Chahoua Fecundity - How productive are your chewies?

[aschnell]

Hey all, I'm going to start breeding chewies this summer, and I'm wondering how many eggs you all get from a given pair during a season. The more data the better, so don't hold back. Any tips or hints also appreciated.

Thanks!
-Andrew

[that_girl]

We got 6 eggs from our pair. Female proven, male first year breeder. 1 went bad almost right away. 4 went bad over the course of incubation, and only 1 hatched!

[Dragontown]

Age and weight are VERY important..... many breeders wait until a pair is 2 yrs+ to breed and then weight needs to be taken into account for GT and PI forms as well. Breeding can really suck the life out of an unprepared female.

No surprise a first time breeder's eggs are quitters though. I got four eggs from a proven mainland pair last year, all hatched.

[aschnell]

We got 6 eggs from our pair. Female proven, male first year breeder. 1 went bad almost right away. 4 went bad over the course of incubation, and only 1 hatched!

Thanks for the info!

PI or mainland pair?

What were the weights and ages of each going into the season?

What incubation substrate was used?

[aschnell]

Age and weight are VERY important..... many breeders wait until a pair is 2 yrs+ to breed and then weight needs to be taken into account for GT and PI forms as well. Breeding can really suck the life out of an unprepared female.

No surprise a first time breeder's eggs are quitters though. I got four eggs from a proven mainland pair last year, all hatched.

Is 4 a typical number of eggs per season? I've heard of more and of less...

[Dragontown]

Is 4 a typical number of eggs per season? I've heard of more and of less...

I would think 6 is average but there are lots of variables... diet, environment, age, weight.

[that_girl]

Thanks for the info!

PI or mainland pair?

What were the weights and ages of each going into the season?

What incubation substrate was used?

PI pair. Female unsure of age (4-6 estimate), 60grams. Male 3 yrs old, 60 grams. Superhatch, room temperatures.

[GeckoFiend]

1.1 mainlands
first year: 8 eggs: 2 dried out before I found them and the other 6 hatched
second year: 7 eggs: all hatched

I think the best advice is not to rush it. I wait several months after they stop growing before putting them together. I would recommend 30-36 months minimum before breeding.

[Rhachic]

mainland pair proven 8 years old 2 clutches every year for the first 2 i had them, in each clutch one egg was fertile one was not, all fertile eggs hatched. Third year 2 clutches with one good one bad egg as years prior, then one clutch both fertile incubated full term then died in shell. They're both retired now because in her 12th year the female laid 1 dud clutch then had a weird problem and actually had 3 eggs at the same time. She could barely move and eat so i decided it was time for her to just be my pet. All 3 eggs were malformed duds. She was 50 grams at the start of breeding every year, incubation temps are around 75. I have 3 females and 1 male from her, never found out what the last baby she gave me was I sold it and haven't heard what sex it turned out to be.

Another mainland trio I have I bred for the first time last year. Both females are virgins 3 years old 44 grams and 48 grams. Male is 4 virgin 50 grams. Larger female gave me 1 dud clutch, smaller female did nothing. I'm breeding them again now, haven't seen much activity yet but i just put the male in at the beginning of the week, so we'll see what happens.

Pine island pair male 88 grams virgin 2 years old, female 72 grams virgin but started laying duds on her own, 2 years old. First year 2 clutches, one dud one with both eggs good and hatched. Second year 5 clutches first clutch dud, all after that were fertile, 1 clutch made it to term but died in shell, all the rest hatched fine. Same incubation temps. I'm on my third year with this pair now and she just laid her first clutch of the year last month, both are fertile and incubating.

Weight and calcium are key with chahouas. Generally they don't weigh enough to start breeding until they're at least a year and a half and even then it's a good idea to give that extra 6 months to be sure they're stable at that weight and make sure their calcium sacks are good and full. Personally I shoot for no less than 45 grams with mainlands, though i prefer 50 but some specimens just don't get bigger. Pine's a minimum of 50 but preferably 60. These are female weights, males aren't as important, if anything you want your male to be about the same size as your female so they don't harm her but can keep up with her. One thing i've noticed with chahouas and i'm not sure if everyone else agrees but females sometimes seem to be triggered into breeding from just smelling a male. i've had 3 female pines in the past that started laying duds randomly, and every time it happened after i'd switched cages and put them in a cage that was previously housing a male chahoua. I suppose it could be a coincidence but 3 times is quite a bit, and 2 of those females were too young (1 year) and in my opinion too light (40 grams and 38 grams) to be carrying eggs. Since then i'm sure to put any younger females in totally sterilized cages, i haven't had the problem again since.