RIP Sweet Baby Rokha

You came into the world the day before this crazy year's first snow storm... you must have been smarter than your clutchmate who showed up during it. You first came out of your sleeping bag at lunch time, with not just your head out but your entire torso. You were a fighter from the start, but you were also pooped after all that effort and needed a nap. I took some pictures of you with your crests plastered to your head and left you alone for a few hours until you decided to show me the rest of you.

You were such a unique looking baby, I knew you would be such a cool looking animal as you matured (and you did get prettier and prettier for the few months I had you). When you were one of the ones I decided I had to sell, I hoped you would go to a great home where I could get updates, because I wanted to see how you turned out. And you were still such a fiesty little kid. You always wanted to get out of your cage, you were always one I was pushing back in and trying to get out of the way of the lid so I could close it. But you'd shoot out again and start climbing up my leg, and then bite me when I smushed you back into your plant. You were never mean, you were just a little adventurer.

The night before you died you were fine, you were just like usual - trying to play jail break with your Bazarak, your clutchmate. I didn't suspect anything. Then the next night when I found you, I didn't even think you were dead at first. I thought it was weird that you weren't trying to escape and seemed to be sleeping on the bottom, but not dead. Then I poked you so I could put in your food, and you didn't move. You never moved again. I don't know why you died, I hope it isn't something I could have prevented. I buried you in the flowers out front, you have a really pretty view if you just look up... I think of you and cry every time I see them. To others you were just a little lizard. To me, you were my special little Rokha who I loved and tried to do my best by. Rest in peace, and although I don't believe in a rainbow bridge, I do believe in heaven, and I know God knows how much I cared for you... so I hope he let's me see you again there someday.

Goodbye sweet Rokha, and I'm sorry but it's going to take me awhile to get over you. There's a little gecko-shaped hole in my heart and you're the only one that fits it.

Cut Egg - Results for the Curious/Scientifically Interested (Warning: Deceased)

Well I cut an egg tonight, and every time I do so I document the results with pictures and details for at least my personal files. I thought this one was interesting to share with you all because I believe we can learn from these experiences. Don't get me wrong, I approach this from as a scientific point of view as much as possible, but I cried over this baby (and he/she is now buried in the backyard). I care for every one of my little ones, even when they weren't meant to be with me in this world.

So warning now... photos of a dead hatchling to come. None are overly graphic and none bloody, but I know some people are uncomfortable seeing photos of dead animals so you have been forewarned!

I had a clutch due to hatch around the end of October, baby #1 arrived on November 1st after 78 days of incubation. I had thought there was something wrong with the second egg since about a month in (from candling), so I wasn't terribly surprised when it didn't hatch on time. I didn't expect it to hatch at all but I'm always hopeful so I left the egg be, until tonight when it deflated and was leaking. Just in case there was a hatchling needing assistance I cut the egg, though I expected to find an only partially formed embryo. Unfortunately the baby was much further developed than I expected, which I think is part of the reason I felt such a loss. However, it was still undeveloped in some significant ways and so not meant to survive outside the egg, so I'm glad it did not hatch. Here are my observations and photos, for what they are worth.

Here is the little kiddo when I popped it out of the egg and let it dry a little (though it's just crumpled because it was squeezed in that deflated egg). Perfect mini 10 fingers and toes, not so perfect other things. As you can see in this photo, the skull and skin over it did not completely close, so there is a small hole on the top of the head. You can see the head/face are not shaped correctly either (you can see that better in the second photo however), though the eyes were fully formed.

Here is a side shot of the head/face, showing an overly short snout, a misshapen jaw, and the dip in the head where there was the hole.

Here is the underside - you can see that the belly is not completely closed (though it was covered in a thin, transparent layer of skin) where babies attach to their eggs. I have had babies with small open umbillical areas here when hatched that closed within a day or two, but never been able to see inside the abdominal cavity like this.

Final shot, showing the belly again and also the misshapen back legs that reminded me of frog legs with the bulbous upper portion.

The good news? I have a healthy, gorgeous clutchmate who weighed in at a healthy 2.1 grams today at 2 1/2 weeks old. This is the first crowned hatchling I've hatched and I believe it will be red or dark extreme harley with a lot of cream, considering what it's showing already! (Parents are Miracle Max and Athena for those who would be interested.) I was extremely surprised when such a gem popped out of that egg, and am thankful I have it to dote over in the wake of the passing of its clutchmate. Here are some unplanned photos from tonight, so he/she is unfired and the quality isn't great, but you can get an idea!

Hope you got something out of my little attempt at a scientific-y post, I figure the more we can learn about these under-developed kiddos the better, especially if they do hatch. In this case I don't think it's genetic as I had all healthy hatchlings from this pairing last year, it was just one of those fluke things. Not meant to survive outside the egg so it developed as far as it was going to, and then probably perished after that point. RIP little one.

Lavender Development

I apologize for the delay in posting, I've been ill. However, I did follow through and got some photos to show you how the hatchling lavenders show their color right after their first shed! Here is The Flash, all adorably curled and sleeping in some egg carton, less than 48 hours old:




See how the base color has already gone to a light greyish color with an almost purple tint? Just like mom and pop when they're unfired! Most hatchlings have a red base for at minimum a few weeks, but not these kids. I think it's pretty neat.

I also got a photo of some older kids, these are Liebchen's but also sired but Inigo. They were awake and climbing around, so I can't say these are their "sleepy" colors - they're definitely lavender fired down. Meet Surprising Lee (hatched 12-8-11) and Normal Lee (hatched 12-11-11 and the one on top):


You may have noticed that these older kids seem a lot creamier. Don't worry, Match and The Flash will follow suit! That's another change these particular lavenders go through really quickly - the orange color of their markings turns into lovely cream. Here's more proof for interest sake! This is Normal Lee hatching:


In other news, I sold my Nuu Ana leachie (Rhacodactylus leachianus), Gherkin, a few weekends back. I admit that it was a very difficult decision, but I decided that with my health problems I can not afford to keep around many animals as pets. Leachies are so notorious for compatability issues that buying him an appropriate mate had the potential of being difficult and much too expensive. He turned into a gorgeous animal and deserved to be bred. He is now in a wonderful home where I know he will not only be loved as a pet but they also plan to try and breed him in the future. So I'm going to stay focused on my two current species for now, though I'd really love to get into R. sarasinorum or E. agricolae. We'll see! I may just add to the red-base garg project, or get one or two nice crestie females for my groups.

In any case, I took some shots of Gherkin for his now-owner before she got him, and I would like to share them. I got Gherkin as a 6 gram unassuming-looking hatchling. But I saw potential! Here he is the day after he came home:


You won't believe how he developed. His pattern became absolutely beautiful, he got a ton of "snowflakes" (the light spots), and he is now well on his way to being a "New Caledonian Giant Gecko". Check it out (and yes that is my totally awesome fish/cat/dog-chewed-on Smokey the Bear ruler):


You read that right, 8 inches nose to tail, and he's not even straight! He weighs just under 60 grams. He's going to be a very impressive gecko when he completely fills out and reaches his full-grown size. Some more shots (I love the snowflake patch on his head!!):




Goodbye beautiful boy. I will certainly miss you. Enjoy your new home and be good for them!

Major Updates - Life and Geckos!

I can't believe how long it's been since I've posted, but the months since then have been a whirlwind! I went and did the unthinkable, and got married. ;) My husband is in the Air Force and left for a 6 month deployment to Afghanistan the 8th of this month. Obviously we were not together long - only about a month total since our marriage on November 12th due to his training - so I miss him a lot. I decided to get off my butt and restart the blog to not only keep myself busy, but since I've actually got things happening now (gecko-wise) and other goings-on as well with the horses, etc.

Biggest news is... *drumroll please*... we've got hatchlings, folks! 8 of them, in fact. All are sired by Inigo and out of either Panic or Liebchen. Both moms have 4 each. :) And they're all outstanding - it's obvious literally after their first hatchling shed that they are going to be lavenders like their parents. They fire up a purplish color and fire down very light grey with creamy markings - just what I hoped for with this project! The first 4 hatchlings will be going to the person I received Panic and Liebchen from (when they're old enough and the weather is good), and I'm keeping the rest for a bit to see who I want to keep for myself.

I don't have the lightbox set up and I've been really bad about taking pictures (but I have a good excuse as you now know!) so don't have photos of the older hatchlings yet. I will try to get some soon. I do, however, have photos of the last two just after hatching - "Match" on the 16th and "The Flash" on the 18th. Though bear in mind that because these are "just hatched" photos so you don't get a true feeling for their coloration. If you've seen a lot of hatchlings you may notice that they don't have the quite the same reddish tint typical of crested hatchlings (it's more purple/dark), which I have learned is the first sign the baby will be lavender. And any reddish color at all is gone after the first shed. If I remember I'll try to get a picture of these two tomorrow to show you what I mean.

So, meet some Inigo x Panic kids, fresh from their eggs! First is Match:


And his clutchmate, who hatched tonight - The Flash:


The Flash... has a story. He hatched in a way I had never had one of my babies do before. I was feeding the geckos and almost done, so checked on the egg, expecting it to hatch anytime. No pip (hole), no nothin. Literally moments later I turn around and there is a fresh gooopy hatchling sitting in the incubator!! I realized he was the bumping around I'd heard behind me because he had left yolk splattered everywhere and dripping from the top of the incubator! Proof:


He even had almost completely buried his egg in perlite. My best guess? He pipped his egg and shot out of it immediately after... upwards! No reason for it, other than he's The Flash. And gosh he has some attitude, little bugger was gaping at me when I was getting off some perlite a few minutes later. Look at this sassy face, he knows he's hot stuff with all that cream!


I also got a pretty good shot of The Flash's egg teeth, so I thought I'd share for those who haven't seen or got a good look at them before. They use these specialized scales to slit their egg open, and then they are lost with the first shed. See the two little bumps at the end of his snout? Those are them! (And excuse his ridiculously goopy head, he hadn't had time to dry off at all after all The Mad Egg Escape.)


If you want to see any more photos of these kids I've got some more "just hatched" pictures on my iHerp account.

Nothing makes for a better first post of a new year than babies! I am very excited about them, all of the hatchlings from my lavender/cream project are turning out incredible. Obviously there was no success with the dalmations or gargs, but now I've just got more to try for this year! :) Before I talk your ear off, I'll end this post here. But I've got lots of things to post about soon... I've got more gecko news, interesting wildlife sitings, horse talk, lots of photos, etc. Stay tuned. ;)