Chinese water dragon not eating.
Laurence T. Reiter
I posted about being the new owner of a water dragon. She is worrying
me a bit. I've had her since Sunday and she has eaten three tiny mice since
then but has not gone to the bathroom. She also no longer seems interested
in food and is just sitting at the bottom of the cage. She will move around
a little but she is not as active as she was the first day. What do I do?
Larry Reiter
Houston, TX
Terry Delaney
(Laurence T. Reiter) wrote:
Hi Larry!
I have 2 wd's. I have been a wd owner for 41/2 years. I am not an
expert, but I do have some experience. Please email me back with the
following info:
Describe her enclosure: size, heating source, light source, average
temperature, water source.
Is she basking? Using any heat source? If not, she cannot digest her
feeding, and it will kill her.
What is her color?
Does her skin "tent" i.e., when you pinch a little up does it stay pinched
up for more than a second or two?
Is she getting into her water at all? If not *put her in it right away*
because that is where she will defecate, but more importantly where she
drinks. If she is dehydrated, it will kill her real fast. If she is not
drinking, it is much more serious than not eating. You can also mist her,
but be sure she is getting in her water a few times a day, minimum, and
should have unlimited and easy access to it.
What are you trying to feed her? Are you using vitamins?
Where did you get her, was she captive bred or wild caught, what were the
previous owners feeding her?
How big is she? snout-to-vent (snout to cloaca)? snout-to-tail? what is
her girth in inches?
Has she been to a vet yet to be tested for parasites and get a general
exam? If not she should go ASAP.
If she is an adult, they only eat once or twice a week, usually.
Do you have de Vosjoli's Water Dragon book? If not get it as it describes
proper enclosure, temperatures, etc.
Let me know the answers to the above questions, and I will try to help.
You can email me privately.
Patty Creed
tp...@cornell.edu
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Terrence P. Delaney Department of Plant Pathology
Cornell University (607) 255-7856
334 Plant Science Building FAX (607) 255-4471
Ithaca, NY 14853-4203 tp...@cornell.edu
http://ppathw3.cals.cornell.edu/ppath/Delaney/Delaney.html
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Michael J. Mahony
>
>Hi,
> I posted about being the new owner of a water dragon. She is
worrying
>me a bit. I've had her since Sunday and she has eaten three tiny mice
since
>then but has not gone to the bathroom. She also no longer seems
interested
>in food and is just sitting at the bottom of the cage. She will move
around
>a little but she is not as active as she was the first day. What do I
do?
>
>Larry Reiter
>Houston, TX
(1) Do you have a large enough water bowl available at all times?
This is a must for them to eliminate properly.
(2) What is the substrate you are using?
--
Michael J. Mahony
"All we are is dust in the wind . . ."
Chris Horgan
writes:
> Hi,
> I posted about being the new owner of a water dragon. She is worrying
> me a bit. I've had her since Sunday and she has eaten three tiny mice since
> then but has not gone to the bathroom. She also no longer seems interested
> in food and is just sitting at the bottom of the cage. She will move around
> a little but she is not as active as she was the first day. What do I do?
>
> Larry Reiter
> Houston, TX
I have owned my WD since July and it took him 4 days to start to eat and a bit longer to settle in
and become 'regular'.
I notice that Patty has posted a reply and hope that you have now contacted her and got all the help
you need so I won't duplicate the info here.
There are a number of WD owners appearing on the group and we are trying to coordinate the info
available for new WD owners. Just remember that it is always better to play safe and seek the advice
of your herp vet if there is any doubt as to the animals health.
Chris.
--
Chris Horgan