Breeding Organization/Methods

[GreenNeutron]

Ok. I wanted to do some brain-storming (way ahead of time, as I'm not even _getting_ my unsexable trio until next week) to see how you guys go about your breeding projects. The way I see it there are a few options as to how to proceed.

1. Two+ cages of 1.1 ratio each, allow reproduction, and any holdback offspring just breed them with members of other cages to avoid inbreeding. Simply keep offspring in rubbermaids that detail what cage group they came from. Allow all cages a 2 month cooling period in the winter to recoup, remove any females that produce undercalcified eggs and allow them to recoup for a couple of months or so giving extra calcium/D3.

2. Two+ cages of 1.2(or 1.3 if in possession of enclosures that large) ratio each because this would prevent too much breeding pressure being put on a single female. Re: Handling of cages/females in option 1. Additional info, it would be fairly impossible to know what offspring came from what female (unless they were markedly different in appearance or you had a video camera on the laying box), so it wouldnt be possible to take a nice looking male and breed him back to the female who wasn't his mother, because you wouldn't know which one she was.

3. (This option is based on the assumption that females store sperm, I've read in several threads on this board that this is true. Is it always true or just occasionally?) Several cages in which the geckos are usually housed individually most of the year, introducing 1 female with 1 male until she produces a first set of eggs, then put her in her own enclosure and let her produce all the eggs that she's going to, then rest a couple of months before breeding her again. For the males just give them more females, but still allow them a two month or so cooling period. This option would require more bookwork, but if it would work seems like it would allow for more genetic experimentation while still avoiding inbreeding.

I'd assume that 1. and 2. are widely used, but has anyone considered using 3. or something similar?

Wow, didn't mean for that to be such a long post, but I want to start getting my ducks in a row. (And I'll try to avoid counting my geckos before they're hatched too :p )


Thanks,
~Melissa

oh an additional note: everyone on these forums has been soo consistantly helpful to me. you guys always seem to answer my weird questions like this, even the dumb ones, and i really appreciate it, you make herping a much more enjoyable experience!
:grab:

[ColleenT]

well, my female that i bought at a show in October, she laid two eggs at the end of December, so yes, they do store sperm. the eggs had babies in them, one lived, the other was small and he drown trying to get out of the egg and was too weak to break it. I have read that it is a good thing to put the bredders together, for a few weeks, then take one out and house them separate for a ew weeks, then put them back together, etc.. this way, they get a chance to relax by themselves, and when they do get back together, there is the excitement of seeing a the other again, ad this can spark romance.. Good luck...

[AnthonyC]

If human relationships worked that way, I might be married by now. 3 weeks on, 1 week off (you know which week). lol

Currently, I keep 1.3 per cage permanently, so I can't really say what works and what doesn't, but I'm looking into trying other methods. I think it's worth a try.

[sara]

I use large female groups (3-5), and keep my males separately. I have tried other methods but I like this one best because I can have a little more control over when/how many clutches they lay.
My impression is that most people don't do it this way, but it has worked well for years so i don't think i'll be changing it any time soon. :p

[GreenNeutron]

-Colleen - Have you heard if this is the norm or an exception?

-Anthony - lol! Yeah, it seems like most people do the 1.2/3 method because it's logistically easier but still keeps stress off a single female.

-Sara - I hadn't thought of doing it that way. How often do you introduce a male into your female cages? And do you just not know what female layed what eggs unless you happened to catch her at it?

Thanks guys :-)

[ColleenT]

i think i read about it on a different lizard forum or in a magazine, i cannot remember but i have read that if the female is with a male and he is bugging her all the time, she'll stress and that is not good for her or for the eggs. so to give her a break is easier. but if you have a bunch of females and only one male, if he focuses on all of the females, they may not stress. but i would think that a male would have a favorite that he bugs a lot, so maybe give her a break for a few weeks. not sure. I plan to do that when i join mine, but the male is just a hair smaller than my female, so i'm waiting another week or two. maybe he'll get bigger. he is not a year old, yet.

[sara]

I usually let the males in every 6-8 months, mainly because i'm not trying to run a crested mill... it's just a hobby and I think my females have a better quality of life in this type of system. The other main reason I do this is because I rotate and bring in new males every once and a while, and since they're bachelors it isn't as disruptive for the groups.
As for telling the eggs apart, it just takes practice. I can generally tell when a female is going to lay based on thier habits and physical appearance so it's just a matter of getting to know them over a few seasons and knowing what to look for.

[little_dragon_]

I'm new to breeding cresties but when first I introduced my males to the females-one pair got along really well. The other male was stressing my female to a point were she was getting scaring on her neck so I seperated them.

[Jacenta]

I saw my cresteds breeding in mid November, and I separated the male from the female. I was expecting or hoping for eggs by mid-late december.... but the eggs didn't show up until mid February. There's no way that they could have bred again since November either.

[little_dragon_]

That's really strange, Mine mated at the end of febuary, now it's april 7th and still no eggs!!! I have increased misting afternoon and night...the day time temp reaches 78-80, there's 2 egg boxes. They mated at least 5 times in 5 days.