How soon after the male mounts the female will I be able to tell if she is gravid or not. Does it take long for her to start showing that she has eggs?
I've had 2 gravid females, one 4 yrs ago & one who's laying her 3rd clutch as we speak. With Bo, the 1st, I cud tell she was gravid about a week to 10 days b4 laying. With Miss Fatty, who's laying now, I didn't no at all until she started digging which was a few days b4 she started laying. They carry the eggs roughly for a month from mating to laying. With both of my dragons it was more like 5 weeks. Start looking & feeling 4 lumps in the belly about 2 weeks after mating -- u may or may not c signs then or it cud take another week or 2.
Ok thank you. Reason I'm asking is. I put my male in her cage. And the next day her attach was fat and thick and very round.. so I didn't know if it was to soon to tell.
Haha! Don't u just luv that automatic spell checker thing that substitutes the wrong word if uve misspelled sumthing! Lol But not sure if u mean u put the male in for one day, or did u put him in & leave him in for awhile w/ her. From the way it sounds, he was in w/ her one day & the very next day she looked to b possibly gravid. If that's what u mean, there's no way she'd b "showing" in just one day after mating! Both Bo & Fatty dint look gravid until almost time to lay, & even then I wasn't sure until they started their digging behavior. How old r ur dragons?
They are 18 monthes. And I've been putting my male in with the female for 24 hr on and 24 hours off for two week. And I just have noticed her beening thicker and fuller.
Oh yes! I remember u now! Sorry...I answer so many sumtimes I get a brain fart & can't remember who I've talked to! U were asking earlier about them mating & I recommended waiting till they were 2 yrs old. So uve still been trying? Have they actually accomplished the deed or is he still just kinda playing around & not consummated things yet? Did u actually see them mate? Reason I'm asking is so u'll no whether to actually expect eggs or not. If mating wasn't accomplished, she may not b gravid. U sed she was getting thicker & heavier which r definite signs so they may have. If u DID witness it, do u no the date so u can tell when she'll b ready to lay? It's approx a month from mating to laying, altho w/ both Bo 4 yrs ago & Fatty with all 3 clutches it was 5 weeks not 4. Poor Fatty is on her 3rd clutch now. She's lay between 1-3 eggs EVERY DAY since July 4 and this is her 9TH DAY OF CONTINUOUS LAYING!! I had no idea it cud go on that long but Lord-a-mighty! This is ridiculous! I'm calling her Twiggy now cuz she's not eaten in days (except crickets) & her skull, tail bone & spine r all sticking out. She's really emaciated & I'm worried sick about her. If she'd just stop laying!! Anyway, if u have mated ur female and she is only 18 months, u need to make sure while she's gravid she eats all she wants & give her multi-vitamins & supplents to help her along the way. It's not unheard of for them to lay at that age but is just recommended u wait till they're 2. I'm NOT comin down on u or fussing or anything -- don't get me wrong!! I just wanna help u out as much as possible if I can to get thru an already stressful time! Good luck w/ her. Keep watching her. If he's been going in her cage 4 up to 2 weeks, she cud possibly b up to 2 weeks gravid (they lay about 4-5 weeks after mating) so just keep a close eye to c if she continues to grow & lumps start to appear. If u determine she is DEFINITELY gravid, stop putting the male in with her. Sumtimes they want their privacy & don't appreciate males bein around! Kinda like us girls -- when I was pregnant the last thing I wanted to c was my husband hovering over me!!! Keep us/me informed & I'll try to help u thru it as much as I can! Good luck!!
Lol.. thank you so much.. what should I do to get her bury box ready what should I use and what are the steps you take? Do I put it in her 75 gal tank with her. And if so what side of the tank?
The way I've always dun it is this: u need to make a "nest box" where she can lay her eggs. U won't need it until she starts glass-dancing, running around frantically, constantly digging & just acting crazy In general. When all these things happen, at the same time, u no its time to fix her nest & she's about ready to lay. I make my nest box out of another glass aquarium I have, I think it's a 20-gal, but u can use anything that's big enuff 4 her to stay in hours at the time. Don't make a small nest & put it in the side of her cage b/c she will keep running in & out of it & throwing the dirt in the nest into her cage substrate, and even possibly laying her eggs outside of the nest in the cage so u don't want that. If u don't have another glass aquarium, u can find or make a box out of something as long as its sturdy enuff for her to stay in for awhile. Buy a bag of plain potting soil which is really just soft dirt, and a bag of vermiculite from Lowes or a nursery (flower center). Ur gonna mix some of the potting soil and vermiculite together to put in her next box. Whatever size box u have wl determine how much u use, but u want about 3 parts potting soil and 1 part vermiculite. Also add water to the mix. U want it just moist enuff that it'll stick together & not fall apart, but u don't want it wet. If u can hold it together in ur hand & make a ball of it & uve got water running out of it or if u squeeze it & water drips out, it's too wet so add sum more potting soil to soak up the excess water. Mix enuff together that u have the nesting box filled to about 8" minimum. It needs to b deep enuff for them to dig down in & make a hole that they'll lay those eggs in. In my 20-gal aquarium for instance I had it filled about 3/4 or so to the top. Yes she threw dirt everywhere but that's just what they do. If ur fortunate enuff to have a much larger box, u still want it deep enuff for her to satisfy those digging behaviors b/c that's all she'll do for days is dig, dig, dig & dig sum more. They usually won't eat during this time so u hafta make sure she stays hydrated -- give her warm baths so she can drink & still feed her -- I no both my dragons refused their greens but wud still eat crickets so just make sure she's got plenty of them, dusting them too so she'll still b getting her vitamins. After what u will think is an eternity of digging (mine dug for 6-1/2 days straight!), they'll finally be satisfied with what they've dug out & get down to the business of laying their eggs. Since its ur girls first time and she is very young, she may lay several eggs that r infertile, and some that r fertile. She may just lay one clutch, or several. Miss fatty, who I'm now calling Twiggy cuz she's so skinny after 11 straight days of laying, has lay 3 clutches of eggs that came 5 weeks apart. So u have ur eggs and in 3-4 weeks she starts digging & goin crazy again, u no she's gonna lay another clutch so u gotta make her another nest site. But my other female, Bo, only lay one clutch & never did lay any more so it just depends on the individual dragon on how many they're gonna lay. From what uve sed b4, u still have plenty of time. If they've only been together for a max of 2 weeks, it'll b at least 2 more weeks, maybe 3-4, b4 u need to worry about a nest. Just watch her & when she goes crazy digging, etc, it's time to get started. I'd recommend reading the CARE SHEETS on this website (and other good ones as well -- u can google it & find tons of info on it), but read up on it and also the incubation of the eggs. If u don't have a store-bought incubator, u can make one. I've got a homemade one but they're not that expensive (around $40-50 for a decent one) & I think it wud b well worth it to have. If u make one u can't control the temp & humidity as well & it's easier to get ur eggs all the way thru w/ a proper incubator rather than a homemade one. It can b done of course, but it's just easier if u buy one. Next time I'm definitely investing in one as we've had temps up to 107F here for 2 weeks & is hard to keep eggs in the mid 80's when it's that hot outside. I've had a hard time w/ it & have lost sum eggs as a result so if u can buy one, do. Good luck & let me know if there's anything else I can help u with.