# How often should my Tegu be pooping?



## Zaelis (May 12, 2017)

Bug is less than a year old, he should be a year old this coming June/July. I'm a bit concerned, as he hasn't been pooping daily despite eating daily. I bath him in warm water daily, and he refuses to go in his cage. When I bath him, he usually pees and leaves a urate, but no poop! At least not daily. He's about 22 inches long, and an absolute sweetheart, easy to handle, and curious. He seems healthy aside from only pooping every couple of days. And when he does poo, they're pretty massive, at least relative to his body size. 

Is it possible his basking temps are too low, or I'm feeding him incorrectly? As for basking temps, I wasn't aware of needing a temp gun, but I just placed an order for one and it should be here by next week.
Currently he's been eating chicken hearts and gizzards sliced up, crickets, and salmon dusted with calcium. I plan to get some whole turkey ground up for him soon, but the organs we got from a neighbour who butchered a bunch of chickens.

Thanks!


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## Faithsreptilez (May 12, 2017)

I need help too! Mine is a rescue and hasn't had food or water or heat or uvb for 4 months. He's on medicated liquid food, calcium and pain meds. He only went poop once and he struggled a lot that was 5 days ago. He has a fractured arm and mbd. I'm scared he is constipated and I'm wondering the same thing. Hope we get answers. Your tegu is adorable btw.







Instagram @turtlezblog


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## Walter1 (May 12, 2017)

Zaelis said:


> Bug is less than a year old, he should be a year old this coming June/July. I'm a bit concerned, as he hasn't been pooping daily despite eating daily. I bath him in warm water daily, and he refuses to go in his cage. When I bath him, he usually pees and leaves a urate, but no poop! At least not daily. He's about 22 inches long, and an absolute sweetheart, easy to handle, and curious. He seems healthy aside from only pooping every couple of days. And when he does poo, they're pretty massive, at least relative to his body size.
> 
> Is it possible his basking temps are too low, or I'm feeding him incorrectly? As for basking temps, I wasn't aware of needing a temp gun, but I just placed an order for one and it should be here by next week.
> Currently he's been eating chicken hearts and gizzards sliced up, crickets, and salmon dusted with calcium. I plan to get some whole turkey ground up for him soon, but the organs we got from a neighbour who butchered a bunch of chickens.
> ...


For Bug, try feeding every other day or 1/2 portions each day. Add mineral oil to food. Make sure that you have a thermal gradient- mid to upper 70s in hide, low-mid 80s ambient, and 110-115f at bask spot. At some point soon, add frozen/thawed mice of small size to the diet. Should form bulk of it. 

He looks good.


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## Walter1 (May 12, 2017)

Faithsreptilez said:


> I need help too! Mine is a rescue and hasn't had food or water or heat or uvb for 4 months. He's on medicated liquid food, calcium and pain meds. He only went poop once and he struggled a lot that was 5 days ago. He has a fractured arm and mbd. I'm scared he is constipated and I'm wondering the same thing. Hope we get answers. Your tegu is adorable btw.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


For now, small soft food. Mineral oul to food. Will take some time before he can handle big meals.


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## Faithsreptilez (May 12, 2017)

Walter1 said:


> For now, small soft food. Mineral oul to food. Will take some time before he can handle big meals.


No I don't do regular meals. He's on a medicated vet diet of prescribed liquid food. He's never had solid foods. And I'm wondering how long it takes to pass threw. 


Instagram @turtlezblog


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## Walter1 (May 12, 2017)

Faithsreptilez said:


> No I don't do regular meals. He's on a medicated vet diet of prescribed liquid food. He's never had solid foods. And I'm wondering how long it takes to pass threw.
> 
> 
> Instagram @turtlezblog


Well, that will depend on how much he eats and how hot he gets himself.


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## beardeddragon111 (May 15, 2017)

That's a good point walter, reptiles digest based on the temp of their surrounding. Could very easily but the reason a tegu would eat more than it poops. That's why a lot of large lizards get fat in captivity, not actually a larger food intake.


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## Faithsreptilez (May 15, 2017)

He eats a full syringe daily. 1cc and the cage stays about 90 on the hot side and about 80 on the cool. 


Instagram @turtlezblog


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## Faithsreptilez (May 15, 2017)

He also has many hides and deep substrate to burrow and cool off. 


Instagram @turtlezblog


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## beardeddragon111 (May 15, 2017)

What is the basking spot temp?


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## Faithsreptilez (May 15, 2017)

High 90's**


Instagram @turtlezblog


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## Mombo (May 15, 2017)

Depending on the size of your basking rock you could get a more powerful halogen bulb so you could have a nice gradient. I have a large rock for my little guy and it ranges from 115 down to 90 depending on which section he lays in. He is still a small young guy but he almost always chooses the hottest spot he can find. Even if I move the hot spot around haha. Smart little lizards we have here.


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## Walter1 (May 15, 2017)

Mombo said:


> Depending on the size of your basking rock you could get a more powerful halogen bulb so you could have a nice gradient. I have a large rock for my little guy and it ranges from 115 down to 90 depending on which section he lays in. He is still a small young guy but he almost always chooses the hottest spot he can find. Even if I move the hot spot around haha. Smart little lizards we have here.


Yes. 110-115 bask, ambient in 80s , and hide in 70s.


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## Justin (May 16, 2017)

If your feeding a liquid diet I wouldn't expect him to poop much or it would be very, very runny, also if he has dirt or similar substrate it may be absorbed or buried. I have peat moss and even my tegu has pooped without me finding it for several days and he's eating mice and chicks so he's laying fairly sizeable poos. 
Since he is on a liquid diet I would feed him as much as he will take 1 cc doesn't seem like that much to me (I could be wrong here).


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## Faithsreptilez (May 20, 2017)

I just checked and fixed a few things the basking dock get 115 the warm side gets 100+ the middle gets 90+ and the end gets about 80. And the hides are lower. He is on a liquid diet and I feed 1-3 cc every other day. Still haven't seen anything. Hope he's going or I'll have big issues other than that he's getting a lot stronger from his medications. 


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## Justin (May 20, 2017)

I would feed him daily, do you see urates?


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## Faithsreptilez (May 20, 2017)

Justin said:


> I would feed him daily, do you see urates?






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## Faithsreptilez (May 21, 2017)

Vet prescribed a specific liquid diet or 3cc every other day and he was full with 1-2cc. I fed 2cc today and he hasn't ate or been fed in 2 days. He's been taking medications for 2 weeks. He could be pooping and I'm not seeing it since the bedding is 2-3+ deep and he burrows constantly but he is in shed aswell as running around. I also bathe in warm water to help. I don't think I should worry as much as before but I still will keep an eye out. 


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## Zaelis (May 25, 2017)

Walter1 said:


> For Bug, try feeding every other day or 1/2 portions each day. Add mineral oil to food. Make sure that you have a thermal gradient- mid to upper 70s in hide, low-mid 80s ambient, and 110-115f at bask spot. At some point soon, add frozen/thawed mice of small size to the diet. Should form bulk of it.
> 
> He looks good.




Sorry for the late reply. I've been feeding him daily, giving him ice-cube sized portions. I use an Ice cube tray to freeze his ground up food into neat little portions to thaw out each day, works great right now while he's small! It seems to ALMOST fill him, he usually looks for a little bit more afterward. And I bought some mice the other day, gave him one of them a few days ago. He still isn't pooping daily, but he's doing so regularly every other day, which is fine by me so long as he's pooping, and seems to be having no issue doing so.

And he has a proper gradient, my temp gun arrived, so that all checks out. Guess he just isn't a frequent pooper yet.

And thanks, he's my handsome little man. Getting ever whiter with every shed! And couldn't ask for a better temperament, hopefully he doesn't get too wild on me during his "teenage years."


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## Justin (Jun 8, 2017)

Glad everything is going well.


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