How common is infertility?

[Barbel]

I have five females that I mated to one male this season. Four laid and one re-absorbed. The first clutch laid from my proven female already hatched. One normal and one mack snow (go me!) and her next clutch is looking good. Another female I have has already laid two clutches. Last year she laid 5 clucthes and none of them hatched (different male). This year, the eggs aren't looking good either.
The next two females have both laid one clutch. One only laid one egg that looks like a slug and the other one laid two eggs one looks bad and the other is so far okay.
I have tried several different times to get them all to mate with the male again, but the all refuse.
They all get plenty of calcium dust, food and water, and have the proper temps and a lay box. I start checking for eggs when it gets close to the lay date and remove them soon after they are laid.
Is it this common to have so many bad eggs? Am I doing something really wrong?

 

[Baoh]

I've had one female Bell Hybino that has given me 22 eggs so far, all of which had no embryo at all. She's been bred to three different males, all of which have produced fertile eggs via other females. I haven't any others like her, though, so far.

 

[Barbel]

Hmmm... The female that gave me 5 clutches last year, but none hatched is also a Bell Hybino.

 

[matt1134]

interesting congrats on the mack snow.

 

[Barbel]

Thanks! It is more first morph ever to hatch.

 

[Barbel]

I would really like some help with this. Does anybody know why I might have so many bad eggs? Is it just bad luck?

 

[Wreptile]

I'm 99% sure that all eggs I've had have been infertile.
This is my first season breeding, and I have had 5 eggs.

 

[Western Gecko]

I don't think your issue is all that uncommon. I'd guess that most breeders with more than a few females will tell you that they have one or two that simply don't produce viable eggs or produce very few good eggs.

The age and internal condition of the gecko has a lot to do with egg production. No one is exactly sure why some females develop into better egg producers than others as there are many things at work inside every female. The care could be identical for two females and one could be an egg machine while the other simply refuses to produce follicles or reabsorbs the eggs. Sometimes it will take a female a few breeding seasons to achieve quality egg production and sometimes they come out of the gate swinging.

As for myself I have one female that produced all slugs last year and continues to produce slugs this year. I'll be switching out the male if I get two more clutches of slugs to see if it's the M or the F that is causing the problem. I have another female that simply shuts down during breeding season and eats very little and produces no eggs at all.

In discussion with other breeders I don't think we’re the exception to the rule...

 

[Barbel]

Thanks... That's all I wanted to know.
My female that has given all bad eggs this year and last year has been mated to two different males, both of which have proved out with a different female. So, I guess I will just keep doing what I'm doing and keep looking at what other breeders do and hopefully my hatch rate will become better.