Any vieled owners Cham eat their pothos plant regularly?

[Tucklander]

I’ve been told they have calcium oxalates and could be bad: my guy is eating half a quarter to half a leaf a day? A member stated it can cause mbd...anyone with a vieled Cham or otherwise have experience with them eating this often and any problems? I’m trying very hard to be careful...

 

[nightanole]

Plenty of veileds and other lizards regularly nibble on pothos, they seem to love the new growth leaves. While everything you have read is technically true, the amount of calcium blocking veg a iggy/beardy/veiled would have to eat to cause even minor MBD is off the charts. Its like aliens saying dont feed your pet human apples because they contain "some" toxins in the seeds.

 

[jamest0o0]

Plenty of veileds and other lizards regularly nibble on pothos, they seem to love the new growth leaves. While everything you have read is technically true, the amount of calcium blocking veg a iggy/beardy/veiled would have to eat to cause even minor MBD is off the charts. Its like aliens saying dont feed your pet human apples because they contain "some" toxins in the seeds.

No intention to be rude, but do you have proof on this? I'm not arguing one way or another, a well supplemented and gutloaded veiled likely has nothing to worry about at all. At the same time we see a fair amount of mbd cases in veileds. This is probably due to bad husbandry, but something to think about. Seems like every month we are learning new things in this hobby, so questioning the effect of eating large amounts of oxalates(they have enough to cause irritation in dogs/cats/people..) is a good question. I doubt we'll have an answer though.

OP I would just let it go, as long as everything else is right your veiled will live a healthy life.

 

[nightanole]

No intention to be rude, but do you have proof on this? I'm not arguing one way or another, a well supplemented and gutloaded veiled likely has nothing to worry about at all. At the same time we see a fair amount of mbd cases in veileds. This is probably due to bad husbandry, but something to think about. Seems like every month we are learning new things in this hobby, so questioning the effect of eating large amounts of oxalates(they have enough to cause irritation in dogs/cats/people..) is a good question. I doubt we'll have an answer though.

OP I would just let it go, as long as everything else is right your veiled will live a healthy life.

My pothos have been getting slaughtered since the 1990's. Never had a vet visit without good marks on the bones. I even had a few "long tailed lizards" with prehensile tails that would nibble on every new growth leaf. Its been a staple plant for most none desert setups since forever.

Honestly if you look up the potho and everything it can cause, you wonder how any animal is still alive that is around it. I dont know if they did studies, or just went "oxalates are highly poisonous, pothos have oxalates", and just monkey branched from there. Ive read articles such as "plant ingestion is the #2 child poisoning risk in the house second only to cleaning chemicals" and they allude to the children may have eaten "some" potho because homes may have pothos.

In other rants, have you seen the recently updated lists of people foods you cant feed dogs/cats???? You wonder how they lived before dog/cat food was invented...

 

[jamest0o0]

I don't think pothos are highly toxic or even dangerous. You seem like someone with good husbandry. I just wonder if it contributes to any problems when paired with other husbandry issues. My understanding was they were only an irritant to dogs/cats/people. On the other hand, I admit I always brushed the toxicity of plants off. Up until early this year when our cat got severely sick from eating some leaves off some plants while I wasn't looking. After a giant vet bill, a feeding tube, and medication he made it through with a full recovery, but it was terrible to see.