is somthing wrong?

[detra25]

hey \
my baby extreem giant tegu i got 4 months ago seems to have not gotten any bigger and doesnt eat much

hes only eaten 1 of the 6 pinkie mice ive offered him and sometimes eats the turkey and liver combination

im worried because hes always slow and sluggesh eventhough he has a basking lamp and a reptisun 10.0

im really worried about him

does anyone have any suggestions of wats wrong and what i can do about it?

hes still a very small babie

 

[AWD247]

I dont have any expierence with those types of reptisun bulbs, I use powersun bulbs, give us a lil more info, whats the temps your running (basking?), humidity etc, distance of the light/heat. Maybe you can also try a food mixture like bobby recommends, save the pinkies till hes eating more steadily.

A mixture I used when my extreme was young was Ground turkey, ground hearts, cod oil, w/calcium. Smells something awful but he ate it up.
Sometimes i mix in tuna and eggs.

 

[DaveDragon]

Hibernation. http://tegutalk.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=21

 

[detra25]

i have no intention of breeding my tegu
and i want him to reach as big as he can possibly get so how do i get him to accept food again?

turn up his heat?

 

[DaveDragon]

You can't make him not hibernate. Some start hibernation in August when temps are still in the 80's.

You could have a fecal sample checked for parasites, just in case. That might be tough if he's not eating. More than likely is hibernation, it's just that time of year.

 

[detra25]

ok so do i need to make a burrow for him?

 

[cornking4]

As long as it's an appropriately sized hide that allows your gu to hide and stay at a low temp, that works.

I'm wondering if this is MBD though, as lethargy and loss of appetite are common symptoms, and you said he hasn't grown. As Dave said, it's probably hibernation, but MBD is something that you have to be 100% sure to rule out, as it leads to death very fast. Could you please give us the following information?

1. What is the basking bulb (ei, powersun, megaray), and when was it last replaced?
2. What are the temps under the basking light and in the hide?
3. What substrate are you using?
4. What are the dimensions of your enclosure?
5. What vitamin supplement, if any, are you using?
6. Are his limbs fully functional? For example, does he drag hind legs?
7. When was the last time he defecated?

Something I'd like to point out is that the Reptisun bulb is doing your tegu absolutely no good. It provides UVA, which is completely useless to tegus. UVB is the spectrum that they use to change Vitamin D to Vitamin D3, which is how they absorb calcium.

 

[DaveDragon]

Something I'd like to point out is that the Reptisun bulb is doing your tegu absolutely no good. It provides UVA, which is completely useless to tegus. UVB is the spectrum that they use to change Vitamin D to Vitamin D3, which is how they absorb calcium.

If he has a florescent tube ReptiSun 10.0, that provides UVB as long as he can get closer than 12" from it. A Mercury Vapor bulb (I use 100W PowerSun's) would provide more UVB at up to 18" away, just don't get closer than 12" or he could get too much.

 

[detra25]

hes on cypress mulch
i can't tell when the last time he deficated because his cypress mulch is bout 3 inches deep in his 40 gllon breeder all his limbs are fully functional
i don't have any supplements for tegu's but i have bearded dragon supplement

if anyone can tell me what kind of supplement i should be using i will get it asap
he has a huge water bowl in the corner

 

[DaveDragon]

You should dust everything he eats with ZooMed calcium (without D3). ReptiVite, or similar, should be dusted on food twice per week.

 

[detra25]

ok ill order that right now

 

[cornking4]

There's been some controversy over the reptisun bulbs... Dr.Driggers always warns against them because at 12" they produce 10 lumens of UVB, whereas a mercury vapor will produce over 100 lumens. Most of the people that bring in metabolic beardies were using reptisun 10.0 bulbs, so you might want to look into purchasing one if your basking lamp doesn't produce UV.

 

[detra25]

so how can i get him to eat more?

 

[cornking4]

He could be refusing food for many reasons, the most likely of them being winter cool down or hibernation. However, because there is the possibility that a disorder could be the culprit, you'll need to take him to a herp vet to have him examined to diagnose and treat it (if it's even there) before and if he goes down completely.

Is there a herp vet anywhere near you? If he does have metabolic bone disease, a vet would be able to diagnose it easily and inexpensively, and can take stool samples to look for parasites. If he's completely healthy, it's recommended to get a pre-winter check-up, as it provides peace of mind and can stop infections from worsening through the cold season. Just make sure that you take him to a vet that is familiar with herps. Try <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.herpvetconnection.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.herpvetconnection.com</a><!-- m -->. They have listings there.

 

[detra25]

i've read all about the hibernation and i think he's trying to hibernate.
he has a hide full of warm cypress mulch but do i need to get him anything else?
he hasnt eaten for about 20 days and i think i keep accidentaly waking him from hibernation
this is my first time sorry

 

[cornking4]

I still highly recommend taking him into the vet, as parasites and mild MBD are pretty common. Just an annual pre-hibernation check can save you and your tegu some serious headache.

 

[detra25]

okay i shall do that this weekend :mrgreen: