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Post by mar on Mar 5, 2004 10:44:35 GMT -8
Like any healthy ig Bob is a pig, over a pound and a half of greens a week with other veggies mixed in. But when he eats he he stuffs as much food in mouth and throat as he can then stands back and chomps on it and swollows it for the next few (20 to 40) seconds. Is this normal with your igs too?
I am not worried about it as he has done this for the last 8.5 years and is clearly breathing while swollowing the food. Nor is he deprived of food at all -- a large hand full twice a day of something between the ig den diet and MK salad with a lot of water over it. Just wondering
Mark
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Post by prism_wolf on Mar 5, 2004 18:47:24 GMT -8
Both the big igs do this. Since the airway is under the tongue the air flow is not affected. Each one of the large ones eats a full pie plate or frisbee full every day. The small one gets a saucer full...I don't see him eat much, but I know his food is gone at the end of the day.
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Post by Tesa on Mar 8, 2004 6:05:17 GMT -8
Thrasher does the same thing. I think she is eating more than Bob. she eats a regular sized dinner plate piled full of greens plus about 3/4 cup of finely chopped veggies every morning....and then she has another handful or 2 of greens in the evening! If I don't bring her the evening snack when she's ready, she stands up on her hind legs and looks out the glass at me like" HEY! I'm am HERE ya know!!" ;D THAT"S a pig! lol
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Post by mar on Mar 8, 2004 8:02:34 GMT -8
I looked at Bob's food dish this morning and it is labled as having a 1.5 quart volume and I fill it twice daily for him -- that constitiutes a large hand full -- with chopped and shredded veggies. I would say that there is a cup-lite to a full cup of veggies in there per day.
He does not always eat at the same time though, but what animal does I know that I don't. I have food in there by 9:30 am when I head off to classes, some days he heads down and starts to eat as I walk out the door but others he wonders the room for a while then eats. What ever he wants to do I guess, I can't force him to anything all I can do is keep him healthy and warm.
Mark
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Post by Tesa on Mar 8, 2004 8:08:50 GMT -8
yep! Thrasher does the same thing....
Sometimes she will be down at the door begging by 8:00. Other times the lil brat won't eat until noon!
I think she just does it to make me worry whether or not she's gonna eat. ;D
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Post by dominick on Mar 8, 2004 17:07:53 GMT -8
Hi Mar-
He sounds very healthy and happy if he is eating that much. Good for you! A testament to great care.
Interesting thought I had: As far as I know and have read, Igs don't masticate their food. It's mostly swallowed whole. They are the reptile equivelant of a cow. LOL A veritable produce processing plant. Food in, "processed food" out!
Change in eating times can have something to do with wake-up times and their mood. It's nothing critical though. The Iguana needs a warm-up period in the morning, like most cold-blooded creatures, then the "active" part of the day, including eating, then the cool down before sleep.
Continued good luck with your healthy fella!
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Post by prism_wolf on Mar 8, 2004 19:27:23 GMT -8
You're right about them being like a cow Dominick...and not being able to chew their food... ;D The mouth, teeth and jaws are not designed for chewing. Because they can't masticate their food they have a hindgut located between the large and small intestine. It's divided into chambers that slow the movement of food. The microflora has a field day with the food getting caught in the nooks and crannies where the microflora hide to keep from getting washed away in the feces. The microflora then creates a fermentation process. There's quite a bit on this in Jim Hatfield III's "Green Iguana - The Ultimate Owner's Manual"...  All that being said...I've been feeding all the igs in my house smaller cuts of greens to kind of help the process along. This means less up-front work for the iguana's digestive system. They are able to utilize the nutrients more effectively and I have noticed that I have had to feed less when using finer chopped foods. If anyone has the book it goes into more detail on page 306. |
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Post by Tesa on Mar 9, 2004 4:50:19 GMT -8
Prism_wolf,
I find exactly the opposite with Thrasher! When I run her veggies thru the food processor she is able to pack more into her tummy. And she takes full advantage of it. ;D
I don't know where she puts it all!
As for chewing...I think MAR is talking about how they use their tongue to mash the food and work it down into the throat. I love to watch Thrasher eat watermelon. lol
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