Eggciting Times!

Bad pun I know, but, today really saw the breeding season kick in for us with Lolly laying what I hope will be the first of a few clutches of eggs for the season.  I've known that she has been gravid for a while and as you can see from the first picture here, that was taken a week ago, she has been 'showing' for a while.  One thing that I am really dissapointed about is that I could have sworn that I made a diary entry at what I thought was the successful copulation date for this clutch, but, I cannot for the life of me find it!

I came home at lunch today to find Lolly in the throws of laying her eggs in the sandbox that I had put in the Dragons' Den specifically for that purpose.  Clever girl isn't she!  Here you can see a photo I took of her during the process.  I have a few things that I learned from this time.  I put the lay box inside the enclosure this time where as last time I put Lolly in a separate container.  I was worried that the external laying box was not getting up to the right temperature, which was the main reason I placed it inside this time.  Then I confronted two issues.  The sand needs to be kept relatively moist so it doesn't collapse as Lolly tries to dig out a suitable site to lay.  Secondly, I don't have anywhere to put Beau other than in the same enclosure and I was concerned that he might cause issues.

The first problem I addressed by using a spray bottle to wet down the sand box each morning it was in there and mix it all through.  This morning Lolly was camped in the box and so I couldn't go through this process.  Of course I think the sand was less than ideal in moisture level as a result, but, what can you do!  The second issues was a non event.  Beau kept to the other end of the enclosure and steered well clear of proceedings.

The third picture here is of the eggs neatly placed in their incubation medium and container that now rests in the incubator I made in the DIY Incubator Project.  The only difference between how they look now and as they are in this photo is that there are two extra eggs!  Apparently I interrupted Lolly before she had finished.  Whoopsie!  When I returned home from work this evening, I found two extra eggs in the Den.  Amazingly, Beau had his head resting on them.  It was like he was looking after them until I got home.  What a dad eh!  I quickly gathered them up and raced them out to the container in the incubator and they now sit about where the 5c coin is in this picture.  They looked ok and I could see what looked like healthy blood vessels forming so I have my fingers crossed.

The incubator is set to 30 degrees centigrade.  This is higher than I incbuated last season's clutch.  What this means is that they will incubate a little faster.  I expect to see them hatching in under 60 days this time.  So now we hurry up and wait!

DIY Incubator Project #3

 More time in the shed this afternoon and the incubator is up and running for testing.

This first image shows the back of the freezer where I drilled the hole through for the heat cord and thermostat probe.  You can just see the hole pretty much in the middle of the picture to the left of the black power board of the thermostat.  I popped a couple of screws in to secure the cream power board and another to attach the black one.

I actually ended up moving the black power board a little to the right because I was not happy that the heat cord was resting on it as you can see in this picture.  So the final result is pretty functional I think.

 These next images are of the front of the freezer with the controller unit of the thermostat secured to the door with velcro strips.  I have set it to 29 degrees Celsius.  It has a 1 degree variance built in and an alarm that goes off if the probe detects temperatures 3 degrees either side of the desired value.  You can see that when I took the photo it was sitting within the 1 degree tolerance of the unit.

The final image is of the dual probe thermometer that I am using to test how well the unit works.  I have the first probe sitting next to the sensor of the thermostat on the top shelf.  In this image it is the bottom reading of 29.4.  The other sensor is sitting in the middle of the freezer and is about half a degree lower.  All of that is pretty positive because the temperatures are all fine to hatch the Bearded Dragon eggs that I hope to have to incubate in it soon.

This thermometer also tracks maximum and minimum temperatures, so I will have some idea of how stable the temperatures stay over time.  I will also be putting the probes of this thermometer at different points over the next few days, just to be sure that the temperatures are stable throughout.  I will try the thermostat probe at different levels as well.  I want to get the best results and have a little time up my sleeve as it were to get it all right.

Once I am happy that everything is as it should be, I will seal up the hole that I made to insert the heat cord and thermostat probe with silicone to insulate it as best as possible.

I am happy with the results so far and looking forward to using my new incubator in anger!

DIY Incubator Project #2

I spent some more time on the incubator project tonight.  First step was to rip out all the components that made it a functional freezer, at least those that were able to be removed without  me having to cause any damage to the basic properties of insulation that make a unit like this perfect to convert into an incubator.

Next it was time to give the freezer a good once over using bleach to clean it.  I paid particular attention to the door seals.  As with most if not all older fridges and freezers there was some mould built up in the seals, so a good going over was in order.  A quick hose down inside and out and it was sparkling....well almost.  I am a bloke after all.

Next step was to drill a hole from the outside at the back of the unit through to the inside to run both heat cord and thermostat probe.  You can see in the first picture that it went pretty well.  I passed all but the last few centimetres of the heat cord through, leaving only enough to plug it in when the time comes.

Then it was time to carefully work the probe cord through the same opening.  I used a 10mm drill bit with a view to fitting both cords through the same hole and then sealing it back up.  It was a tight fit and a bit fiddly to get them both through, but, I got there.

Not knowing how these sorts of things are constructed, it was interesting for me to see that there are three layers to the freezer.  There was the outer case, an middle insulating layer that looked like a form of polystyrene to me.  Finally there was an inner shell which looks to be a single piece of metal.  The outside was the toughest layer and it took a little careful work with the drill to get through.  The other two layers found the drill bit cutting through very easily.

Once I had the cords through the new hole it was time to start working on securing the heat cord appropriately.  For this, I used the 10mm cable clips I purchased earlier this week.  I actually found this task to be more difficult that I expected.  I spent the best part of half an hour trying to get the first pin hammered into the inside casing of the freezer with absolutely no success.  I eventually grabbed the smallest drill bit that I had on hand (1.5mm) and drilled some starter/pilot holes for the nails that fasten the clips in place.  It was then that I was able to get the nails driven home.  Even then it was more challenging than you would think.  Working in a confined space and trying to swing a hammer on obscure angles whilst trying to avoid fingers the size of mine at the same time is the reason I describe the process as challenging.  I tried a 2mm drill bit as well at the start, however, it was just that fraction too big for comfort.  This did mean that it was still an effort to get the nails in, but, better that than have them  not secure properly.  For me, making the initial holes would be the best tip I would pass on to anyone attempting the same thing.  As I said, it took me half and hour to get the fist clip secured.  The rest took me the best part of an hour once I got going.  I'd still be there now if it weren't for the holes.  No doubt cursing the name of anyone daring to come near.

This second image shows the results of my efforts.  You can also see the black thermostat probe in the middle of the top shelf.  I'm not entirely sure where I will fasten it in the end, but, for now, this stage of the project is complete.  I am pretty pleased with the results thus far.

Reptile Health Diary – 01/09/2011

Another month in the books.  Time for the monthly health check for the reptiles.  I have gained a lot of pleasure with all of our animals this month in different ways.  They are a good bunch!


Lolly

Weight: 447 grams (+30)
Length: 45.8 (+3.8)
Food: Bok Choy, Crickets, Super Worms
Toilet: Yes
Behaviour: Lolly has woken up from her long winter nap full of life.  If you had slept for the better part of 3 months I'm sure you'd be full of beans too!  She is eating well and I think she might be gravid, or at least in the early stages of producing her first clutch for the season.  I had her outside in the garden yesterday getting some natural light.  She always looks better for it and is showing some nice colours.

Beau

Weight: 280 grams (-2)
Length: 44.4 cm (+2.4)
Food: Bok Choy, Crickets, Super Worms
Toilet: Yes
Behaviour: Our resident stud male Dragon has been in fine form.  He's been head bobbing with a black beard and making sure Lolly is kept in line.  I am thinking that at some stage I will need to get him a second mate so that Lolly doesn't stress out too much.  Having said that, she is a big girl and can look after herself.  I have taken a few photos of Beau lately where he has been displaying some sensational colours.  Of course being weighed and measured does not encourage him to do that as in this photo.  He's very calm to handle now as he usually thinks that being picked up means food time!  We're very happy to have him in our group.

Lacey
Weight: 61 grams (+18)
Length: 65.6 cm (+5.7)
Food: 2 fuzzies per week
Toilet: regular (weekly)
Behaviour: Lacey could not be a more laid back pet.  She is just easy going and easy to care for.  We get her out for a bit of a cruise around a few times a week and she just seems so comfortable with everything.  She has been powering along with her eating, never refusing a feed.  She has put on nearly half her body weight again this month and grown over 5cm in length.  That's a big effort indeed.  I am mindful of the fact that Diamond Pythons are known to over eat if allowed to and can be prone to becoming obese and developing health issues as a result.  Even with that in mind, Lacey is looking good, fit and strong.

Bruce
Weight: 325 grams (+55 grams)
Length: 33.7 cm (+6.9)
Food: eggs, dog food, super worms
Toilet: regular
Behaviour: At the end of the second month that Bruce has been with us, he has again put on an amazing amount of weight.  I am very pleased.  As I have noted before, he didn't come to us in the best of condition, so seeing him going so well is really satisfying.  Even just when picking him up, it is very noticeable that his mass has increased.  He is also continuing to calm down nicely.  I have taken him outside for some natural light this week a couple of times.  The most recent excursion was this afternoon.  I took my camera with the express purpose of getting some pictures of him in a defensive display.  The wide open mouth with his broad tongue displayed is really an impressive sight.  He is so relaxed now that he didn't give me the opportunity.  I took a bunch of photos regardless that I will share at a later date.  There were some pretty good shots in there, but, I was a little disappointed not to get the shot I was after.  Still the kids and I had fun in the process.