suplementation + infertiles

[boutiquegecko]

I am having the worst luck all of a sudden with infertile eggs. So far I've gotten 3 infertiles from 2 diff females over the last 3 weeks. The only thing I can think of is that our petstore was out of the repcal supplement, so we had bought one called Nature Zone calcium supplement. I'm wondering if there is a connection. Has anyone else had this problem of infertiles with a different brand of calcium? Everything else about my guys are good-houseing/heat/feed etc, so like I said this is the only thing that's changed.
Then I thought on one female, maybe it was just the end of the season for her plus it's her first time breeding this year. The other though, like xavier's females, had visible eggs yet, so I put her in with her male and they mated, so I thought, ok, fertile egg. Nope. And she only laid one again. I'm swithching back to the repcal asap, but this is a bummer for the season end.

 

[breed leos]

ya if it is her first time breeding then you probably have some problems with the eggs. usually a good cluch of eggs come around the second year.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

Have any of these breeders produce viable eggs in the past? Although I can't prove anything scientifically, I have a strong hunch that when the brands of supplements are changed, it somehow affects the way they get metabolized. This may cause a lack of calcium when the shell of the egg is forming, so eggs fail even if they are fertile.

Here's my examples:

- Three years ago I switched from using Rep-Cal products to the new T-Rex Sandfire Ranch Leopard Gecko Dust. I got NO viable eggs from ANY of my females for a few months until I switched back to Rep-Cal, then immediately began to get good eggs again.

- Two years ago (as if I didn't learn a lesson here) I started using Miner-All (O) without D3, and not only did I start getting infertiles, but I lost a good percentage of eggs about 2-3 weeks into incubation. As soon as I switched back to my original supplementation regime, the problem disappeared.

I spoke to Dr. Dan Wentz from Rep-Cal Labs last year at the NARBC Show about this, and he thought I may be correct with my hunch. He was going to check into it, but I haven't heard anything. He will be at the show again this year, so I'll pick his brain some more on this subject.

 

[Grinning Geckos]

What supplement schedule do you use Marcia? Inquiring minds want to know.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

usually a good cluch of eggs come around the second year.

I disagree. Although it is not uncommon for first-timer females to lay infertile eggs the first or second clutch, they are usually are viable the 2nd or 3rd time. The majority of my females lay fertile eggs the very first time.

What supplement schedule do you use Marcia? Inquiring minds want to know.

Well, I may get some flack about it, but I use Rep-Cal w/VitD in mealworm bowls weekly & dust crickets with it every other feeding, and dust with Rep-Cal Herptivite weekly.

 

[gko reptiles]

I have never used Repcal on our leos, I do however use it on our 2 Mali Uromastyx, 1 baby Ornate Uromastyx, and 1 Sulcutta Tortise. For them, it works out well.
Phil and I have used Herp-Care Cricket Dust from day 1 and have never had a problem with infertiles. (besides the occasional female who lays, but was never bred)

 

[Grinning Geckos]

Well, I may get some flack about it, but I use Rep-Cal w/VitD in mealworm bowls weekly & dust crickets with it every other feeding, and dust with Rep-Cal Herptivite weekly.

You can't argue with success! I'd call zero deformities pretty successful.

 

[boutiquegecko]

Marcia, all of my females bred have had fertile eggs already and this was before I picked up the other supplement. That's why I think that has something to do with it. I thought I read somewhere that you had the same problem before. One female is a 1st year breeder the other a second. It's so strange how one brand can make a difference.
Guess it's like us taking folic acid during pregnancy. Need to ensure some good growing

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

I also know a breeder who uses T-Rex Sandfire Ranch Leopard Gecko Dust exclusively, and has never had a problem. That's why I wonder if it's about changing the formulation of supplements midstream during laying season, and perhaps not the product itself.

 

[TheHiddenGecko]

I tried to make this fit as best as possible w/o going off topic too much. If you feed a dog a certain kind of food for a while, and then decide to switch to a new kind, sometimes the dog can get sick for a while until it gets used to eating the new food. This could go along with what Marcia was saying about the supplements.