Candling near hatching time

[Khrysty]

I never candled last time and now that I'm into breeding again (and I realized that you CAN candle) I'm a little obsessive about it.

Records are confused for the first 3 clutches laid because my sister refused to mark the eggs. I thought that the eggs that would have hatched next week had both been thrown out because they were infertile (certainly two eggs WERE infertile), but I candled an egg that I thought was due to hatch in 3 weeks and it looked...full? Like, the shadow that I'm assuming is the hatchling takes up the whole egg and it just glows pink around it. I saw some fluttering movement in the middle..is that the gecko moving?

Anyway, my question is, does this sound like an egg that's 3 weeks from hatching, or just one week? Is it possible to tell?

 

[rubym]

I have had some eggs that seemed "fulled" for several weeks before actually hatching. My first season , I was obbsessed with checking on the eggs. I have calmed down alot since,lol. I think that I have read that you can actually see the hatchling moving around in the egg so I would say that that is what the fluttering is.

 

[Gregg M]

I would refrain from candling especially if the embryo is mobile... They can see the light coming in and will move to get away from the light...

If the embryo moves too much in the egg before it is ready to hatch it can sever the blood vessels to the egg wall that supply its oxygen... This can either cause the embryo to die or it can trigger premature hatching... In either case, it is not worth seeing a "flutter" inside the egg...

The best rule of thumb to go by when you get eggs from your reptile is to "set them and forget them"!!!

 

[Khrysty]

I would refrain from candling especially if the embryo is mobile... They can see the light coming in and will move to get away from the light...

If the embryo moves too much in the egg before it is ready to hatch it can sever the blood vessels to the egg wall that supply its oxygen... This can either cause the embryo to die or it can trigger premature hatching... In either case, it is not worth seeing a "flutter" inside the egg...

The best rule of thumb to go by when you get eggs from your reptile is to "set them and forget them"!!!

Ah, that makes sense...curiosity and impatience are a baaad combination i guess lol

 

[Gregg M]

Ah, that makes sense...curiosity and impatience are a baaad combination i guess lol

We have ALL done it... LOL... Dont worry Khrysty, the more eggs you get the less you will look at them... Hahahaha!:main_thumbsup:

 

[Retribution Reptiles]

I'm the same way. The only thing that I have been doing with my eggs is just exchanging air once a week. I figure the more I mess with them the higher the chance of killing the egg. Why put more variables into the equation then is needed ya know.

just my 2 cents