How can I save my Mal?

Question

I keep a red desert heat lamp on all the time, and I keep the mosture level between 20 and 40 percent. The temperature is around 100 degrees in the daytime and between 80 and 90 at night. She has a uv light, a full spectrum light and the heat lamp. I also have a ceramic heater going over the top of the tank to keep it dry. When she eats, she only will eat Brusell's sprouts and meal worms. I have some dry adult Iguana food in there for her if she wants it, but I think she had such a loss of calcium when I got her that her gums aren't very good now, and chewing is hard. She is trying desperately to shed, but huge pieces of skin are haning on her back. She has never managed to shed completely since I've had her. I put her in a warm water bath to bask a couple of times a day. I am told she is probably not quite an adult, because she is small, but since she doesn't eat well and never had the light or habitat she should for so long, she could just be small from starving. Thanks.

Answer 1

I am assuming by "mal" you are referring to a mali uromastyx, if not disreguard this reply. From what you wrote it sounds like you are doing a wonderful job. You didn't mention what type of substrate she is on, this could have an effect on her eating habits. She might have a compaction in her digestive tract, this being caused by her consuming the substrate. Sand, walnut shell and the like tend to cause this. Calcium sand is the safest way to go, but neverless problems can occur. Choose a substrate with a very small grain size. The temp in the daytime could be increased to 110-115, this is most similiar to her natural environment. Other than that I would continue doing what you are doing.
By the way most Uros shed in pieces, just be sure to remove one that don't come off. I would have to see the animal, but calcium and B12 injections might help. B12 gives them energy, and you didn't mention her activity level. Try collard greens. Baby food might strike her fancy as well, green beans, squash, and banana tend to work.
best of luck to you!!!

Answer 2

Hi. I think part of your problem may be too much moisture. What you're doing is good for Most reptiles, but not for a uro. High humidity and exposure to water are going to cause some serious respiratory problems. These special critters are one of the few Actual dessert lizards, and so they need dry conditions.

Try lowering your humidity and laying off the bathing and see if she doesn't perk up a little. Brussel sprouts aren't the best bet for lizards, as they have something in them that binds calcium (too tired to remember the exact scientific term off hand)... But, you want to get some collard greens, turnip tops, and (strangely) the uro is one of the only lizards who Benefits from the occasional lettuce.

As uro's are dessert animals, and lettuce is just water in a green skin, occasional lettuce is a good way to hydrate your lizard (they chew on cacti in the wild... which is similar but without the pickers).

She may be having difficulty shedding because of the high humidity.... And she sounds like she might be malnourished.

Hope that helps some... and I hope the best for your Mal.

Edit: Keeping a light on all the time will cause undo stress for lizards. You need to find an alternative heater for night time, such as an under tank heater. Since she only needs seventy five degrees night time temp, it should be easy to convert to another night time heat source.

Answer 3

I'm afraid to say that though you may have the heart, you may not have the experience to deal with this genus of lizard and the multiple problems she may have. They can be difficult. It sounds like it has wasted away under long term poor care and the damage may already be done to organs and bone. There may likely be a point in the near future that you would be more thoughtful of the lizard put just it down, or better yet, get her to a reptile rehabilitator/rescue that has Uro experience to try to save her before it is too late. I understand that you inherited this lizard from previous poor management, but according to your information, you have not been doing some things right either.
I will try to give you some information which could help you save her.

First, have your reptile vet check for goiter, caused by iodine deficiency/thyroid disfunction. You are feeding Brussel sprouts all the time, which is not healthy as it binds iodine, causing thyroid disfunction. You should be using fresh greens which are high in fiber and calcium, and low in phosphorus; such as collards, mustard, turnip, or dandelion greens. Wash thoroughly any fresh fruit or vegetables you use. The sprouts are known by the FDA to commonly be tainted with e. coli and salmonella. This could also be part of your problem.

Second, the mealworms all the time are very unhealthy as well. Mealworms are very poor on nutrition ( high chitin, high fat, low Ca:P ratio ), therefore they should be offered only occasionally. This holds true generally for all insect larvae. Wax worms are better, but whole mature insects, such as the actual moth, bettle, or crickets are more healthy.

Dry adult Iguana food, like almost all processed/packaged reptile food, is not healthy as a staple either. Most are way too high in protein or trash fillers high in starch/sugar. Use instead fresh and clean insects, vegetables, and fruits. You will have to move this lizard over to a new kind of diet by introducing these things, or withholding food for a few days.

Third, these lizards inhabit the deserts of Africa and the middle east where it may rain once or twice a year. Your humidity levels at 40% may be too high, and in herps that come from arid areas, excessive humidity can cause respiratory problems. Check average humidity levels where your species comes from.

Most people way overuse supplements. This can cause hypervitaminosis -poisoning. Excessive calcium can be just as bad as too little. Excessive calcium can cause hypercalcemia, which can literally solidify internal organs and be very painful to the animal. Same with vitamin A. Too little can cause all sorts of organ disfunction, but so can too much. These things can lead to death. You should only lightly dust your lizard's food once a week. Twice a week at most if you feed everyday. Anymore than that had better be under the direction of a reptile vet.

Most people also buy inferior UV lighting for their animals. Flourescent strip lamps are not good enough for diurnal reptiles from desert environments with high UV demands. You should be using a high quality mercury vapor spot/flood which produces both UVA and UVB at 50 microwatts per cm2, or better. I recommend the Mega Ray brand over the common ZooMed or T-Rex. If you don't have this, then you should expose your lizard to about 30 minutes of direct and unfiltered sunlight everyday ( not behind glass, but allow a shaded area to thermoregulate ). Given the areas these lizards are native, 100 degrees may not be enough. Uro's are commonly active during the day in some of the hottest parts of the world. You should have a basking area of the tank that is probably around 110 or above, and around the 90's on the opposite end.

Another thing you may have your vet check for is internal and external parasites. The problems with the skin and other general illness in this case, I'm sure, is due to diet and lack of proper UVB, but the shedding/skin loss could also be related to mites from improper humidity levels and dirty substrate.

www.kingsnake.com/uromastyx/
http://forums.kingsnake.com/forum.php?catid=59
www.anapsid.org

Fireside3

Answer 4

First off, NO MEALWORMS. For a sick Uro, mealworms are worse than no food at all... best to cut out the animal protein all together.

Also, you really need to up the basking temperature. Uro's need a basking spot of at LEAST 120 degrees, perhaps slightly higher since she is ill.

Stop with the baths, Uro's are desert animals and HATE water. You should soak them once a month at the MOST. I know you think it's helping, but it places so much stress on them that doing it that often is probably just making things worse. Also, Uro's never shed all at once, it can take them months sometimes. I would worry about getting her healthy and not worry about shedding right now.

The important thing right now is to get her eating healthy foods. You say she will only eat brussel sprouts, what else have you tried feeding her? Try EVERYTHING, collard greens, mustard greens, endive, escarole, bok choy, turnip greens, dandelion greens (They LOVE the flowers, only thing that kept my rescue Uro alive for a while... unfortunately it's the wrong time of year), squash, carrots, cactus pads, get a bowl of birdseed (NO sunflower seeds!) as well.

Did the vet check for parasites? That is a definite possiblility and she may need to be treated. If she defacates soon, try to get a fecal sample to the vet.

It's great that you're doing what you can, but years of improper care can really take their toll. It's possible that she is just too far gone. Good luck though.

The BEST Uro site on the web is http://www.deerfernfarms.com

You really aren't going to get a lot of great info on Yahoo, try the kingsnake Uro forum, there's a lot of very knowledgeable people who will be happy to help you.
http://forums.kingsnake.com/forum.php?catid=59

Answer 5

make sure the temp on the cool side is 95F and the temp on the warm side is 110-120F. uva/uvb bulb ( it should provide both) needs to beon 8-12 hours a day, and replaced every 6 monts. at night keep just the red light on. stop feeding meal worms...they are vegetarian, too much protein can cause build up in the intestines, decreased mobility, and muscle problems. try some fruits and veggies. whatever she will eat ( veggie wise) add some calcium powder to is. when she want to shed, put some luke warm water in to soak. buy only do this once a week. provide for her a hiding place. and do not put moisture in the tank! too much moisture will cause their organs to stop working. also another reason not to feed meal worms is because if you dont chop their heads off they can still live insde the reptile, and eat holes in it~ if anything use miniscular crickets~ oh and use sand for a substrate