!PLEASE HELP! Tiamat has an egg!

[Haligren]

I will be sure to take pictures later although I don't know how good they will turn out. I can only really see it if I bend her backwards and she hates it when I turn her over - she fights the whole way. But it looks like she has an egg forming on her left side. It's a large, oval, whitish mass. She was eating - she had eaten twice in the last week, but when I tried to feed her last night she showed no interest. I've also seen her licking her calcium dish (which I have never seen her do before although I am certain she was as the calcium would deplete after a while) and my husband who is more a night owl than me, has heard her digging in the corner of her tank for long periods of time. I had stuffed paper towels under the background so that a superworm could not escape there, but pieces of it and the background have been torn away. It was a real mess!

She is quite active and while she'll take a break for a while, during the night especially she has been wandering around her tank as though looking for something.

She has not been bred so the egg is infertile, but what can I do to prevent her from becoming eggbound? Will she more than likely reabsorb the egg? Will she attempt to lay it? Many times last night I saw her going over to her bathroom spot and look as though she were trying to have a bowel movement only nothing came out. I'm already worried about her becoming deathly thin as she is probably about 40 grams already from not eating for several months.

Sorry for the wall-o-text, but I just don't know what I should do. Someone please help?

 

[acpart]

Get her a laybox if she doesn't have one already. Keep an eye on her. It's very common for a gecko about to lay to not only dig in the box, but also to seem uncomfortable, not want to eat and change their position often. If you feel she is getting very lethargic, or the egg seems to disappear but she's not her normal self, or she's losing a lot of weight, take her to the vet.

Aliza

 

[Haligren]

Thank you very much. I don't have a laybox for her although I've been trying to keep her moist hide very moist. It only has paper towels in it though. Should I get some moss?

 

[acpart]

I guess moss would be OK. Personally, I prefer coco fiber because it's easier to dig in and I don't think there's any chance of it molding.

Aliza

 

[Stomlin35]

I've never had moss mold, but I have had coco fiber mold :main_rolleyes:

Makes no sense... stupid mold

but, I agree, coco fiber is easier to burrow into, and I doubt you'll have to have it in there long enough for mold to really form for whichever substance you decide to use.

 

[gothra]

Hey Cassandra, I have a female laid several infertile eggs this year too! You can check out this thread:
http://www.geckoforums.net/showthread.php?t=39053&highlight=Gutlei

After she laid the first 2 eggs, I gave her a lay box with coco fiber; she laid another pair of eggs after 2 weeks and she was done. She resumed eating normally after the 4 eggs. Gook luck!

p.s. I'm still keeping her eggs, as this was the first time I see gecko eggs...lol.

 

[Haligren]

Thank you, guys/gals. Well I couldn't find any coco fiber. So I had to get some vermiculite. I put about an inch of it in her moist hide and dampened it. I hope it won't mold quickly but I had to get a 9L bag as I don't think it comes in anything smaller, so I have lots. Tiamat's taking five in a corner of her tank but she's been quite fidgity lately so she'll probably be up again soon. I will keep an eye on her and hopefully she'll use the laybox.

Thank you for the link, Bonnie. I hope Tiamat will only lay a few and the be ready for a meal. I'm just grateful that she has eaten recently.