# How long should I separate my sulcata to avoid breeding/lay eggs



## kazjimmy (Aug 18, 2019)

I have been separated my male and female sulcata for 2 years. 600 days. But this year she still lay eggs on early June. Can anyone tell me how long should I separated them to stop egg laying? Thank you.


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## jsheffield (Aug 18, 2019)

I've heard that female turtles can continue to lay fertilized for five or more years after separation from male turtles.

Jamie


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## kazjimmy (Aug 18, 2019)

jsheffield said:


> I've heard that female turtles can continue to lay fertilized for five or more years after separation from male turtles.
> 
> Jamie



OMG


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## Tom (Aug 18, 2019)

Some females will lay eggs even if no male is present. While at least one species can retain viable sperm for five years, the leopards, sulcatas can not. With in a few months, fertility drops to zero for sulcatas if they don't get bred again.

How close are the enclosures? Those pheromones can certainly be carried by the wind... I had to move my male to the other side of my 5 acre ranch to get him to settle down. If he could smell the females, then the females could smell him.


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## kazjimmy (Aug 19, 2019)

Tom said:


> Some females will lay eggs even if no male is present. While at least one species can retain viable sperm for five years, the leopards, sulcatas can not. With in a few months, fertility drops to zero for sulcatas if they don't get bred again.
> 
> How close are the enclosures? Those pheromones can certainly be carried by the wind... I had to move my male to the other side of my 5 acre ranch to get him to settle down. If he could smell the females, then the females could smell him.



omg！ by wind! I guess that’s why. Here is my enclosure. I think that’s why she still lay fertilized egg.


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## kazjimmy (Aug 19, 2019)

kazjimmy said:


> omg！ by wind! I guess that’s why. Here is my enclosure. I think that’s why she still lay fertilized egg.
> View attachment 278806
> View attachment 278807



Correction. Not fertilized cuz I did not dig out the eggs these years.


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## kazjimmy (Aug 19, 2019)

Hi Tom 

My question is that, with the pheromone still going on. The female will still lay eggs forever?


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## Tom (Aug 19, 2019)

kazjimmy said:


> Hi Tom
> 
> My question is that, with the pheromone still going on. The female will still lay eggs forever?


No one can answer that. She might lay every year, or she might never lay again. No way to know.

In your area, eggs laid in the ground should hatch at the end of summer if they were fertile.


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## kazjimmy (Aug 19, 2019)

Tom said:


> No one can answer that. She might lay every year, or she might never lay again. No way to know.
> 
> In your area, eggs laid in the ground should hatch at the end of summer if they were fertile.



Yes. They could be hatch out from ground as well as the pardalis pardalis leopard tortoise.


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