Questions before we breed

[gordmit]

I'm a newbie and don't want to rush breeding until I know as much as possible. Is the egg producing cycle started with the introduciton of a male--in other words if no male there will be no eggs? Also, f the female starts producing eggs will she continue for the entire season? All I'd like to have is a single successful clutch--a couple of additional females, but once the cycle is started and if the female continues to produce eggs...that sounds like way too much stress to put on sweet little Tangerine and I'm not realistically prepared to care for a dozen Leos. I've read a bunch of threads on this site and I really appreciate the words of caution around breeding and will not subject animals to undue stress and create new Leos on a whim. I don't even have a male yet, that is how far ahead I'm thinking...just got SHTCT girl at Christmas. Thx Gordo

 

[acpart]

Most of the time females will not lay eggs if there is no male present, but it's been known to happen. If you breed the gecko, often when the first clutch of eggs is nearly ready to be laid, you can see the next clutch forming. I don't know if it's possible to stop the female after only 1 clutch, and tossing fertile eggs sounds kind of wasteful. The best you could do, if you wanted to limit the number offspring, is to introduce the male to the female just once, and you should get an average of 3 clutches. It could be more or less, though, since that's just an average.

Aliza

 

[gators0204]

I agree you might not wanna breed if you arent ready to have a bunch of clutches. One of my females laid a few days ago and she is already forming new eggs.

Maybe you should just buy another one.

 

[gordmit]

Thanks for the advice, seems I have somewhat of a good idea of what I'm in for should I decide to take the next step. What I would most likely do is line up homes for the babies long before I even acquire a male. We're a year away at best, long enough to prepare for any next steps. I did a lot of research prior to getting a Leo--it has proven to be a great family pet. I also appreciate the support network on this site...awesome!! gordo