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Post by prism_wolf on Aug 21, 2007 3:51:46 GMT -8
- How old is she?
- How big is she (svl and stl)?
- What do you feed her (be specific please - list individual items).
- What are her temps in the basking area, cool end and night?
- What do you use to monitor the temps?
- What do you use for heat?
- What type of UVB source do you have?
- What did the vet say was wrong with her?
- How long did he say to force feed?
- What kind of slurry do you prepare?
These will help get a handle on why the behavior is so drmatically changed. As Merlin said...force feeding is stressful and many igs don't like it. If done not so "forcefully" it may go o.k.
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Post by pighunter on Aug 21, 2007 9:13:28 GMT -8
dixie is bout a year and 5 months shes bout 22 inches. before she had gotten sick i was feeding her collard greens, dandelion greens, amd arugula for the staple greens and then a variety of other greens such as turnip tops, endive, cilantro , watercress, swiss chard, mustard greens. with the veggies green peas squash, parsnips. then for her special treat i feed her apple, mango, strwberries, and bannas. the temp she normally bask in is about 92 93 degres then in the cool spot its normally bout 87 to 89. at night its normally 84 too 85 degrees. i got a heating heating rock. and the heat source for night is a 50w infrared light. but during the day i keep her outside since its been nice and hot out here in texas. but if shes inside during the day i have her uvb light which i dont know the name brand off hand but u can buy them at pet smart. and the basking light. well i had noticed that she hadnt been eating as usual as she had been. so that monday i took her down to the vet and he had told me that she had a respatory infection so he gave her a shot and told me to feed this nutri cal to her 3 times a day to get her to start eating again on her own. well i did it bout a week and still she wouldnt eat on her own. and she was starting to lose that pretty green color in her. and i was really concered. so i called the vet again and said force feed her for bout a week then she will start to get the hunger again. well its been bout a week and she still hasnt eatin on her own. and the vet told me sometimes it takes 2 to 3 months of force feeding. and i hate to do it cause u could just see the madness in her eyes. well it was kinda hard to cramb a lot of stuff in those little surenges the vet gave me. so one day i was at the grocery store and was looking at baby food. and i had call the vet and asked him if baby food was ok. green peas, squash, bannanas, ect. and he told me that was perfectly save.
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Post by crazybaby on Aug 21, 2007 10:27:39 GMT -8
I would suggest getting some Nutribac (active bacterial culture) to help boost her gut flora. You can give it to her in the mixture of food you've been feeding but always be sure to leave food on a plate in her enclosure. Has she been defacating properly (daily at least) not watery and somewhat solid? Try feeding her "treats" in the form of a leaf not chopped and let her take bites from it. Instead of baby food for the smush you feed her, if you've got a processor put the same contents of what you said in there and blend it into a paste. This will help her keep her nutrients up while you try and get her on a regimen. Also, is there anything she'll eat on her own (like a fruit or green) if so, start her bowl in the enclosure out with that as base contents and the slowly up the other ingredients until they are at the proper level again.
If you can find out what UVB light brand it is, it would help us greatly.
Would you be able to post a picture of her and her enclosure? Just incase there's an underlying thing maybe we can spot for you in the enclosure. I hope this helps you out a bit, keep us posted on her progress.
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Post by prism_wolf on Aug 21, 2007 10:49:15 GMT -8
The brand name is right on the UV bulb. Ditch the heat rock. These can be deadly if they malfunction. At least unplug it and use it for a familiar decoration for her. Go to the co-op and get one of the livestock syringes. Use the ingredients you would normally use, but put it in a blender and then into the syringe. As C.B. suggested...get a probiotic. This will replace the gut flora the antibiotics destroyed. Nutribac, Benebac, or Nature Zones Essential Probiotic, or human acidophilus tablets for humans crushed up. You can add this to the slurry. I would not give the nutri-cal or the baby foods. The baby foods are waaaaay to expensive and you would spend a fortune getting the different kinds for a balanced slurry. Here's a link for a good one: www.iguanaden.org/health/slurry.htmThese may get her back on track. The probiotic is a key item...as well as the healthy slurry items...:-)
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Post by pighunter on Aug 21, 2007 16:36:26 GMT -8
i found out the uvb light name its exo terra? 15w. her cage set up is one of those repteriums its made out of mesh and pvc. where she can climb all over it. Now with the nutribac where could i get this product at? she has been releaseing her fecal on a daily basis which its been looking the same as it had been before she has gotten sick?
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Post by prism_wolf on Aug 21, 2007 18:06:40 GMT -8
The Exoterra 8.0 is fine. You need two though for them to work the way they need to. The reptariums are not made for large lizards. The mesh will have a hard time holding her weight while the claws shred through the mesh...;-) Depending on the size the reptarium is...she may be ok...at least long enough to get her something bigger...such as her grown enclosure of 6x6x3...:-D I forgot to ask how far above her basking area the UVB is and how old it is. With two tubes you should have them between 6"-8" from her back and it should be within 6 months old. The Nutribac can be purchased online. Here's one place...not necessarily the cheapest, but the profit goes back into helping his iguana rehabilitation/education programs. www.reptileuv.comYou haven't mentioned what the temps are. This is important. Temps are one of the three things that MUST always be correct. Diet, temps and UVB are the big three. So what does her feces look like? There is a product that is above ALL else the healthiest you can ever provide for your ig. It's called Critical Care and can be purchased only through a vet. It has a probiotic already included. Check into it with your vet and if you're up to paying the price for this stuff I would very strongly suggest it, but don't worry. If you can't swing it...a healthy homemade slurry will get her there. I can't say enough good things about the Critical Care though. It's awesome! If you keep her outside a lot...she'll have better UVB than that little bulb could ever hope to become. Just make sure you provide shade...and if it gets over 95 in the shade it's time to bring her back inside unless you provide a mist of constant cool water on one side of the outside cage. Provide lots of water and make sure she gets misted while outside. Texas is an arid state and iguanas need the tropical humidity. Even here in TN I offer a hose with the nozzle set on a light spray for him to cool off and as a source of drinking water. He often licks at the water that runs down his mouth. These tips will certainly get your girl feeling better...and if she's feeling better...and it gets her towards weaning off the slurry...you may get your gentle girl back.
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Post by pighunter on Aug 21, 2007 18:24:38 GMT -8
i thought i had mentioned the temps in the last post hmm. but the temp she normaly basks in is about 92 93 degres. and cool spot is bout 89 87 degres.. and at night its bout 85 to 84. well her feces its brown like normal and has some white liquidy stuff in it. is that white liquidy stuff normal or abnormal? now the cage iam working on building her one thats at least 6 ft by 4ft wide. out of pvc fittings and i really dont know what to inclose it with? any suggestions on that? Prism_ wolf iam glad i found this website and thank you for helping me out. i hate pestering the vet any my vet bill is so high. so id thought id find some website to post bulletins and ask questions. but i have some pics of her repterium and her i just havent had time to post them yet but its gonna be asap.
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Post by prism_wolf on Aug 21, 2007 18:44:01 GMT -8
We sure help when we can around here. Glad you like it. Feel free to "pester" all you want... . You did mention the temps. I read it and forgot...just like that... ;D. Is the brown part of the feces kind of tacky...like it looks like it would be sticky...or is it soft yet solid enough to just hold it's form? The white is normal, and should be pretty liquidy. There should be lots of clear, too. That's a good sign of hydration. As far as the bigger enclosure goes...enclosing it as much as you can would be ideal. Using Plexiglas can be costly, but it is very good at holding in moisture. So is sealed wood panels, but that will make the enclosure pretty heavy...but not unmanageable. If you're looking for cost effective ways...a plastic coated wire would work with drop cloths or shower curtains attached to hold in the moisture. There are so many ideas I could go on. Have you looked in the "Housing" section? There are a bunch of ideas to use from there. Mix and match and use what works best for you... .
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Post by pighunter on Aug 21, 2007 19:11:58 GMT -8
prism_wolf it worked throwing a few strawberries in her dish with sum greens she went right up to it! iam so so excited and reliefed. it was getting to be a pain in the butt force feeding her! hopefully she will continue to eat on her own
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Post by prism_wolf on Aug 21, 2007 20:00:27 GMT -8
WOOOOOOOOOOT!!! I am SOOOOOOOOO glad she took to that so well! Very, VERY awesome! Now you can get back down to bonding with her again...:-D
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Post by Merlin on Aug 22, 2007 4:17:50 GMT -8
Thats great! Now that you don't have daily wrestling matches you can work on getting her socialized again. Another point on the reptatriums. If the flourescent tubes are not on the inside of the cage the mesh is screening out most of your UVB. Having her out in the sun is solving the problem for the moment but winter will be here soon.
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Post by prism_wolf on Aug 22, 2007 6:17:33 GMT -8
but winter will be here soon. With the weather like it's been...I can only hope! I also hope it doesn't create icebergs in our lakes...
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Post by Merlin on Aug 22, 2007 6:22:02 GMT -8
LOL As hot as it has been here I would just go lay on one!
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Post by prism_wolf on Aug 22, 2007 8:24:32 GMT -8
LOL As hot as it has been here I would just go lay on one! I actually DID laughed out loud on that one. I get the funniest looks here at work sometimes... ;D.
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Post by pighunter on Aug 22, 2007 8:51:07 GMT -8
so merlin your sayin thar the screen blocks out most of the uv from the light? the lady at the reptile shop said those cages were awsome for reptiles? but yeah come to think bout it your right. iam trying to think how on my cage iam building for her how i want to do the enclosure. i was thinking plexi glass on the bottom and mesh at the top but i want her new home to keep as much moisture it can hold and she can still climb all over it. the repterium i have now i put drop clothes i got from work on the sides and the back. and left the top and front view open for air circulation.
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