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Hey guys,

As ive posted, ive got a new female chuckwalla and she is a bit underweight and seems very much to be a Wild Caught however was sold to me as a Captive hatched.

How do i go about encouraging her to eat as she doesnt seem to have eaten anything.

im offering loads of different foods, flowers and there isnt much more i could offer.

i was thinking about possibly offering boiled egg to fatten her up but i wouldnt want to do this yet as it is likely her kidneys will struggle as she is proberly already dehydrated.

i have offered a bowl of water which actually seems to have been used but i havnt witnessed this.

i have been pollen which i will place in her vivarium shortly.

im not too concerned just yet because i only went to get her yesterday so she will be stressed about the move but if she is still like this is in a few days time what should i do?

she is basking a pretty active........


please please help, it would mean so much to me.

hi guys,

i need some suggestions regarding putting weight on my chuck. her appetite is minimal so ive been 'force feeding' a slurry with the use of a syringe which seems to really be helping. she doesnt seem too stressed by this at all really. its over and done with pretty quick too.

she still has very little/no fat body stores but her tail seems to be getting thicker.

where would they put on the weight first?

It is really kind of a gamble forcing anything upon them. The stress may have a big toll on them, further reducing their appetite.
If they are still eating on their own, I would focus more on giving them higher quality foods.
How big is she? If she has some good size to her, you could try some thawed sweet peas, chopped thawed green beans, grated carrot, squash, zuchini, and sweet potato. This would be added to the base of greens. They really do seem to relish the carrots and squash, but anything should be offered in moderation, as different veggies may be harder to digest than others. We have also heard of younger chucks becoming impacted on dandelion flowers, as the fibers are fairly tough. Try a bit of parsley and cillantro as well. Ours all seem prety fond of them.

thanks so much for that nick/austin.
i use all of the foods you have mentioned in a weekly diet in moderation.
i was force feeding her and this seemed to do wonders for her because she is really eating now. not masses but certainly enough for her to start putting weight on.

the force feeding wasnt so stressful for her because i wouldnt psychically open her mouth, she would gape and i would simply drip slurry/water into her mouth. i only did it for a couple of days and she only seemed to improve.
if i had not rehydrated her there was no way she would have been able to digest food.
i used natural pro biotic yogurt on a couple of occassions to boost gut flora. within a day or so of doing that she was eating.
shes still not in great condition and ive had the lab results back, shes got internal fungus and worms. which we will be treating, unless she is eating everyday and then we willl reassess her in a month.

obviously need to ensure she is in perfect health before she is matched up with one of the boys. she will more than likely need treating at some point but shes picking up just great at the moment. i would rather not use antibiotics and anti fungals if she can overcome it herself with the use of alternative natural medicines.
there just isnt enough research on treatment for me to feel confident about them. if shes a bit stronger il feel better about putting chemicals in her.
im also going to try manuka honey as it is reported to be great for reptiles and i know its great for us!

my hatchlings dont get many dandelions at all. to be honest they prefer spring (collard) greens which i think is funny. but Lea loves dandelion flowers so i use plenty of supplements on them, just while shes poorly. shes big enough for them not to cause impaction i think.

she really likes coriander! massively! lol. but never give too much of one thing. she prefers food which has not been supplemented but is eating all food now, supplemented or not

she is about 10inches full lengh. shes pretty built aswell, just underweight. though her belly looks full today. its easy to see her muscles are not what they should be for her size but im sure that will improve in time too. cant wait to see a fat tail on her!

im just so glad that i was able to source so much from other keepers and online so i could treat her at home in the most natural way possible.
i did leave food out for her every day and wouldnt force feed until later in the day so she would be more likely to eat for herself but she wasnt touching anything and her fat stores were gone so it really was a last resort.

How much time does she spend getting warmed up? Is she actively moving around the enclosure?

yup she moves around a fair bit. she will bask for, i dont know, five ten mins, then wonder about, maybe stay in the cool end for five mins, then go back and bask for a little while.
her behaviour seems pretty good. shes thermoregulating and doesnt spend too long in any one spot. she has a good energetic woddle on her and is pretty inquisitive.
she has eaten well again today so far. looking better everyday.

im going to wait until monday, see how she does over the weekend and the weigh her. then i will discuss with the vet how we will approch things. im just so glad shes picking up so much. the fungus, worms and bacteria build up must have reduced and her own immune system coping with it all better.

she did a nice big black poo today which i am chuffed about. its the first dark poo she has done

i think the herbs and flowers i gave her made a massive difference. got to love natural medicines!

"chuffed"? I imagine that is a good thing?

Lol. Yes sorry. English term for being very pleased - like being 'made up'

She hasn't eaten a great deal today but that's ok. She is still looking much fuller around the stomach and is bright and active. She's so unsure of me. I went to give her a shallow dish of water - which she does drink from!
And she looks at me strangely - she obviously thinks I'm going to try grab her lol. So I avoid looking at her as if to dismiss her. This seems to actually make a difference as she will continue with what she was doing. But if I look at her she wants to have a staring contest. Lol.
I'm still avoiding interaction and her vivarium is still blacked out. I don't bother her much. Just once a day really.

My hatchling boys are doing great. They are really active at the moment. I think its because the suns out. They get extra light through the window of the reptile room. Their vivs are super bright but they seem to respond to the weather too. They are really growing in confidence now, jumping out of their vivs and running around the room. Looking into everything. Lol. Then when they are ready they will jump back in their vivs or on to me and off my head and back into the viv. One is on floor level and the other on top of it.
They seem to really like me petting them too. They are not bothered in the slightest what I do to them lol. Iike to have a feel of their tummies and look closely at their claws- its as if they trust me like I'm another chuck lol. They still wiggle their tail if I have to pick them up though lol. Happens occasionally when they decide to venture somewhere they are not allowed lol.