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Thread: Sausages

  1. #1

    Default Sausages

    A few months ago I decided to try making sausages for Loki. It was a huge success so I just made batch two. I've been informed that I may have gone a bit overboard.

    I did the first batch of an experiment, I figured it would be easier for him to eat food this way as he seemed to throw ground meat everywhere and ended up eating more dirt than food. I'll mention that I did my best to feed him out of his cage always as a baby but he's had other ideas lately and goes through phases where he will only eat in the cage. Tegus are very stubborn about very strange things.

    I also figured it would freeze up better and be easier to thaw. I'm also having a lot of trouble getting him to eat non-meat foods and the sausages ensure that I could add mixers that he wouldn't pick out.

    He seems way more excited about food now and frequently does a little victory lap around the cage with his sausage - he runs over with it and gives me that proud "Look what I killed!!!" pose. His health has been excellent (aside from the salmon scare) so I decided to make batch two. I used a lot more mixers this time as I want to get the meat / veggie ratio closer to what he'd get in the wild. I'm not there yet (want 40/60 or so) but I'm upping the ratio with every batch and he doesn't seem to have any reservations about his healthier food.

    Here are the finished sausages - I vacuum packed all of them to prevent freezer burn-



    Here are the supplies-



    Not pictured - the meat soaked ruins of my home and clothes

    Notes-
    All the meats are from hare-today and contain meat, bone, and organs
    I used natural casings and washed/soaked them for two days to remove extra salt
    I soaked the quinoa for a few hours to sprout and then cooked/cooled ahead of time
    The fruits I added were run through the meat grinder frozen then mixed with the meat
    The exceptions were the blueberries which were small enough to use whole, and the dried fruits which I ensured were preservative free (not sure if it matters but paranoid when it comes to the tegu)

    The Menu-

    Turkey & ground mango
    Turkey, Dandelion Leaf, & Grasshopper
    Turkey, Quinoa, Figs, & Raisins

    Rabbit, Dandelion Leaves, and Grasshopper
    Rabbit and Maine Blueberry
    Rabbit, Parsley, and Dates

    Phesant & Quinoa
    Goat & Cherry
    Quail, Rolled Oats, And Blueberry
    Chicken, Figs, Raisins, and Mangos

    I've been picking food based on his preferences, nutritional content, and aiming to get at least 5 different meats with every order to ensure that he gets a good variety. The veggies/mixers were selected based on the tegu foods list and one of the herbivore lists that was posted. I haven't seen much about quinoa being fed to lizards but the nutritional content is fantastic. I've seen one study of it being given to iguanas as part of a conservation effort, and it is frequently given to birds so it should be safe.

    Of course I still round out the diet with other foods... quail eggs, apple snails, grapes, fish fillets, etc... I can't really get him to eat rodents anymore - last time I gave him a rat I literally had to cut it open and stuff it full of dried tuna to get him to eat it. Then again with the mix he's getting I don't think the lack of rodent is going to be problematic. He's very very picky about most other new foods but he's yet to turn down anything in sausage form. The only downside is when I take him for a checkup and they ask what I've been feeding him... "sausages" doesn't exactly make me sound like a responsible owner.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
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    haha, but they don't know that those are awesome sausages.
    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
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    4 little frogs
    a bunch of creepy bugs
    and a partridge in a pear tree

  3. #3
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    Awesome job .
    Rich is not how much you have, or where you are going, or what you are.Rich is who you have beside you.

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  4. #4
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    Dec 2004
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    This is an idea I have thought about and I congratulate you for your efforts. As for some of the ingredients...I'm not sure what quinoa may or may not do. All reptiles have limited digestive enzymes and therefore they cannot break down your refined and complicated starches. Things like grains (oats, wheat, rice, etc.) and corn are simply indigestible to them and can ferment in the gut. Although this is unlikely to cause any real damage, this can be quite uncomfortable for them. Whether quinoa would result in the same.....I can't even speculate. What are you doing for calcium? Just remember, a lot of nutrients break down with time even with freezing, I wouldn't want to make more sausages than I could use up in 3-4 months.

  5. #5

    Default

    Well I ended up using very little of the oats - was trying to introduce a little extra fiber into his diet but didn't want to overdo it with carbohydrates. I'd seen whole grain breads listed as an acceptable food in moderation so I figured it would be ok in small quantities. Loki has been very irregular so I was hoping the added fiber might help. So far I haven't noticed a difference. The quinoa was an attempt to round out his nutrition as the vitamin content is very good and it is a very high quality protein. I found some references to it being used with iguanas so it seemed like it would be safe to try out. I sprouted / cooked it to help with the digestibility. So far I am seeing some of it passed undigested - so you may be right.

    http://www.nagonline.net/Articles/Zo.../Reptiles1.pdf

    As for calcium all the meats have bone included which should supply the majority of his calcium requirements... The dandelion greens and parsley have a good calcium ratio as well and I added a lot of both. The quinoa has a decent amount of calcium but a bit more phosphorous than I realized at first - it is a pretty small percentage of the overall diet though so I don't think it will be an issue. I also feed him fish and apple snails which I dust pretty generously (pure calcium) and he has some whole quail in the freezer as well.

    I did overdo it on the quantity, I'm guessing he'll wipe out this batch in 4-5 months. I read elsewhere that the nutrition/flavor should be good for around six months but I'd rather not push it that far. I wasn't aware of the fermentation issue, so I really appreciate the info. I'll keep a close eye for any signs of discomfort.

    I'm thinking in the next round I'll order less meat and go for a lot more of the leafy greens. I think overall those are the most beneficial of the addins and he's accepting them far more readily than I expected. I was surprised that the only sausages that he's hesitated on have been the fruit heavy ones which I expected to be his favorites. Anyways I really appreciate the input - I tried to really do my research on these but of course complete information on reptile diets is scattered and frequently contradictory. It is very possible that I made some mistakes so the feeback is very much appreciated. I'll keep you guys posted on the results with this diet - and will definitely be making some adjustments as time goes on.

  6. #6
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    This is amazing!
    What did you use for the casing?
    1.5 Ball Python
    1.1.1 Crested Gecko
    3.2 Argentine Black and White Tegu

  7. #7

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    Thanks!

    I got natural casings from the local butcher's shop(I believe pork). They brine them quite heavily so I just rinsed them, and soaked overnight to cut the salt content.

  8. #8
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    These are pretty cool, nice way to get your tegu to eat things they might otherwise not. I like the different variety of meats and fruits and dandelion greens. And grasshopper!! There's a couple changes I might make though, if you are open to suggestions, which I assume you are or you wouldn't have posted here.

    I would skip all the grains entirely, they are between difficult and impossible to digest and they contain anti-nutrients like phytic acid that bind with certain minerals and could lead to deficiencies in those. If you want more fibre, use fruits or vegetables, those are much healthier options for your tegu. I've even used freshly-cut grass for fibre. These sausages seem to mostly have adequate fibre without any of the grains.

    I would choose a different green than parsley - really high in oxalates, could cause calcium deficiency. Dandelions are a good choice. Spinach and parsley are worst, I'd avoid them altogether.

    I'd make sure to include some whole animal prey in the diet as well, like rats, week-old chicks, herring.

    Overall excellent work on these. Most innovative thing I've seen in awhile.

  9. #9

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    What was the salmon scare?

  10. #10
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    Hi dpjm. Just want to say welcome back. Haven't seen you for a long time. Hope all is well. Sorry for changing the subject.
    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 :

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