Re: 5 Possibilities:...............................

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Posted by billshorneys on October 10, 2002 at 13:04:57:

In Reply to: 5 Possibilities:............................... posted by IGUANA JOE on October 10, 2002 at 10:50:00:

:The first is just like Annaks's. Maybe the dosage is too high, or the animal might not really need it. So try not giving it to him for a few days, see if anything changes. If he is sick, maybe he should be quaranteed from the others...?

:Second: though I'm not sure if it applies to iguanas, but usually the tails are used as fat storage, and fat is long-term energy. So maybe it is the stress of having lost the tail and all the storing energy that makes him sluggish.

:Third: Have you noticed rivarly among them, especially the babies? Since he may be weaker, he may be dominated by the other baby ig as well as the adult. This is very common in animals kept together. If it is possible, try to house him alone in another enclosure.

:Which lead to a possiblity that the enclosure is too small for all three. Remember that these guys are desert dwellers, and need to move A LOT! Rainforest/tropical animals are surrouded by food items, so therefore do not forage as much (I know it doesn't apply for all species, so please do not debate on this! lol). But animals like desert igs and desert monitors keep on the move to find every scrap they can eat (also debatable, but let's keep it simple ok? hehehe...)

:Double check the temperatures if they are warm enough.
:Oh and another thing. U did not mention whether you medicated the broken tail or not. Maybe it got infected?

:Sorry, but Im trying to think of all the possibilities on why the little guy is not doing well.

:I tend to go big on things, but ideally a desert ig's cage should be like a green iguana's, without the enormous height requirement. So a 6 foot long and 4 foot deep should be the minimun in my humble opinion...

:Good luck with the little guy, and let us know!

:IJ

Thanks for your reply Here are my answers to the possibilities:

First: He was acting sluggish before he got the medicine. The medicine has nothing to do with it.

Second: I thought the same thing that maybe the stress of loosing his tail is a shock to his system and he will take awhile to recover from it. He had a fat tail when we got him, but its getting skinny. His legs are skinny. He looks dehydrated, but he was eating veggies up till Tuesday! With a good appetite. I am now giving him Ensure, and a bath once or twice a day!

Third: There is some rivarly. The big guy dominates over the others by crawling all over them. The other little one dominates over the smaller sluggish guy. I will probably seperate them till the sluggish guy improves. I did medicate his tail! I have them in along 55 gallon aquarium. It's about just over a foot wide, and just over 4' long. I keep a digital thermometer in the enclosure and have the temperature up to about 95 degrees. Maybe it needs warmer. I know Desert Iggs can go up to 110 with no problems. They love the heat.
He is very skinny, I think that is his biggest problem, and then when he lost his tail that just made matters worse! Do you have any suggestions what I may do to put weight on him? I am going to keep him on Ensure to give him his nutrients. A good thing happened this morn, he pooped. So he isn't plugged up! That is some relief! I am looking for some Chaparrel plants or seedlings for them. Does anyone know where I may get any? They eat the leaves and flowers! Thanks for your ideas!
Bill.

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