How long should I wait for retained eggs?

[angllady2]

So my beautiful pinstripe female had her first clutch on Friday. 5 eggs. But, she still has two or perhaps three eggs, she has not lain. She seems active enough, goodness knows she is sick of my peeking at her. How long should I wait for her to finish the job before I become concerned and make an appointment with the vet? I certainly don't want anything to happen to her.

Gale

[RellesReptiles]

Did you already remove the other eggs from her?

[dr del]

Is the egg closest to the vent noticeably larger than those already laid?

Is it quite far away from the vent or close to it?

[angllady2]

We did take the other 5 on Saturday evening. The eggs are very close to her vent. She is noticeably swollen for her last 8" or so. I am trying not to disturb her too much, but I do peek into her tub every little while. I don't move her tub or open it. The next egg might be bigger, it's hard for me to judge. But she is very clearly swollen right near her vent, then up about 8" or so. Which is why I believe there may be more than one left.


Gale

[alan1]

A few years ago, i had a female lay 1 egg, then 4 days later, another 11
(all 12 hatched just fine, and interestingly, all hatched at the same time)

Not saying this is the case with your girl, but they can hang on in there for quite a while with no adverse affects to either: the eggs, or mum

[RellesReptiles]

Taking the eggs prematurely COULD be part of the reason she hasn't laid yet. Doing some research this season I found a lot of people saying that you have to be careful not to take the eggs before they're done laying or they could retain. Also, I think it might be a good idea to soak her in warm water a few times over the next couple days, as that might help to relax her muscles and aid in her laying. I've seen that [advice] a lot for females who seem to be retaining, and the vet would likely just advise that or give a shot of oxytocin and advise soaking, so give soaking a chance first.
If that doesn't help and she seems to be more swollen and very stressed in a few more days it would be a good time to take her to the vet.
Hope this helps at all!