...sittin' in a tree...
This has been quite the week for the non-human inhabitants of Animal Planet. I already described in (way too much) detail about the moving and the rearranging and the cleaning. We've spent the last week amused by Kali's antics in the vivarium as she climbs around and explores. She fell off the top ledge on a couple of occasions, and the resulting THUMP sounded painful - she's really quite big - but it didn't seem to phase her a bit. She's kind of cat-like in her ability to climb up and her inability to climb down, but I'm sure she'll improve with practice.
This entry, however, is not about Kali.
We got Cheeto (our male bearded dragon) on March 19th of '06, and he was about 18 months old when we got him. We got Lucy (our female bearded dragon) on August 13th of '06, and she was about eight months old at the time. So, they're about three, and a year and eight months, respectively. They've lived in the same tank since after Lucy's quarantine period was over, which was about a month after we brought her home.
There are two different schools of thought about letting beardies live together in a single tank. Most say to keep them separate until you're going to try to mate them. Our vet said that Cheeto could probably use some company and to see if he would accept a room mate. We would separate them if they weren't thriving together, but they've gotten along fairly well, for the most part. About once a day Cheeto beards and stomps and bobs at her, and she waves her little arms and does a submissive gesture with her head. Every now and then Cheeto tackles Lucy and tries to mate, and she waves her arms at him and doesn't respond the "right" way, so Cheeto lets go (the horney little sucker) and peace resumes.
Here comes the news.
Last night I heard Calvin yell at Cheeto, and I came into the bedroom to see him (Cheeto, not Calvin) pinning Lucy and biting the fleshy skin at the back of her neck, which is what males do to put females in the right position for mating. Usually Lucy indicates to him that she doesn't want any of that business, and he gives up after a moment. Except last night, he wasn't letting go. He was bearding a lot harder and darker than usual, and turning a bright caramel color. We moved to separate them - usually just the act of reaching in to pick Cheeto up gets him to let go. But he wasn't letting go at all. Each time I picked him up, he picked Lucy up along with him. So I let them go again.
Which is when Calvin noticed the ::bow chicka bow wow:: action going on under Cheeto's belly. And we noticed the fact that Lucy was holding still for his attentions. They both turned BRIGHT - her orange, him a caramel milky vanilla. They held like that for a moment, and (I kid you not) Cheeto's eyes rolled back into his head. He just lay there on his side behind Lucy's tail, um, glowing. And Lucy just looked back at him as if to say, "That's what the fuss is all about?"
Calvin and I were all, "Wow!"
And then we were like, "Ewww..."
And then we were all, "Huh!"
We're pretty sure that was the first time (if not one of the first times) that they've had a successful mating. Over the past two days we've noticed that Lucy was acting differently; eating more, being much more active, and doing slow head bobs (her "come hither" look) at Cheeto when he was doing his mating dance at her. Basically, she's been acting much more receptive to his advances. To his delight, I'm sure.
And then they did the deed.
So! I read up on breeding bearded dragons last night...
Laura: "'The male dragon inserts his penis... called a hemipenis...'"
Calvin: "You mean he's got a HEMI???"
Laura: "Yes, dear. '...called a hemipenis, into the female's...'"
Calvin: "He's got a HEMI!"
Laura: Sigh.
Now I have to watch out for signs if she's "with egg", and set up a nesting box for her, and get an incubator, and... and... and...
If this mating was successful, she should lay eggs in about 6 weeks, then 50-70 days after that they should hatch. Just in time for the holidays!
Um, and then we'll have to figure out what to do with them all... but they'll look like this, so I'll bet they'll go fast.
Heh. Dude, my lizards totally had the sex.
This entry, however, is not about Kali.
We got Cheeto (our male bearded dragon) on March 19th of '06, and he was about 18 months old when we got him. We got Lucy (our female bearded dragon) on August 13th of '06, and she was about eight months old at the time. So, they're about three, and a year and eight months, respectively. They've lived in the same tank since after Lucy's quarantine period was over, which was about a month after we brought her home.
There are two different schools of thought about letting beardies live together in a single tank. Most say to keep them separate until you're going to try to mate them. Our vet said that Cheeto could probably use some company and to see if he would accept a room mate. We would separate them if they weren't thriving together, but they've gotten along fairly well, for the most part. About once a day Cheeto beards and stomps and bobs at her, and she waves her little arms and does a submissive gesture with her head. Every now and then Cheeto tackles Lucy and tries to mate, and she waves her arms at him and doesn't respond the "right" way, so Cheeto lets go (the horney little sucker) and peace resumes.
Here comes the news.
Last night I heard Calvin yell at Cheeto, and I came into the bedroom to see him (Cheeto, not Calvin) pinning Lucy and biting the fleshy skin at the back of her neck, which is what males do to put females in the right position for mating. Usually Lucy indicates to him that she doesn't want any of that business, and he gives up after a moment. Except last night, he wasn't letting go. He was bearding a lot harder and darker than usual, and turning a bright caramel color. We moved to separate them - usually just the act of reaching in to pick Cheeto up gets him to let go. But he wasn't letting go at all. Each time I picked him up, he picked Lucy up along with him. So I let them go again.
Which is when Calvin noticed the ::bow chicka bow wow:: action going on under Cheeto's belly. And we noticed the fact that Lucy was holding still for his attentions. They both turned BRIGHT - her orange, him a caramel milky vanilla. They held like that for a moment, and (I kid you not) Cheeto's eyes rolled back into his head. He just lay there on his side behind Lucy's tail, um, glowing. And Lucy just looked back at him as if to say, "That's what the fuss is all about?"
Calvin and I were all, "Wow!"
And then we were like, "Ewww..."
And then we were all, "Huh!"
We're pretty sure that was the first time (if not one of the first times) that they've had a successful mating. Over the past two days we've noticed that Lucy was acting differently; eating more, being much more active, and doing slow head bobs (her "come hither" look) at Cheeto when he was doing his mating dance at her. Basically, she's been acting much more receptive to his advances. To his delight, I'm sure.
And then they did the deed.
So! I read up on breeding bearded dragons last night...
Laura: "'The male dragon inserts his penis... called a hemipenis...'"
Calvin: "You mean he's got a HEMI???"
Laura: "Yes, dear. '...called a hemipenis, into the female's...'"
Calvin: "He's got a HEMI!"
Laura: Sigh.
Now I have to watch out for signs if she's "with egg", and set up a nesting box for her, and get an incubator, and... and... and...
If this mating was successful, she should lay eggs in about 6 weeks, then 50-70 days after that they should hatch. Just in time for the holidays!
Um, and then we'll have to figure out what to do with them all... but they'll look like this, so I'll bet they'll go fast.
Heh. Dude, my lizards totally had the sex.
Labels: lizards
Awww! What cute little babies! No, I don't want one. :)
Posted by
Heather |
4:30 PM
Bobby says he does not appreciate your lizard porn
Posted by
Jadesymb |
3:33 PM