 to 12 but shes doing really well. I was just a bit scared about egg laying. I hope that's not it but will make a lay box just in case, cant hurt. Again thank you so much. After losing Geico I panic at everything now.

 

[AHBD]

You're welcome ! Her behavior does sound like brumation. By the way, if you put her in a laybin , she may dig a little and then go to sleep right in the bin lol. So you can just watch her to see if she shows any laying behavior before taking the step of putting her in. Other than that, it seems like she wants to sleep. Some silly dragons will even happily accept a sheet of newspaper as a blankie.