Last week my second largest Mep, Phae, started working on her nest. She only came out into the yard twice to scrape up debris, most of the time was spent inside the little "house" rearranging the substrate that was already in there. This a.m. I noticed that she was excavating with her back feet, so I went and got a piece of plywood to use as a blind, my stool and a bowl.
She would pop out an egg, then sort of moan. I then reached around the blind and pulled out the egg. Usually tortoises go into la-la land when they're digging nests and laying eggs, but Phae was very alert to what was going on around her (hence the blind).
When I reached in for egg #27, I was quite worried because it came with a big blob of yolk. Then a bit later, #33 popped out and sure enough, it was crushed. She finally stopped at 34 and started pushing the dirt back over the "eggs" with her back feet.
I hope that broken egg doesn't cause a problem. It looks like the complete shell is all there, just crushed. Do you think I should call the vet to come and clean her out?
She would pop out an egg, then sort of moan. I then reached around the blind and pulled out the egg. Usually tortoises go into la-la land when they're digging nests and laying eggs, but Phae was very alert to what was going on around her (hence the blind).
When I reached in for egg #27, I was quite worried because it came with a big blob of yolk. Then a bit later, #33 popped out and sure enough, it was crushed. She finally stopped at 34 and started pushing the dirt back over the "eggs" with her back feet.
I hope that broken egg doesn't cause a problem. It looks like the complete shell is all there, just crushed. Do you think I should call the vet to come and clean her out?
