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Thread: Please help with my tegu, very worried

  1. #1

    Default Please help with my tegu, very worried

    Im very worried about bo, my argentinian black and white and would appreciate any help. Ok here goes

    I have had bo for about 8 months, initially he was very tame and very active, he has remained tame but his activity has decreased dramatically. Also he has trouble when walking. I have done loads of research since purchasing bo but no matter what I do I cant seem to help him. Obviously im thinking mbd but I have put everything in place to prevent this.

    Lighting: ex0 terra 10 uvb plus a 100w arcadia powersun bulb

    Heating: the above bulb plus a heat mat and a 100w infra red during the night when the powersun goes off, the uvb is also off at night

    Diet: whatever I can give him, 2 or 3 fuzzies a week, 15 or so size 4 hoppers, egg although he doesnt have much, minced chicken, again he doesnt have much and I also offer him fruit and veg which he refuses. His eating seems ti have stopped completely over the last week. I dust his food with calcium plus d3

    I bath him every 2 days and he poos during this

    As for his walking he seems to walk on his wrists and stumbles, unless he is startled and he moves a lot quicker and with less fuss

    He sheds fine and is about 24 inches head to tip of tail. He is about 10 months old


    His tail is wavy

    Please help and ask me anything you want. I really want to help him

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
    Location
    San Antonio,TX
    Posts
    9,505

    Default

    Hi Crankiefrankie. Welcome to our Tegu forum family. I'm sorry to hear about what Bo is having to go through. The first thing that I recommend doing is to remove the heat mat and the red light. The red light can damage their eyes. Tegus get their heat from above not from the bottom.

    -Where do you have his enclosure ( inside the house or in the garage ) ? If you have it inside the house you don't have to worry about him getting to cold.

    -What are the basking temps during the day ?

    -How far away is the UVA/UVB light from the bottom ?

    - Did you read on the package on when to replace the UVA/UVB light ?

    - Are his arms/legs swollen ? He might have a sprain.

    - How long wasn't he able to walk right ? You might have to take him to a Exotic Vet.

    Could you please post some photos of his tail please ?

    I recommend mixing in some sweet ripe fruit ( like mangos, berries .... ) into some ground turkey. Mash up the fruit first so he can't pick out the fruit from the meat. You also can give him some fresh fish filets ( cod, catfish, salmon, tuna, tilapia, smelts ). Put cut up fish in some warm tap water to warm it up before giving it to him. Please make sure you squeeze the fish first to make sure it's not to hot for him before you give it to him.
    Rich is not how much you have, or where you are going, or what you are.Rich is who you have beside you.

    Our videos :

    http://www.youtube.com/user/txrepgirl

  3. #3

    Default

    Hi and thankyou for your swift reply. The enclosure is in the kitchen but it does get rather cold, I read somewhere that bo could go into hibernation if the temps drop below 65? they are usually about 70 at night and bo definately likes to spend the night on the heat mat although I will remove this and the infra red light if thats what you recommend. Should I replace these with another heat source as it is very cold at this time of year?

    Basking temps is around 110 and the cool end is around 77 during the day

    the uva is only 6 inches from the bottom, sited on the back wall, its only 4 weeks old. im unsure of the last bulb thats why i replaced it.

    no swelling on his arms or legs, his walking has been poor for around 6 weeks. he has been to the vet who prescribed .35ml calcium which he has been on daily for the last 2 weeks

    i really appreciate your help. i will give him the food you suggest and keep doing the best i can. i am about to take some pics and will post these as soon as i can work out how to do it

    many thanks again

    luke

  4. #4

    Default Re: Please help with my tegu, very worried

    Hi. Some photos that may helpuploadfromtaptalk1355834886645.jpg

    Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tapatalk 2
    Attached Images Attached Images

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
    Location
    San Antonio,TX
    Posts
    9,505

    Default

    You are very welcome Luke . To be honest with you I have never seen a wavy tail like this. It almost looks like that he has a few kinks in his tail. Here is some information I saw on the other Tegu form of a member whos Tegu has almost the same problem as you do. I friend of mine his Tegu is walking the same way. Don't worry about him being to cold. Even if you would try to keep it warmer and he wants to hibernate he is going to hibernate. They do what they want. I keep all of our five Tegus the same way. Two of them hibernate every year and the others just slow down on coming out and not eating as much. But if you are worried you can instal a heat panel in his enclosure ( on a thermostat to control the temps ). I'm sorry. I almost forgot to mention that your Tegu is very cute .

    Tegu's info:

    http://www.tegutalk.com/showthread.p...8438#pid128438

    Radiant heat panel :

    http://lllreptile.com/store/catalog/...ble-and-rocks/

    Kink information:

    http://www.anapsid.org/tailkinks.html
    Rich is not how much you have, or where you are going, or what you are.Rich is who you have beside you.

    Our videos :

    http://www.youtube.com/user/txrepgirl

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Central FL
    Posts
    4,349

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    Ok, let's see what we can do for you. I'm not a vet and it sounds like you have already found a vet to treat Bo. Did they go over all the husbandry aspects with you as well?

    You can see that the front legs are a bit swollen. When the calcium levels in the blood fall, hormones are released to release calcium from the bones. Since calcium is necessary for proper muscle and nerve function (including vital organs), it must be maintained in the blood. The front legs and jaw can be swollen and painful during this process as they soften and the lining of bone becomes inflamed. He also seems to be hunched a bit. That could be from a sore back, sore legs, or just pain in general. The wavy tail also seems to be from weak skeletal structure.

    So what to do? Bo is already being treated by a vet. Since that medical aspect is covered, the next thing to look at is husbandry. This is not to say that you are doing anything wrong, just that some things may need to be tweaked a bit.

    1. Heat...Being ectothermic, tegus must have enough surrounding heat to raise the body temp to an optimal range for proper metabolism. There is some discussion and variance on this, but I keep mine from 110-120 depending on the season. What are you using to measure the temps? I have a digital probe and infrared temp gun that are more reliable than pet store gauges. Placing a flat rock under the basking light allows the ground to be a bit warmer.

    2. UVB...Are you using the linear ExoTerra 10.0 or the spiral coiled version? The tubes are recommended to be replaced every 6 months, so it is good that you replaced that one. Are you using a PowerSun 100 watt? Is it situated so that it is straight down and ideally not being blocked by a mesh screen? How old is it? I wonder if it needs to be replaced as well. Keep the 10.0 at the basking site for optimal use.

    3. Diet...Stick with rodents with bones as much as possible right now. And larger ones with better developed bones, like weaned mice. Coat them with raw egg if that will entice him to eat. Ground turkey and other meats, insects, and fruits are fine for part of a regular diet, but they are generally very high in phosphorous compared to the calcium content. That is the opposite of what you are needing to achieve right now.

    4. Supplements...The oral glucose the vet gave you will be much more readily absorbed than powdered calcium. It takes a lot of powdered calcium to make a difference, about 1 tablespoon per pound of meat. That's why human calcium pills are so large. You don't want to rebound and over do the calcium either.

    Hopefully something there may help you out. Let us know how he does.
    Laura R (FL)
    1.0.0 Colombian Tegu
    1.4.0 Argentine B&W Tegu
    1.2.0 Red Tegu
    1.2.0 B/WxRed Tegu
    1.0.0 Green Ameiva (yet another teiid)
    7 other lizards
    1 little gator
    3 FL box turtle
    1 Sulcata tortoise
    16 snakes
    5 fuzzy pets
    4 little frogs
    a bunch of creepy bugs
    and a partridge in a pear tree

  7. #7

    Default Re: Please help with my tegu, very worried

    Thankyou so much for your reply, my powersun and my uvb are both about a month old so I think im doing ok there. He does not seem interested in food at all at the moment, I have always made sure he is well fed so he has never really had to 'hunt' for his food, he just waits for me to feed him and casually picks.

    I think I am doing ok with the temps but I will get a more reliable thermometer today.

    A question, he seems very sleepy, if he is trying to hibernate would he bury himself? He seems to enjoy laying on his substrate above the heat mat with just his head buried. Is there anything I shoukd look out for? He goes to bed around 7pm and wakes up around 10am when its nice and warm.

    I really am trying all I can, he seems happiest in a warm bath but still doesnt use his limbs fully. His left front leg is worse than the right although this was the opposite when I first became concerned (around 8 weeks ago). When the vet saw him he didnt seem to concerned but then again its my pet abd not his.

    Once again many thanks to everyone whi is trying to help me

    Luke

    Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tapatalk 2

  8. #8

    Default Re: Please help with my tegu, very worried

    Any advice please, bo still hasnt eaten and has moved very little today

    Very worried

    Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tapatalk 2

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Central FL
    Posts
    4,349

    Default

    It is difficult to say if he wants to hibernate or is feeling poorly. Low calcium also causes lethargy and lack of appetite. Have you considered a recheck at the vet or putting in a phone call? Sounds like an office visit can do more than we can over the internet.

    I also wanted to add that letting an animal hibernate that is not in good condition may not be the best situation. Also, you want to make sure that hydration is up to par. Keep him humid, entice him to drink a bit.
    Laura R (FL)
    1.0.0 Colombian Tegu
    1.4.0 Argentine B&W Tegu
    1.2.0 Red Tegu
    1.2.0 B/WxRed Tegu
    1.0.0 Green Ameiva (yet another teiid)
    7 other lizards
    1 little gator
    3 FL box turtle
    1 Sulcata tortoise
    16 snakes
    5 fuzzy pets
    4 little frogs
    a bunch of creepy bugs
    and a partridge in a pear tree

  10. #10

    Default Re: Please help with my tegu, very worried

    Hi. I have again been to the vet for advice, recommended to continue the calcium but very little else. So annoying. Im going to follow all steps of advice and do everything I can


    Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tapatalk 2

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