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View Full Version : Leo getting ready to lay!

Leo-Land
03-31-03, 05:32 PM
My female leo, Ren, is showing again! She has the red sides that she had the day before she laid her first clutch! We should be getting the next clutch within a few days now! I cannot wait!
fr0glet
03-31-03, 06:24 PM
Hehehe! I forget that people get so excited about eggs... I have 6 adult females in the colony and it seems like someone is ALWAYS gravid all spring/summer/fall! I'm not a breeder though, I just toss the eggs out. They're more pesky than exciting to me!

However recently my leo laid an egg RIGHT IN MY HAND, *that* was pretty amazing. :)
Leo-Land
03-31-03, 06:37 PM
You throw the eggs out? Why would you do that??
fr0glet
03-31-03, 06:53 PM
Same reason I take birth control pills. Because I'm not interested in having babies!
Leo-Land
03-31-03, 06:56 PM
Why keep the males with the females then? That seems a bit cruel just to throw them away. Why not give them to someone who would like to incubate them?
Katt
03-31-03, 07:27 PM
Yeah. Laying eggs is hard on the female's body. Take the male away so the female's aren't continuously producing.
fr0glet
03-31-03, 08:57 PM
There are tons of leos available on the market captive bred. I associate with lots of local breeders. I don't buy my animals and I am not in this for money.

I am a rescuer of unwanted animals, not a breeder. I see too many unwanted or poorly cared for herps to justify adding to that pool. I am considering the possibility of breeding some herps that are pretty much only available WC right now, but that won't happen for a long time and definately not something that people have selectively bred down to a fine art. My leos are quite "normal", just like the rest of my collection, and I would wind up just increasing my own population (which grows from rescues almost weekly).

I don't find discarding eggs cruel at all. They would lay the eggs regardless of whether they were housed with the male. In fact, a female leo can store a sperm sample from one mating for up to a year, laying fertile eggs the whole time. Even if I did remove the male, they would still be generating eggs.

I'm sorry if I sound a bit defensive, it's just harder for me to accept overbreeding and saturating the pet trade than a little choice not to procreate. Vent over. :)