Help needed with nesting box

[ZealixAlpha]

Hi Everyone,

I've got a young female central Bearded Dragon going through her 1st pregnancy and I could really use some help making sure that she isn't stressed out and that I'm doing the right thing. I've had dragons for years but it's been a while since I've had a breeding pair.

We first noticed that she was possibly carrying eggs about a week ago on the 26th of Jan. Realizing that I wasn't equipped to help her, I rushed down to the local pet shop and got a fresh bag of reptile dirt, a heat lamp, and a digital thermistor. I put proximity 15kgs of the dirt into a 60lt tub and hung the heat lamp over the top creating a make-shift enclosure. I then placed my little girl into this new setup hoping that she would be more comfortable in making a nest in this new dirt as well as having a little alone time away from her mate. She's been in this box for the last few days and has lost her appetite and been scratching at the side of the tub as if trying to get out. My girlfriend noticed this one day and decided to put her back in the other box and she seemed to settle down. We decided to leave her in there overnight and found her trying to dig the next morning. I would have left her in there but she was having trouble digging in the soft soil of her normal enclosure. I gently picked her up and placed her into the make-shift enclosure and she stopped digging.

I'm now worried that the new setup that I made for her to lay her eggs in isn't good enough for her or that she isn't happy been in that box. What can I do to help my baby girl and is what I'm doing right? I'm mostly after some guidance from someone who has done this before and is able to guide me better on caring for her better.

Thanks!

 

[AHBD]

Hi there, she may not have been quite ready to lay when you put her in the lay box and so was stressed + trying to get out. What you should do is just put her in for a couple of hours, giving the opportunity to dog a cave if she wants, but then put her back in her " home" tank for the rest of the day. Be sure to offer a drink in the meantime. The male should be put in a separate enclosure so she is not stressed [ she will be ] by his presence.

Next time you put her in the laybox, get a plastic storage container that is slightly bigger than a shoebox. Cut one end out of it and put it in the dirt, buried, but pack it with dirt and start a hole in it for her to go in. Make sure the soil mix is damp but not too wet. They usually show interest in a little cave if you start one for them. The upside down plastic container will keep the cave from collapsing and will usually be accepted as the nest. You can do the same thing with a very sturdy cardboard box, but they can fall apart if the dragon takes too long and the box gets soggy.

 

[ZealixAlpha]

Thanks for that. I've been keeping her in the nesting box overnight and away from the male. I have a plastic dome cave that I can put into her box. Although I'm not sure if it is big enough but I can see if I can find something bigger. Do I want to put this cave near the heat lamp or away from it?

 

[AHBD]

I know you want to keep her away from the male but she is not comfortable staying overnight in the damp laybox. It's best if they're separated permanently, or at least while she's gravid. It stresses the females a lot, and they need all their strength to develop the 20 or more eggs .

And it doesn't matter where the cave is unless the heat lamp is really hot she may not like it. Either way is fine.

 

[Skipper7]

A shoebox will work if the cave isn't big enough. You say she has a mate... are they housed together and are you expecting these eggs to be fertile? If so, you should start stocking up plastic totes and lights and get an incubator ready. You could wind up with 60+ babies.

EDIT: Sorry, I posted at the same time as AHBD

 

[ZealixAlpha]

60+ babies? In one go? I didn't even think that was physically possible. I was only planning for 8 to 16 eggs. I'll try and get some photos of my setup and equipment so you can see what I'm working with if that helps.

 

[AHBD]

Skipper mentioned 60 babies because beardies usually lay between 3-6 clutches per season, so 60 is actually a low average for a first time female. It's not that 60 eggs would pop out at once ,[ I think a record is about 60 eggs laid in one clutch by a German Giant female ] Some females will lay over 30 eggs per clutch, averaging well over 150-180 eggs per season. very rarely will they lay less than 15 eggs in a clutch unless they are very young or not in good health from lacking proper nutrition.

 

[ZealixAlpha]

Thanks AHBD. I was a bit worried for a second.

How far apart do they lay their clutches? I've only got a small incubator box (the one where you put water in the bottom then leave under a heat lamp) and not sure if it will fit more than 1 clutch at a time.

The good news is that since putting in the plastic cave into the nesting box my little girl has taken to it straight away. We had the same cave in the main enclosure but they never used it. So hopefully she will be laying soon. Given that, what are the key signs that she has laid eggs? Obviously, I don't want to disturb her every few hours and stress her out so what is the best way to check?

 

[AHBD]

Check to see if she's actively digging. When they begin to lay, their head is usually facing out of the cave and they are very still except for every few minutes they make a slight motion as they expel another egg. Once they're done they get busy pushing the dirt to cover up their cave, and they look much thinner.

Can you post a pic of the incubator ?

 

[ZealixAlpha]

Here are the photos of my setup

 

[AHBD]

That could work but the dirt looks very dry. Take her out and add water to at least the part that's under the cave. Mix it so it can hold it's shape to an extent, like making a sand castle but not quite that wet. Then pack the cave part way with the dirt. Beardies have a strong instinct to dig deep to cover the eggs because in the wild the eggs would be protected in a long burrow, not just under a few inches of dry soil. She wants to see that she can dig a " safe " place for her eggs.

Is she eating ? Offer her insects dusted with calcium if she'll eat, give them by hand to be sure none are left in the laybox to irritate her.

 

[Rankins]

I use peat for my egg laying boxes, it holds its shape well when it's damp. It's also slightly acidic which helps prevent mold and some bacteria. I heat the bin with heat tape and a thermostat. I put the sensor probe inside the bin and bury it in the peat. I would start a hole for the dragon so it would encourage her to dig in that spot to lay her eggs.
I haven't bred bearded dragons in about 20+ years...but I do the exact same thing for my Gila monsters and beaded lizards. They usually don't bury their eggs though...they just lay them on top of the peat. But it's humid enough not to dessicate the eggs.

 

[ZealixAlpha]

@AHBD
Thanks for the advice. I'll add some water today when I get home from work.

She hasn't been eating at all or very little. We're very worried about her. We've tried mealworms, mixed veg, and flowers (so all of her favorites). She has also had plenty of water. What would you recommend doing?

@Rankins
Do you have any photos of your setup? I wouldn't mind having a backup plan just in case.

 

[Rankins]

Gravid females do lose their appetite. Has she lost tail weight? Is it plump? If she has good tail weight I wouldn't be horribly concerned. Once she lays the eggs she will probably "pig out". Hydration is really important though. Egg developement can dehydrate them.

I don't have any pictures of how I had things set up for the bearded dragons. It was a very long time ago. But here is a couple pictures of how it looks. The iguana picture was taken about 25 years ago, the mexican beaded lizard picture was taken 7/26/16. She laid 11 eggs and they just hatched a couple weeks ago. The 63 iguana eggs all hatched.
[ximg]85426 7150672748[/ximg] [ximg]85426 9119777483[/ximg]

 

[ZealixAlpha]

Thanks Rankins.

I'll have another look at her tail today. I have seen her soaking in her water like a bath tub. Hopefully that's a good sign. What would you consider good tail weight?

@AHBD

You were right, that dirt was as dry as dust. I had to add 6 large glasses of water before the dirt was good enough. I also place a huge lump of dirt under her plastic cave as well as semi fill it in. This way she can fell like she is actually digging a proper cave of her own.