The Puffer Forum

Well it took her all afternoon to dig, lay and re-cover her clutch. She just finished up. I also got to see her eat a cricket while she was covering up her eggs. Too cool. That last article I posted says incubation can last from 135 to 170 days. I have read some folks insist to put them in an incubator and others insist not to touch them. Just leave them in the substrate and let it run its course. Thus far I'm thinking the latter. I really dont have the money to buy an incubator though you can get a really nice one fairly inexpensive. About $35 plus shipping. And then theres the question of wether or not they are fertilized. I still am guessing yes. She laid them about 2 inches behind the edge of the substrate heater directly under the large leaves of the pothos I put in there. Nice and humid and warm with leaf cover, just as the article said. Gonna be a long wait.

Please forgive me for having a laugh at your expense, but how funny is it that you just literally get these and then she goes and lays eggs first thing? I think it's amazing.

I agree that you should just let nature runs it's course. If they hatch it will be very interesting and if they don't, then you've got to see something amazing by her digging and laying. I find it amazing that as small as these little characters are, they still have room for eggs inside of them. I have read about 5 eggs ... did you get to see how many she laid?

Too cool Jose!

Unfortunately, I could not. For this species it says 2-3 eggs per clutch. The one I could barely see and it looked considerably larger than I expected. Like a swollen tic tac. Again, it was difficult to see. Could have been more than one very close to one another. It is funny that within 24 hours of being in her new home she started laying eggs. Could be a good thing too. Perhaps it means she is nice and comfy here and found the proper place to lay them. Maybe it was gonna happen regardless where she was. Hell, I dont know. Lol.

Go with the flow, what else can you do? Like I said, let nature take it's course. I can only hope that mine will do some mating and laying of eggs like yours has.
I think it's great luck on your part.

Of course, I don't have my terrarium where I can see it up close unless I go over and stand by it. I might have to think about moving it to another location where I can view it easier. I am thinking of getting another female before the end of the month. There's a reptile show next month, but I can't be sure they will have the same species as what I have, or that the prices will be reasonable. I found another site today that has pygmies but darn are they expensive. I'm glad I found the site I ordered from first, at least he's very reasonable and they are captive bred.

WOW

Sounds like they are super happy and comfortable. So i guess we know at least one is really a female . I say let nature take it's course , I'm sure your little beauty knew what she was doing when she laid them there. Just keep doing what your doing. Maybe put an extra temp sensor there? either way congrats. My mouth dropped when i read this!

maybe its the stress from the move that made her lay them right away? hopefully she didnt lay them prematurely.... anyway, when the eggs mature a bit, ive read that you can candle them, just like you can with chicken eggs. may want to read up on it. it will tell you weather the eggs are fertelized and if the babies are alive or not... also helps you monitor their growth... and its just plain cool to see a little tiny chameleon embryo in a little tic tac sized egg

o o o, guess what?!?!?!?!!? i got a new dog! shes a beautiful pure bred chihuahua. she came from the shelter today. shes got the perfect personality, doesnt bark, lays down and goes right to sleep when i put her in her play pen, gets EXTREMELY happy to see me when i come back home.... and shes small, like 5 lbs

her tail has a little curl to it, and one ear flops over. when she goes down stairs (and this is the only time she does it) one leg will come off the ground and she will go down on only 3 legs XD shes soo cute, those things dont make her look like a pound puppy reject or anything, it actually makes her like a billion times cuter. ill post a pic soon

kilofey wrote:maybe its the stress from the move that made her lay them right away? hopefully she didnt lay them prematurely.... anyway, when the eggs mature a bit, ive read that you can candle them, just like you can with chicken eggs. may want to read up on it. it will tell you weather the eggs are fertelized and if the babies are alive or not... also helps you monitor their growth... and its just plain cool to see a little tiny chameleon embryo in a little tic tac sized egg

I was talking to a friend about that very thing tonight. She worked at a local pet shop for many years and suggested the same things. I also read that they will lay them when stressed. Time will tell. Its an interesting and very cool learning experience either way.

Oh, and grats on the new rat. Sorry, not a fan. But if it makes you happy, thats all that matters.

Kilofey, I love dogs, ALL dogs, but have a soft-spot for small doggies. So definitely CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Hey, I have just found something in my pygmy terrarium!!! I received my digital thermometer today, so I went over and opened the doors, so I could position the sensor, and Kitty was in the plant, moving away from me, and there just below her, in the plant, was a white tic tac -- an egg!!!

Just one, for now, but laid in the plant, not in the substrate. Talk about strange. So I gently moved it down and dug a little bit of substrate away and put the egg there. I don't know if it will hatch, but I thought it was worth doing rather than leaving it out in the open up in the plant. How strange is that? Seems these little wee creatures are a bit unusual. I will be watching to see if she lays any more eggs, as the literature says about 5 eggs. Now I know how you feel Jose. I did want to get another female, but at this rate (if babies come), I will need another terrarium!!!

Very interesting. I wonder why she just plopped it any old place? Strange indeed. Stress? Though I'm pretty sure you arent doing anything to stress them. You also mentioned having dogs. I read in one of the articles from those E-zine links I posted that you shouldnt let them have contact with any other house pets whatsoever. Like even seeing them near their terra is enough to severely stress them out. There is a lot of other articles linked to those if you check the past posted ones. I have been trying to come up with good names. Male is definately a Willard. Female I'm a still undecided. Hey, is that legless crab of yours still kicking? No really...is he still alive?

Well I don't think the dogs are stressing the pygmies, as they are over in the corner and the dogs can't get to where they are. But I suppose it's feasible that the pygmies might be hearing the dogs when they bark. I don't know if that's enough to stress them or not. Unfortunately there's no place in the house where I could put them where they would not hear that noise. But I would certainly not let the dogs near them otherwise.

In regards to my legless crabs .... well one of them molted and got all his appendages back, he's now cruising around the tank causing havoc. The other one, last I looked, is still legless but alive. He pretty much stays hidden under a half coconut shell. I keep hoping that he will molt and get his limbs back also because we've had him for quite a while and I would like to see him improve and continue to live.

If your male is a "Willard", how about your female being a "Wilma"? Just a suggestion. I really am not very good at naming my pets. I tend to have to think about it for a while and see what comes to me.

Very cool the one got his legs back after a molting. Hopefully the other will as well. I would have to go back and reread to see if the sounds would bother them or not. I dont recall it saying. Willard and Kiri. Sound like good names to me.

this is millie
the shelter said she is pure chihuahua, but im not convinced. i believe she is chihuahua/italian greyhound. she is 6.5 lbs (weighed her today). i have already taught her to sit, lay down, high five, and take a bow.... she learned all that in one day. im also litter box training her im a dog trainer (just as a hobby though, i do it for friends/family) she will be a model citizen in no time! (shes already very well behaved though)

JoseDepacos wrote: Oh, and grats on the new rat. Sorry, not a fan. But if it makes you happy, thats all that matters.

she is not a rat! she is a DOG