General Care Discussion :: Ya'll..I think I have a FREAKY turtle..HELP!

[camee1991]

HONESTLY! Tobi is gravid AGAIN!

This is her 4th time in a month and a half!!! She acts as if she will be laying tomorrow. (Could have been tonite, but it was too late to take her out.) So she walked the house and tired herself out!

WT?! I dont understand? 4 TIMES? She has had 14 eggs already! 4, 6 then 4! Now, who knows?

She is swimming the back of the tank furiously AGAIN and I have to keep a metal lid over her dock because she tries HARD to climb out when she is gravid...(which she has tried ALL nite)

Im like freaking out! I think someone is sending a "little boy" turtle fairy to her tank every couple weeks or something...lol What could be the reason this is happening?! This is her 1st SEASON of laying. She is only 4 1/2 years old; but she is LARGE.... almost 10" long and 8" wide.... maybe the eggs had been there since she was so big but she just wasnt "mature" enough to lay yet? (I have no other idea or possibilities..?!)

I feel so bad for her....she was sooooo tired the last time! I thought for sure that was the last for a WHILE; but sadly no. Even though it is a beautiful and awesome thing to watch, it is CRAZEEE! lol

Ideas anyone? Hmmmmmmmm

Guess I'll be posting more "booty" egg pix tomorrow OR VERY SOON.... lol

[octpusgirl8]

No way! This is getting crazy! Maybe you should consult a vet about it? I've heard of birds having problems where they are constantly laying eggs, maybe something similar could happen to a turtle? I have no idea if it's normal for her to be laying eggs that often, but it seems awfully stressful for the both of you. It is pretty cool to see though, i'm glad you got such awesome pictures of the process. Good luck with everything, and hang in there Tobi!

[DavidY]

All I can think of is when my first female bearded dragon (what else ) was gravid. She laid 24 viable eggs in one nest. About 4 weeks later she laid another 22 eggs! The thing with beardies is they can expand a lot when they are gravid which allows them to develop more eggs at a time. Whereas poor Tobi is constrained by her shell so she only has enough room to develop so many eggs before she has to lay them. So what's it sounds like to me is that her body is wanting to lay a full compliment of eggs but she can only produce 4 to 6 at a time because of space limitations. The more eggs an animal lays is usually a sign of good physical health and good environmental conditions. Just make sure to give her some extra energy foods after each clutch to help her keep her strength up. In the beardie world it is recommended to give females some Waxworms or Butterworms and even a pinky mouse to help them quickly restore their reserves after depositing their eggs. You can usually find the Waxworms in the small insect refrigerator in the reptile section at Petco. Most reptiles love them but I've never tried feeding them to my RES before. Actually, I have some in the fridge, I'll go see if my guys like it or not...I'll let you know the results.

[marisa]

Wow. I'm actually feeling sorry for her.

She will need extra calcium after all the eggs she's been laying.

I tried wax worms once. I found them to be repulsive, and so did my turts.

[industrial_girl_2000]

Whoa!!! That poor Tobi girl!!!! Keep us posted!!!

[camee1991]

Thankx guys!
And David you may be right. I think she was maybe just BIG enough to make eggs, but not mature enough...and NOW needs to lay the FULL clutch.
No luck tonite though. She just walked the yard. So she is NOT ready just yet.

I will keep everyone posted and YES I will keep her calcium up! Havent tried waxworms either..just fat ones and trout worms. I hope all goes well and she stays healthy! My vet knows nothing. I would have to take her to Stillwater to a specialist if this KEEPS happening....
but if all goes normally; Im not gonna worry.

I just PRAY the weather isnt too cold and she lays tomorrow. Kinda puts a "hitch" in the daily chores...lol ya know?

Ill post pix as soon as she lays!