help, i hope .... a rather long post tho ......

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Posted by iZ's mom on November 22, 1998 at 13:08:34:

In Reply to: Help! Zoo Med food & Ig problems! posted by George on November 22, 1998 at 12:19:25:

YES - GET TO A REPTILE VET NOW!!!!!!!!!!
dehydration IS life threatening and MY guess would be that it is the cause of your ig's constipation ..... the vet can give your ig fluids, either into a vein or just under it's skin that can help .....
ok ... MY opinion and what's worked for me .... i wouldn't worry about the eating as much as i'd worry about the dehydration ... get some "Infalyte" or "Pedialyte" in the baby section of a drugstore or grocery store .... (it's an infant version of Gatorade and replaces electrolytes, etc.) and give the ig a drink from an oral syringe (withOUT the needle)or dropper a few times a day .... not too much at a time, maybe 3cc at the most (in several SMALL squirts)..... you don't want to overwhelm his system when it's trying to shut down .... you also don't want to squirt too much in his mouth at a time, cuz he could inhale it into his lungs and then you've REALLY got problems! .... get some baby food and give him small squirts of it with the oral syringe too (might need to dilute the food with some of the infalyte so it'll squirt)... iZ liked the mixed vegies when he was sick .... maybe a bit of fruit .... again ... SMALL amounts! try GENTLY, SLOWLY opening his mouth, just enough to give small squirts of food/infaltye .... it should help to kinda wrap him in a thick bath towel and definately wear long sleeves! move slowly, talk gently to him .... if he's really freaking at you, cover his head up with the towel and talk to him til he calms down .... and try again ... he's scared cuz he's not sure WHAT you're going to do to him!!!
warm soaks in the tub ...... don't make the water more than a couple inches deep to start with .... iZ was terrified of the tub when he first moved in with me ... the warm water serves to relax his muscles and that may help him "go" .... also iZ will sometimes lap up some water while he's bathing .....
igs don't usually actually drink alot .... they get most of their needed moisture from their food and if he's been eating just dry food, that's where the problem started .... try adding some collard greens to his dry food .... (you want to change his diet VERY SLOWLY or that will cause problems too .....) oh, and a nice piece of fruit would be good to try too .... maybe a kiwi ... nice and juicy to get some fluids in him .... also, fruit usually helps iZ poop when he's "stuck"
get to a vet right away tho .....
good luck!!!
let us know how you're both doing !

:P + :)
iZ + mom

Follow Ups:

Ig update George 11/23/98 (4)
- Thank you for the good news/update!!! nm iZ's mom 11/24/98 (0)
- Re: Ig update Terry Reed 11/23/98 (0)
- Re: Ig update Iguana03 11/23/98 (1)
  - Re: Ig update Iguanamomma 11/23/98 (0)
Hope you've gotten to a vet & info on kidneys/dry food Iguanamomma 11/23/98 (1)
- Thanks for the link. Very interesting NM Iguanao3 11/23/98 (0)
Re: help, i hope .... a rather long post tho ...... Iguana03 11/22/98 (0)

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: YES - GET TO A REPTILE VET NOW!!!!!!!!!! : dehydration IS life threatening and MY guess would be that it is the cause of your ig's constipation ..... the vet can give your ig fluids, either into a vein or just under it's skin that can help ..... : ok ... MY opinion and what's worked for me .... i wouldn't worry about the eating as much as i'd worry about the dehydration ... get some "Infalyte" or "Pedialyte" in the baby section of a drugstore or grocery store .... (it's an infant version of Gatorade and replaces electrolytes, etc.) and give the ig a drink from an oral syringe (withOUT the needle)or dropper a few times a day .... not too much at a time, maybe 3cc at the most (in several SMALL squirts)..... you don't want to overwhelm his system when it's trying to shut down .... you also don't want to squirt too much in his mouth at a time, cuz he could inhale it into his lungs and then you've REALLY got problems! .... get some baby food and give him small squirts of it with the oral syringe too (might need to dilute the food with some of the infalyte so it'll squirt)... iZ liked the mixed vegies when he was sick .... maybe a bit of fruit .... again ... SMALL amounts! try GENTLY, SLOWLY opening his mouth, just enough to give small squirts of food/infaltye .... it should help to kinda wrap him in a thick bath towel and definately wear long sleeves! move slowly, talk gently to him .... if he's really freaking at you, cover his head up with the towel and talk to him til he calms down .... and try again ... he's scared cuz he's not sure WHAT you're going to do to him!!! : warm soaks in the tub ...... don't make the water more than a couple inches deep to start with .... iZ was terrified of the tub when he first moved in with me ... the warm water serves to relax his muscles and that may help him "go" .... also iZ will sometimes lap up some water while he's bathing ..... : igs don't usually actually drink alot .... they get most of their needed moisture from their food and if he's been eating just dry food, that's where the problem started .... try adding some collard greens to his dry food .... (you want to change his diet VERY SLOWLY or that will cause problems too .....) oh, and a nice piece of fruit would be good to try too .... maybe a kiwi ... nice and juicy to get some fluids in him .... also, fruit usually helps iZ poop when he's "stuck" : get to a vet right away tho ..... : good luck!!! : let us know how you're both doing ! : :P + :) : iZ + mom

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