Cannot Get Solid Eggs...

[ganjaMan2800]

Hi all,

I've been consistently disappointed by the progress that my female's eggs have been making. They always come out plump and solid, then they shrivel and cave in on themselves after a full day in 1.1 vermiculite mixture in the incubator.

Why has this been happening to me? They have plenty of calcium available in the tank, they all eat pinky mice on occasion...

Her first clutch I chalked up to being infertile, however several weeks later now she has laid another two that have shriveled overnight! Please help, any tips or suggestions would be greatly appreciated...

I'll put some pics up later for you all to see...

 

[GeckoGathering]

Corey, maybe a few more details on the problem might help..Is she a first year laying female? Did you observe the breeding? Has the male fathered babies before? Egg photos would be helpful. Incubator hatched any for you before? Verified the temp. with another therm.? Please let us know a little more. Take care. HJ

 

[ganjaMan2800]

Yes this is her first time laying, but she is over two years old. She did not ovulate last year.

I did observe the breeding, as they are not housed together. I do not know of any confirmed offspring that the male has produced. Hovabator is steady at 86*.

I saw that she was ovulating and introduced the male, so I was not very confident that the first clutch would be fertile, but I was expecting the second clutch to look much better. Pics later...

 

[MissD]

Most of my eggs are doing the same thing and this is my female's first year. I am thinking that it is not your housing, but rather the eggs are not fertile. Good luck.

 

[david13]

maybe the eggs arent fertile..and she is a 1st yr breeder too

 

[fallen_angel]

Yeah, I would think that they are just infertile since it's her first year laying. If you want to try something different, you could always switch to perlite with a .8 (water) to 1 (substrate) ratio, and see how that works for you

How are your incubation containers, do they have holes in them or are they completely closed? Do you use a little container filled with water inside of the incubator?

We use containers with no holes and we don't use any dish of water or anything in the incubator, just the containers filled with perlite. The perlite stays the right moisture all season long, and so it never needs to be re-moistened or worried about (as long as the containers have no holes in them), and you just need to open them weekly for air exchange This method is recommended by Albey on his How to Incubate page, and it's supposed to be the best for the most successful hatch rate (it hasn't let us down thus far)

hope this helps!

 

[GeckoGathering]

Why Bad Eggs

Corey, you said, "I did observe the breeding"
......only one time with your male?Take care. HJ

 

[ganjaMan2800]

When I noticed she was ovulating, I introduced her to the male on three occasions within a week long span.

The containers that I use do have holes...but there is always condensation built up on the inside of the lid....is that a good thing? I was thinking that maybe they are too wet?

Thanks for the input and suggestions, I will be re-introducing the two to ensure fertility...

My het. raptor also just laid a clutch, she is also a first-year breeder. The two were stuck together, so I have left them like that, is that the best route?

The first picture is the bell hybino x super hypo tangerine eggs....the one that deflated like you can obviously see in the picture. I took this pic yesterday, so they have gotten progressively worse looking since they were laid three days ago.

The second picture is the eclipse x het. raptor eggs that are stuck together...how do they look? Should I leave them as is? Thanks!

 

[GeckoGathering]

mine won't get hard??

I have reread and looked at your photos. I as many gecko lovers have experienced some egg problems too. There is a few possible answers to the problem of course. But IMHO I feel your hatch containers are too wet.....I've gone through it with vermiculite. Not that vermiculite won't work, but you need to be a more of a mother to the egg boxes...not when using perlite. When I was having some of the same problems I called Hoffman Co...(a maker of both products)
............asked them, what are each and how do they work?
Both are volcanic minerals.Vermiculite is for water retention. Perlite is for drainage and aeration. .......What make the frequently mentioned Albey Method sound is that the perlite retains HUMIDITY, with the water at the bottom of the container. When you see it on the bottom of the lid, as you mentioned, usually that is too wet. Unsteady temp. will show that sign more often.
Take care. HJ

 

[MSMD]

:main_yes: My best guess would be too wet, as well.