crested gecko egg leaking and shrinking

arruda

New member
hello, i am new to this site and have my first clutch of eggs which are due for hatching. one is huge and ready to pop while the other was the same untill today when i noticed it shrunk and is leaking yolk. is this normal? been like that for a few hrs already. should i be worried? please help.
 

arruda

New member
i candled them yesturday but like i stated im new at this as this is my first clutch so im not too sure i know what tim looking for. i didnt think they were fertile but last week another egg shrunk alot and was kinda dented so i left it for a couple days. i asumed it was dead so i opened it and there was a ful baby fully developed inside. so now not so certain.
 

KolbyJack

New member
Are they in an incubator or incubating container? What incubating substrate are you using and what are the humidity/temp levels?
 

Aimless

Super Moderator
JB's Crested Gecko Info

I've found some of her links to be excellent, in terms of what to look for in fertile eggs and to get an idea of development. if you go down to the bottom, there are a few videos of egg-candling. I found it to be very helpful in terms of what you will actually see (descriptions are so subjective).

I had an egg leak a bit of white and the baby was small but fine. leaking yolk is pretty concerning!
 

arruda

New member
they are in an incubating container kept around 70 - 72 degrees, and i am using a formiculite mix substrate.
 

Aimless

Super Moderator
what's the humidity? dented or shriveled eggs are often too dry.
if they're too wet, you get discoloration and then mold.
 

Aimless

Super Moderator
as an experiment, I had left a pair of eggs in the substrate in the mother's vivarium. they were right next to the glass and could even be candled. I pulled them about 1/2-way as I could see very tiny striations in the shell and was concerned.

6 weeks later, one egg hatched out 100% normally.

during that 6 weeks, the other egg on a couple of occasions would swell with growth and leak a tiny bit of egg white. I was concerned that the hatchling inside would become dehydrated, or that microbes would crawl inside through the cracks and mold out the developing baby. however, s/he hatched fine about 4 or 5 days after the first egg from that clutch. the baby is smaller than the other, but very vigorous. it is now almost 6 months old and is thriving, although still smaller than it's clutchmate.

I could candle the egg and the hatchie always looked good inside, with movement in the last several weeks like any other egg.

whatever you do, don't cut or throw out eggs until you're absolutely CERTAIN the baby inside is dead! if they mold, move them away from healthy eggs but don't toss them or cut them until it's really, really obvious they're duds. sometimes eggs will look pretty pukey on the outside, but the baby inside is doing just fine and only needs to be left alone.
 

arruda

New member
oh ok thank you. i was just not sure bc it is my first clutch. you have helped alot and i will be checking the jb videos. thanks again.
 

KolbyJack

New member
Interesting situation aimless.
I currently have my first clutch (just one egg, the other was crushed before i rehomed them in the incubator) incubating. I've used Jb's instructions like the bible. I learn by seeing so the videos are a life saver for me.
 
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