[loopy_laura]

Hi, i woke up this morning, to find my female leo had layed a egg. There was only one in the tank, i know its not fertile as it had a whole in it. Is this normal?
Also when is the breeding season for leopard geckos?
thanks for your help

 

[Kerry1]

If this is the 1st time she has bred then yeah this is normal. Her whole clutch this year could well be infertile. Make sure you feed her lots and give her a small dish of calcium in her viv so she can help herself if she feels she needs more.

The leo breeding season can start anywhere from December and last all the way through to October depending on your leos. They will breed when they feel they are ready, so I guess your season has started now. If they start early, they may well finish early. A female in her prime (say 2-6 years old) can lay upto 10 clutches per year, sometimes more! Hence the need for lots of food and vitamins and calcium as it takes a lot out of them! Mine are just starting to eat normally again after fasting themselves, so I'll give my guys another 2 weeks to a month before I breed them to ensure my females are as healthy as possible. Try giving your female a pinky mouse once a week with it's bum dipped in calcium. Some will eat pinkies, some won't.

 

[loopy_laura]

Thanks for your advice, So, is it possible for a leo to have 1 egg as its first clutch? I haven't had them for long, and was told that the breeding season didnt start until march.
Any further info would be helpful.

 

[corvid2e1]

young, small or very old leos will often lay a single egg rarther than a pair, however if they know they are not fertile they often don't bother to burry them and just lay them on the surface, often in different parts of the tank. It may be worth double checking the tank to make sure the other one isn't hidden up a corner or something.

 

[K.J.Geckos]

my leos kicked into breeding season on the 1st of jan so it differs from gecko to gecko.If it is her first clutch then its normal for her to have one egg and more then likely not fetile.certainly wont if its got a hole in it.

 

[loopy_laura]

She had tried to burry it, but she had burried it in wood chips, and i think they had made a whole on it! should i change the substrate?
I havent had them for very long, so i hadnt set up the tank 100% correctly. i have now put a moist hide in the tank.
Is there anything else i sould be doing to make sure the eggs survive next time?

 

[Athravan]

I've had 4 eggs this year so far so certainly for mine breeding season has already kicked in. If you want to keep and incubate the eggs supply a box with damp moss in it for them to lay the eggs in.

 

[loopy_laura]

should you keep the box in the cool or warm end?

 

[sami]

also note that the hole may be due to any prey you've left in the viv.

Crickets can ruin eggs quite quickly especially if you use back crickets.