Making female fat quickly after laying?

Hello,

My female layed Tuesday and since that day, ate 3 superworm. Today (ate nothing) I took out a pinky but she totally refused it She was hand fed since birth. How can I teach her to hunt?

And make her gain back her 10g very quick before new eggs are big and she's full..? She was about 53g, was 43g after laying, now 46g but didn't poop from the superworm yet.

Thanks.


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You cant really force her to eat. Just put the superworms in a bowl in the enclosure and if she is hungry she will eat them. If she laid eggs on Tuesday then it will be around 14 - 21 days (on average) before she lays her next clutch.

As said, she never hunted. Leaving worms in enclosure, I did and NONE if the gecko touched them...

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I would agree - even if shes always been hand fed she'll hunt if she gets hungry enough. Three super worms are a decent meal. She might not have had room for the pinky in her belly. Just make sure she has access to enough food and try feeding her the way you normally do each night. You'll do more harm than good if you try to force her to eat more than her belly can hold.

Females won't gain all the weight they lose back in between clutches. Mine tend to lose about 1-3 grams per clutch making for about 10-20g over the course of the breeding season. That's why its a good idea to wait until they're at least 60g to breed them. Losing that much weight is really rough on a smaller gecko.

3g you say.. She lost 10g and it's her first eggs this year!! What's wrong?

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3g you say.. She lost 10g and it's her first eggs this year!! What's wrong?

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Of course, she just dropped two eggs on Tuesday and the eggs weigh a few grams each. That is normal. It will take her some time to gain some of that weight back. My females will loose between 8-12 grams when they lay each clutch. Then in the 14 - 21 day time frame (in between laying there next clutch) they will gain back most of the weight lost 6-10 grams. So it works out that my females loose on average around 2 grams per clutch. Not all females are the same, some will loose more than others. Not all females take breeding well.

I would suggest getting a book on these animals like Ron Trempers. There are entire sections on breeding in detail. This will make things much easier for you and this way you will know what to expect.

Yeah when I say 1-3 grams per egg I mean overall, like they stop eating, lay two eggs, are down 10 grams, start eating, gain 8 grams back then lay again and are down 12 grams, gain 7 back, lay again, etc.

Like SC says, not all females are the same and some take it harder. Ensuring they are big enough and healthy enough to handle the stress before introducing them to a male is the first step. Ensuring they get the calories, vitamins and minerals they need in between clutches is another. Other than that you need to see how they take it and consider not breeding them again if they are overly stressed.