# Can leopard geckos lay eggs without mating?



## MissCat (Mar 9, 2009)

i have 3 geckos, 1 male, 2 female.
up until the day after i got them (a week before christmas 08.) they were all housed together, then i separated the male from the two females.
today as i was spot cleaning the girls viv, i found two infertile eggs in their moss hide! :gasp:
so:
1-is it possible that one of them could have gotten pregnant before the split?
2- can they store sperm (as i am sure some lizards can, i vaguely recall someone on here saying that bearded dragons can)
3-can females lay eggs even if no mating has occured?
4-is it possible that i have sexed the girls wrong and that one is a male? (though i could have sworn i got it right, i spent hours trawling this forum and other websites for info and pics!!!)
5-have checked them both over, there seem to be no more eggs lurking within (i hope, though i am by no means an expert in these things :s), should i take them to the vets?

also i would like to point out, they are both adults, both healthy and feeding well, so technically could breed (i just dont want to!), i haven't seen ANY behaviour to suggest that they are a male and female, but then i didn't see any of the behaviour that would suggest laying eggs, nor did i notice that one of them was even pregnant.
any advice would be apreciated.
apart from being totally thick, i hope i am not actually doing anything WRONG per say :gasp:


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## kerryrep22 (Jun 10, 2008)

well yes they could have been pregnant from when they were all in together, and yes i believe they can hold onto their sperm like other lizards. and they can also lay infertile eggs, even if they have never been with a male. if you give them all a good feel to check for more eggs to be on the safe side, but two is a common number for leos to lay first time around.


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## kerryrep22 (Jun 10, 2008)

if they were infertile eggs than you may still have three females, but there is the chance that one is a male and they did mate. maybe get someone to sex them for you?


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## freekygeeky (May 25, 2007)

1-is it possible that one of them could have gotten pregnant before the split?

yes - as in stored the sperm

2- can they store sperm (as i am sure some lizards can, i vaguely recall someone on here saying that bearded dragons can)

yes

3-can females lay eggs even if no mating has occured?

yes

4-is it possible that i have sexed the girls wrong and that one is a male? (though i could have sworn i got it right, i spent hours trawling this forum and other websites for info and pics!!!)

yes

 5-have checked them both over, there seem to be no more eggs lurking within (i hope, though i am by no means an expert in these things :s), should i take them to the vets?

if they are healthy weight eating and pooing, iwouldnt see why you would need to


hope that helps!


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## MissCat (Mar 9, 2009)

kerryrep22- right-o  i thought i was going a bit mad lol.
i know i do definately have a male, he is separated, for a horrifying moment i thought that i might have put the wrong one in the other viv leaving male and female still together, but i just double checked that one and he is a he LOL.
as for the two females(?) i think i'll pop them up the vets on wednesday (when the reptile clinic is held) get someone to look quickly, it'l cost a tenner but better than not knowing and risking more expensive complications :gasp: they can double check there's no more eggs and confirm the genders. unless anyone thinks it's more urgent, in which case i'll get them up there tomorrow


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## freekygeeky (May 25, 2007)

MissCat said:


> right-o  i thought i was going a bit mad lol.
> i know i do definately have a male, he is separated, for a horrifying moment i thought that i might have put the wrong one in the other viv leaving male and female still together, but i just double checked that one and he is a he LOL.
> as for the two females(?) i think i'll pop them up the vets on wednesday (when the reptile clinic is held) get someone to look quickly, it'l cost a tenner but better than not knowing and risking more expensive complications :gasp: they can double check there's no more eggs and confirm the genders. unless anyone thinks it's more urgent, in which case i'll get them up there tomorrow



if u post pics here we well i know i can tell you lol
but as tehy are adults you would be able to tell iff they were male (big balls!) you will be able to see eggs (if there are any kleft behind) just lift them up and look underneath!! hehe


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## kirsten (Jan 13, 2008)

i woudn't suggest "feeling" for eggs within the body as if there are any in there they can be damaged. if there are eggs they are very visible through the abdomen of the leo. leo's lay 1-3 eggs, usually two. rarely 3 as a 3 egg clutch can cause problems.

yes it's possible the male mated with the females before being seperated as males are ready all year round.

yes it's possible the girles stored the sperm for later use.

you could have sexed them wrong, but if you are confident you didn't. get some pics up either way so we can help you out.

femle leo's can lay eggs whether they have been mated or not, they still ovulate and produce eggs.


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## MissCat (Mar 9, 2009)

freekygeeky said:


> 1-is it possible that one of them could have gotten pregnant before the split?
> 
> yes - as in stored the sperm
> 
> ...


 oh yes, they are most definately pooing i even watched them both drop a load earlier on while i was cleaning their viv :lol2:
and definately eating properly, mealworms in all the time, crickets every other day for variety and it means i can watch them both chase and eat (my way of ensuring that neither has lost their appetite, if one doesn't want crickets, i will separate and monitor their feeding closer) all food is dusted with calcium (5days/wk) and vits (2days/wk) except crix which i alternate the dusting on.


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## MissCat (Mar 9, 2009)

okay i will put some pics up, have to be done tomorrow now though as i think my son might kill me if i disturb him again (they're in his room) 
i woke him up earlier to tell him and show him the eggs, all he said was: (bearing in mind that he is 10)
"b:censor:r off mum, i'm tired, i dont care and i have b:censor:y school in the morning!"
i'll give him the "dont you dare swear" rant in the morning.:blahblah:lolz
but thanks guys so far, hopefully u will be able to tell me for sure if i was wrong or not :notworthy:


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## nuttybabez (Jul 21, 2007)

For your questions, I agree with freekygeekys answers.

I don't really see a need to take them to a vet tbh. They may now continue to lay eggs every fortnight for the next few months and theres not really much you can do to stop them. They may or may not be fertile eggs, you don't have to incubate them if you don't want to or can't. You may need to feed them some more fattening food such as a couple of waxies once a week if they start to lose weight with laying eggs (very common).


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## MissCat (Mar 9, 2009)

nuttybabez said:


> For your questions, I agree with freekygeekys answers.
> 
> I don't really see a need to take them to a vet tbh. They may now continue to lay eggs every fortnight for the next few months and theres not really much you can do to stop them. They may or may not be fertile eggs, you don't have to incubate them if you don't want to or can't. You may need to feed them some more fattening food such as a couple of waxies once a week if they start to lose weight with laying eggs (very common).


 what about a pinky? i have read that some people feed their female a pinky after laying? or would this be a waste of time/dangerous?


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## SleepyD (Feb 13, 2008)

MissCat said:


> what about a pinky? i have read that some people feed their female a pinky after laying?


I personally don't as I find with mine if they're given plenty of well gutloaded livefood and correctly supplemented they don't lose that much weight and stay in good condition anyway : victory:


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## nuttybabez (Jul 21, 2007)

I do offer pinkies to my females who are laying roughly once a month. Some will take one, some won't. I personally find them very good at giving the leos a pick me up and also helps with their appetite and helps them put weight on. So if you wanted to then its not dangerous or pointless. No harm in trying her with one if she drops some weight, but you can't feed them very often.


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