# Negligence of previous owners



## C_mart9211 (Dec 29, 2012)

I'm a new user to this forum so please understand that idk how to use this. :blush:
Recently I bought a "Paraguayan red tegu" but it was probably just a regular red and white tegu with a scheme to get more money, but that's not the point. I bought the young tegu (about 4 months old) about a month ago, but he was kept at the pet shop until about a week ago because when i got the cage in from Southland reptiles the glass door was broken so I had it repaired. I brought the little guy home on December 20, and he died on Christmas Eve. The lizard always did seem like he was a little off, his right leg was a little bit gimpy and looked deformed, I was gonna name him Nemo, haha, but he also always seemed to be way smaller than he should have been but the people at the pet shop said oh he's fine and this and that but he obviously wasn't. Anywho, the tegu was just walking around and laid down to sleep like he normally did but he never woke up, and he was acting normal until that point. Later that day when me and the people in the pet shop examined him he seemed to be "severely impacted" I didn't even know what they were talking about because they just showed me the inside of his mouth, but it looked how it always did and I told them that it even looked that way in the shop. But I would like to know if any of you guys could tell me what you think happened and if it was my fault or not. I would really appreciate it, thank you


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## Rhetoric (Dec 29, 2012)

Besides the arm the fist thing I notice is how large his belly looks in comparison to his hips and base of the tail. I wouldn't be surprised if it was an impaction issue. It's hard to say what the cause of death could have been. If he was impacted there are a few things people usually try such as warm water soaks, mineral oil added to food or in some cases, surgery. Impaction can be caused by a few different things. Poor husbandry can be a cause, if the temps are not high enough the tegu can have problems digesting the food and will have issues passing it. It is also possible for tegus to ingest substrate. The arm is a little concerning, I do not know if it's a genetic defect or if it could have been caused by something else.
I certainly wouldn't blame you for the death of the tegu. I personally wouldn't have purchased one with poor health or deformities. IMO, they usually are more special needs and should either go to an experienced home or be put down depending on the severity.
As far as the Paraguayan vs argentine, some members have purchased "Paraguayan" and claimed there is more white on them than argentine tegus. I haven't owned a red tegu nor have I looked into it much but I think it's more of a sales tactic. Some people over pay for tegus because they are unfamiliar or because its what they have available. Many tegus in my area are over priced, Argentine b/w's are sold for $350 as juveniles. 
I'm sorry to hear about your loss. Welcome to the forum though. If you do decide to give it another shot feel free to ask any questions, this forum is fairly active and the members here are very helpful.


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## C_mart9211 (Dec 29, 2012)

Thank you rhetoricx, he was impacted but he I saw inside his mouth when he was at the pet shop and it was the same as when he was dead, so he was impacted when I got him, but the leg thing was "just minor" the guy said, he walked and everything just fine, but I think he might have been like special or something cause he was like the size of some newly hatched tegus I've seen and he was 4 months, I really didn't know any better because its my first time around tegus, but I'm looking to get another one, there paying for it because it was under the 5 day warrantee thing and it was their fault I think anyways. But he was 250$


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## laurarfl (Dec 30, 2012)

It is the rib cage that looks large, but the intestinal area looks very thin. If you look at all the legs, the foreleg area from elbow to foot is swollen. Given the overall thinness, swollen forelimbs, and deformed leg, I'd say it was Nutritional Secondary Hyperparathyroidism (NSHP) which is comonly called Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD). When there is not enough calcium circulating in the blood, the parathyroid glands release a hormone that leaches calcium from the bones. The target bones are the forelimbs and jaw, later the spine. What you see are swollen painful legs and refusal to eat because of the sore jaw. There is also stunted growth and a shortened nose, then skeletal deformities such as crooked legs, spine, tail set in. Since calcium is also important for muscle in the skeletal system and organs, there is a general decline and death if it is not corrected.

The cause in young animals is feeding a diet that is low in calcium and high in phosphorous, and/or having low Vit D levels. That sort of diet includes insects, boneless meats, and most fruits. It's ok to feed those items, but they need to be supplemented with calcium whenever they are fed.

If he was in fact impacted, it was probably because his gut motility was decreased due to calcium insufficiency. But I'd bet my money on NSHP from poor diet, poor UVB, and probably low temps/humidity as well. I'm not a vet, btw, but this is a common scenario in young lizards.


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## C_mart9211 (Dec 30, 2012)

Damn :/ and I had everything perfect in his cage, I mean like to the tee I tried to get everything as perfect as possible, I only had him for like 3 full days. And made sure he had way more than what's needed on the uvb, and I was trying to feed him all the right things and I only hot the opportunity to feed him calcium dusted crickets because he only really ate for me once. Thank you laurarfl


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## laurarfl (Dec 30, 2012)

This is something that would have taken more than 3 days to develop.


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## C_mart9211 (Dec 30, 2012)

I know... I was just saying because that shows that the pet store I bought it from definitely didn't not take proper care of him


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## laurarfl (Dec 30, 2012)

gotcha . I would have to agree with you on that one.


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## elmo (Dec 30, 2012)

i just wanted to say how sorry i am about yr loss! i couldn't bear it if something happen to my tegu. for a 4 month old he seemed kinda small, mine was a lard butt at 4 months. im no expert but i wanted to say how truly sorry i am and i hope u get another one. they r great pets. next time tho, get one from a good breeder


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## C_mart9211 (Dec 30, 2012)

Yeah for sure to both of you guys, I'm completely done with this pet shop, I've been helping them out so much and getting them more business, and I even applied to work there but they just irk me so much and I don't think they know what they're doing with their lizards, with the exception of bearded dragons and leopard geckos, there's nothing wrong with that but still  hahahahahahaha.


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## chitodadon (Dec 30, 2012)

Sorry for your loss

from Samsung Galaxy S3


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