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Post by rocmills on Feb 11, 2005 14:01:07 GMT -8
Hi Gang!
Is there any way to tell if your female is reabsorbing her eggs instead of carrying them to term?
--Roc
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Post by Tesa on Feb 11, 2005 15:35:54 GMT -8
I wasn't confident that I could feel a difference by palpating Thrasher's belly. I was too worried about it and had to have mine Xrayed.. (Thank God because she had not resorbed them and wasn't laying)
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Post by rocmills on Feb 11, 2005 15:52:38 GMT -8
Tesa,
Last year, Mary didn't lay her eggs until the middle of March. I wonder now if she's reabsorbing because she isn't getting fatter and her poops are unlike any I've seen from an ig before.... her poop for the past few days has been more like rabbit poop than iggy poop. Of course, when she is gravid she won't eat iggy food unless you force her to as all she wants to eat while gravid is dry cat food.
--Roc
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Post by Tesa on Feb 11, 2005 16:11:45 GMT -8
Oh Lord! That doesn't sound good. Sounds like she needs to be hydrated. ( Keep the catfood out of reach for heavens sake!!).
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Post by Tesa on Feb 11, 2005 16:29:29 GMT -8
There's no way (that Im aware of) for you to know when she should be laying. You probably already know the signs to look for...the only realistic advise I can give is to pray for the best and take her to the vet if in doubt. I do want to refer you to a post about Thrasher's ordeal. It's unlikely that Mary has the same problem, but it makes does make a point. Keep us updated and hugs to you both!! tesa.proboards24.com/index.cgi?board=health&action=display&thread=1089774931
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Post by rocmills on Feb 11, 2005 16:32:18 GMT -8
Tesa,
Mary is taking plenty of water! She drinks a good 4 ounces of water every day (see my avatar pic, she still likes to drink from that cup). I should clarify my previous post... there is a bit of "normal" ig poop but it is surrounded/accompanied by lots of little pellets of poop.
Regarding the cat food... it's hard not to let her have just a little bit since she won't eat anything else. Oh, I should also point out that her previous owner let her eat cat and dog food all the time. I imagine the animal protein damage is already done, though I know I shouldn't let her eat any and make it worse. How can I not let her eat it when she won't eat anything else? I know, I'm being a wimp, but I don't want her to totally starve, ya know. Sigh.
Thanks!
--Roc
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Post by Tesa on Feb 11, 2005 16:42:28 GMT -8
Previous damage+more cat food= worse damage. I firmly believe you should not let her have it at all. Also: Mary is a good sized girl. I'm not so sure that 4 oz would be enough to keep her hydrated ...particularly if she's eating dry cat food that soaks up the water in her belly. A double whammy from the cat food imho. How long has she been eating it? There could also be a calcium deficiency going on if she stopped eating her greens and her body leeched calcium from her bones to use in making shells for the eggs. It's completely normal for a gravid ig to eat llittle or nothing for days or even a couple of weeks right before she lays.
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Post by dominick on Feb 11, 2005 16:52:35 GMT -8
I agree, no more catfood, ever Rox.
Gravid igs will eat little to nothing while they process eggs. They certainly will not starve, the survival instinct is too great.
Only offer a good diet and keep her away from dehydrating cat food at this time.
You do not want to compound the damage that is likely already there from the previous owner.
An x-ray is best to determine if all eggs were absorbed. It only takes one to burst to make it a much more serious and costly fix!
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Post by Marie on Feb 11, 2005 17:00:24 GMT -8
Roc,
I have a female iguana who was fed dog food by her previous owners. She ended up with a twisted back and bent tail from MBD. I know there was other factors in the MBD but it did not help. I did not feed her dog food after I got her. That was over 9 years ago. She is almost 12 now. She has just recently been diagnose with kidney disease but so far I have it under control.
My iguanas went about a month without eating. I had Dragon spayed though because her deformities from the MBD made it very difficult for her to lay. I decided to have Baby done too even though she didn't have problems.
So I suggest also that you quit the cat food. She may be like Dragon and still live many years without kidney problems if you do.
Hope all goes well.
Marie
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Post by dominick on Feb 11, 2005 17:20:02 GMT -8
Thank you Marie-
Good to hear from someone who has actually dealt with it before and knows what happens when you change over.
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Post by rocmills on Feb 11, 2005 17:24:08 GMT -8
Okay, no more cat food treats ever again. This, of course, will please the cat no end. ;-) (those of you who have seen "food fued" know what i'm talking about)
Tesa, the 4 ounces was a guess. The cup she drinks from is an 8 ounce cup, but some of it ends up on the floor. Not that much, now that I think about it, so maybe she gets more like 6 ounces from the glass. She also gets daily, or every-other-day, soaks in the tub - where she drinks more water. However, in the interest of good health I will offer her more water on a daily basis.
As far as memory serves, I believe Mary to be 9-years-old. We've had her for three years now, and she's been on a good diet with the exception of the occassional munch of cat food. Her original owner did feed her properly for the first few years of her life, but the last couple of years before we "rescued" her, she had been completely neglected and eating cat food, dog food, and whatever she could forage from the backyard.
On the calcium question... she went off her regular eating habits a couple of weeks ago. Actually, neither Mary nor Bailey have been eating normally of late. Anyway, they do get weekly calcium supplements (reptical) in their food, and their regular diet is very heavy on the collard greens.
Thanks again everyone for the help and concern!
--Roc
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Post by Tesa on Mar 5, 2005 6:38:14 GMT -8
Roc?? How goes it??
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Post by rocmills on Mar 5, 2005 11:38:31 GMT -8
Tesa,
A couple of days ago, Mary entered the scratching and climbing and digging at everything stage. We are trying to give her as much time in the back yard as possible, but we've had a lot of cold weather and rain lately. Today we are going to try a little rearranging... set her up in Xander's cage with a box of dirt, and Xander can spend a few days on his shelf in the computer room.
Mary is fat fat fat, drinking lots, eating very little, and as friendly as you can imagine. Hopefully, she will lay her eggs soon.
--Roc
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Post by IguanaKing on Mar 5, 2005 21:28:42 GMT -8
Yup...I'm sure you already know her extra affection is just a natural part of her egg-laying process. Just keep doing what you're doing, provide her with plenty of digging opportunities. She's actually digging decoy nests at this point. As long as her basic needs aren't denied, and she has access to good food (I realize she won't eat it...but it should always be available. You already know that though. ;D), Luckily for me, Audrey isn't actually going through a "season" this year...still eats like a little pig. When I stay out too late though...like I have this week due to car problems...she doesn't seem to want to allow me to eat. No...she doesn't chase me away from my food...just wants to cuddle around my face when I'm trying to eat.
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Post by rocmills on Mar 5, 2005 21:35:54 GMT -8
We bought a 54-gallon plastic tub at HomeDeopt today... along with two bags of potting soil. We set the reptarium up in the front room, lenth-ways on the floor, and added the box and soil. Mary is in there now, and with any luck she will lay her eggs soon. We have her in a dark, quiet space which I hope will encourage her to lay.
--Roc
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