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Breeding Lizards

there are a few things you need to know about breeding lizards im new to the breeding seen but im getting info from a rocksolid source i tell you about incubators

 

The storage box incubator

Storage Box Incubator

 

Materials list One 33 gallon storage box - I use the Sterilite brand, available at most department stores. Cost - usually under $10 Up to 12 small shoe boxes - Again I use the Sterilite brand, with the flat bottoms. Can be purchased at Dollar General stores, or other department stores usually for $1 each.

2 Submersible aquarium heaters - Although one may suffice, I use two heaters to provide more uniform heating and in case one malfunctions or gets unplugged, etc. Cost - around $15 each

1 Small submersible pump - This may be optional, I use one (a Duetto DJ-50) just to keep the water circulating in the incubator and prevent "hot spots." Cost - around $20

1 Digital thermometer with remote sensing probe - A thermometer is optional, but a good digital one with hygrometer can be purchased at Radio Shack for around $20-$30.

Building the incubator This design is similar to the aquarium style incubator in both style and function, but allows a much greater holding capacity. I built a framework of PVC pipe to support the shoe boxes above the water in the bottom of the incubator. Bricks or a plastic grate (cut to fit the storage box) may also be used to support the shoe boxes. I placed a heater on each end of the incubator, and positioned the pump in order to circulate the water in a circular fashion.



Set your heaters to the proper temperature, add enough water to cover the heaters and pump, and then plug everything in. Use a thermometer to double check the accuracy of your heaters, and you are done.

Aquarium style incubator

Aquarium style Incubator

This aquarium style incubator is a simple, yet highly efficient design. The basic setup is shown in the photos. Note in the photo below the submersible heater attached to the lower inside of the tank. It is better to pay a little more for a quality heater with adjustable temperature settings shown on the side of the heater. This allows for precise control of incubation temperatures. The aquarium should be filled with a few inches of water, enough to cover the heater completely. The bricks are used to keep the containers of eggs and incubation medium above the water line. An alternative to bricks would be a plastic grate or grid cut to fit the inside of the tank, supported by a small plastic flower pot (turned upside down) in each corner. I have seen them built both ways.

A cover for the aquarium is needed to hold in warmth and moisture. The cover can be either a piece of glass cut to fit the top of the tank or your choice of material. To monitor the temperature, a small stick-on thermometer may be placed inside the aquarium. Alternatively, you may wish to purchase a more expensive digital thermometer with remote probe. This way the exact temperature of the eggs/incubation medium may be monitored.

Is your Gecko male Or Female

Is my Leopard Gecko Male or Female?



On the left is an adult male Leopard Gecko. You can see that the bulge behind the vent is quite noticeable. That is where the hemipenes are located. You can also readily see the row of femoral pores shaped like a "V" in front of the vent.

On the right is a female Leopard Gecko. As you can see, she has neither the bulge nor a noticeable row of pores. There is a row there, but it is really not that noticeable.

You will have to wait til the Gecko is old enough, over 6 months at least to really be sure. Juvenile male Leopard Geckos look very much like females.

Breeding Advice

General & Gecko Pre-season Conditioning:
You need to make sure the female has enough calcium all through breeding season (Feb.-Aug) and that she stays well-fed. You can leave the calcium out in a low dish (I use small plastic bottle lids like the ones that come on Rep-Cal or Herptivite cans) and she will take it freely when she needs it. I actually leave the calcium in the cage like that year round. The males will sometime lick at it if they need it too. You don't want them to eat the sand to try and get calcium. Also dust the crickets every other feeding during breeding season. (Don't use a calcium supplement with D3 added as too much D3 can be toxic.) Leopard Geckos get plenty of D3 from the crickets and mealworms they eat. Start this conditioning in early Feb. to ensure healthy parents and offspring.

Cage Preparation:
First of all you will need to put in a laying box for her and leave it in there all the time. I use old tupperware or similar with the lid on. Cut a hole in the side big enough for her to get in to. Fill the box about halfway with moist (not soaking) vermiculite or perlite (from a plant nursery). She will go in there when she is ready and start digging. (All of the geckos will enjoy the moist box as it aids in shedding too.) That container on the right is about 4.5 inches wide by 8 inches long by 4 inches high. This is a nice sized laying box for 1-3 females. Check it often during breeding season. The clear sides help as you can lift the box up and look thru the bottom to see where the eggs are located much of the time.

Laying:
You will know when she gets eggy because you can see the 2 eggs in her right through her skin. Trust me, you will know. She will most likely lay eggs about once every 2-4 weeks so you can see why she needs a lot of calcium. She may start to refuse food when she is about to lay. Most likely there will be vermiculite spewed out of the tupperware as she begins to dig also. She will dig quite a hole in the vermiculite as you can see in the picture to the left. You will also notice when she has laid her eggs because she will be a lot skinnier. Then you just remove the eggs and incubate them. IMPORTANT: Do not turn the eggs over. Transport the eggs in the same position they were laid to the incubator.

Your gecko will be ravenous now so be sure to feed her to keep her weight up before she refuses food the next time. (Definitely dust the crickets for feeding after laying. She needs to get her calcium levels back up. A healthy well-fed gecko will have no problem laying eggs all season. But you have to keep an eye on her to make sure her tail stays nice and fat. If your gecko appears particularly weak after egg laying you will want to remove her from the male for a time until she gets her strength back

Incubation:
I use an old cage called a Neodesha cage. I cover the little screen at the top with foil to keep the temperature and humidity constant inside. I put a thin mylar heating pad under it and attach a thermostat to keep a constant temp. (There are thermostats available from a number of places including your local pet store or a wider variety is available from places like aquarium services.) In the cage, I put another larger tupperware box or plastic shoe box filled almost all the way with moist vermiculite (moist not soggy). I put the top on it but the top has small holes in it. This is the hard part. Try to get it to stay very humid but not too wet so as to get moldy. You have to experiment with this. The remote temp detector thing from the thermostat gets placed not only in the cage but into the vermiculite in the shoe box. There should be some condensation inside the shoebox but it should not be dripping. Water will have to be added periodically to keep it moist. This is a judgement call and depends on your set-up.
 
 
 

Temperature - Dependent Sex:
I set the thermostat to keep a constant temp of 81 degrees. This ensures that I get all females and can keep them together later if they don't sell. If you want males you can keep them at 87-88 degrees to be sure. 85 is supposed to get about half male and half female but then you can also get hot female and cool males that don't breed well or at all. You just put the eggs in there buried about halfway and incubate away for about 6-8 weeks and instant geckos!
 
 
 

Rearing the Hatchlings:
They don't eat for about a week or until the first shed. I usually let them tool around in the incubator on the vermiculite for about 2 days before I remove them to individual plastic shoe boxes with paper towels for substrate. They hatch with a yolk sack attached much of the time and I have seen them scrape it off on the paper towels. That is why I leave them in the vermiculite for a couple of days.

I keep the hatchlings separately in plastic shoeboxes in a rack that was made for specially for them. It has heat tape all through it so that the backs of the shoeboxes can have nice gentle heat. You can keep them together but you need to watch carefully that everyone is eating and no one is getting picked on. Keeping them singularly for the first couple of months ensures that there will be no tail losses from nippy cagemates also.
 
 

incubator #3