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Thread: Tegu brumating early, he has eaten food.

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
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    Default Tegu brumating early, he has eaten food.

    My 8 year old Argentine black and white tegu has decided to brumate early. He showed the signs of winter slowdown very early this year, despite the weather being very hot and heat lamps everything still turned on. I have owned him long enough to know that this is normal, just early this year.

    It didn't strike me that it was brumation leading to his slowdown and I thought he was sick, but after some vet visits and tests etc. the vet has confirmed that there is indeed nothing wrong with him, but did not mention brumation as a possibility.

    My issue is that he has eaten food regularly up to this point, before it struck me that he was brumating, so there is food in him. He has not passed feces since the last feeding (a rat and some fruits), nor is be basking. I know if he basks he it will help him digest and pass feces but he refuses to bask even if I put him in the basking spot, he walks away after 5 minutes.

    He is still willing to eat just less than usual.

    I don't even know if I should feed him or not or just leave him alone, or soak him and try to make him poo etc. It has been long said that you should not let a tegu brumate with food in him but also, on this forum as well, I was told that it is not such a big deal as it is made out to be.

  2. #2
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    Apr 2006
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    No one has any answer to these issues?

  3. #3
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    May 2013
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    All I can say is I'm in the same boat. Yoshi buried himself a couple days ago and hasn't come out yet and hasn't eaten in days. I can dig him up but I don't like doing that

    Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 4

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
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    San Antonio,TX
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    Hi Anthony. Welcome back. Long time no see. I'm so sorry for taking so long to reply to your question. Sounds like you tried everything you could already. What I would do is stop feeding him and see if he still comes out every now and then. Some Tegus will slow down in eating and basking but still come out. Some go into a full hibernation to where they don't come out for months. If you don't see him come out at all for about a week I would turn off all the lights and not feed him at all. If he still comes out then just have the lights on for a few hours ( instead of 12 hours on have them on for 8 hours and then lower them again if needed ). I only would feed him if you see him bask for a while. If he doesn't bask don't feed him. Out of five of our Tegus just 2 of them have been hibernating since we got them. When they go into the full hibernation they stop eating. The others just slow down. Please keep us posted. Thank you.
    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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  5. #5
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    Txrepgirl,

    He doesn't come out but he has eaten a rat for the last meal and he hasn't pooped yet and I have waited and waited and it's been 10 days now. He has gone into brumation with food in his stomach. I tried soaking him. I just need to get him to poo so he can brumate but he is already sleeping.

    Basically I have been doing what you said in your post, still feeding him but less as he was still coming out for a couple hours a day to bask. But after the last meal a couple days later he has now completely gone into brumation and hasn't pooped yet. Its now 10 days after the last meal and it appears he has completely gone under with food in his gut. The lights are on and its still warm, don't know what to do.
    Last edited by Anthony; 08-24-2013 at 06:27 AM.

  6. #6
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    I've been soaking him in warm water every day pretty much and all he does is pee

  7. #7
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    It's hard to say what you could do now. Since you already tried everything. I hope tupinambis ( a member here on the forum ) will be able to give you his input. He knows allot about Tegus. Maybe you could pm him. I'm sorry I can't help you much on this one.
    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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  8. #8
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    I wouldn't worry too much about the food being in his stomach. Yoshi hibernated last year and he went down with food in him and I tried getting him to poop but it never worked.

    All I can say is maybe dig him up for a couple more days and see what he does and then just let him do his thing.

    Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 4

  9. #9
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    How is he doing ? Did he come back out yet to eat, bask or poop yet ?
    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

  10. #10
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    Did Yoshi eat a lot before going into brumation? What did he eat and how much? And he woke up with no problems whatsoever even with the food in there?

    Was it still warm when he first went under? And what were the temperatures like throughout the period? Did you still give him lights just in case?

    Quote Originally Posted by PapaBean View Post
    I wouldn't worry too much about the food being in his stomach. Yoshi hibernated last year and he went down with food in him and I tried getting him to poop but it never worked.

    All I can say is maybe dig him up for a couple more days and see what he does and then just let him do his thing.

    Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 4

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