luevelvet
Avid Member
Hey everyone,
Melle is doing great. Eats what I would consider to be a reasonable amount. I don't over feed at all, maybe a mix of 4-5 items of gutloaded crickets and/or roaches per day. I also supplement once every two weeks or so with ReptiVite and Nekton-REP. I do know he loves to go to town on the hibiscus leaves and twigs on occasion but I don't believe it's an everyday habit. He is misted three times a day for 10 mins each time and when I'm in the room I do witness him drink. He shows no signs of being unhealthy, pyhsically or mentally. He's colors are great, and attitude is typical.
Recently I've noticed that he doesn't defecate as often as he used to. For the past three weeks he's been going every week or so, as oposed to what used to be daily. But here's the kicker, on the days he does end up "going", I find up to three distinctly large pieces. They look normal, maybe a little larger than usual, but after all, he is a growing boy.
Also, I noticed that it's difficult to find any urates with them. The stuff I do find looks normal, but again, I don't find very much of it at all.
Is this normal? I've read that as they mature, they tend to go every other day or so, but once a week? He does look a little "chubby" under his neck and does have a little bit of a pot belly, but when handled he has no problems flattening it out. I've felt around his underside looking for any blockage but I can't feel anything out of the ordinary. No objects or masses, or even slighlty denser areas.
During the research phase before we purchased him, I read about high protien diets leading to gout or edema. As I mentioned before, his neck looks a little chubby and the decline in urates has me concerned for edema. Would a vet visit actually confirm my concerns? I've always waited until my animals were a little bit older to drag them to a vet and would hate to drag him through the stress if all I need to do is change something in his diet etc.
I'd appreciate any thoughts and advice.
Thanks,
Luis
Melle is doing great. Eats what I would consider to be a reasonable amount. I don't over feed at all, maybe a mix of 4-5 items of gutloaded crickets and/or roaches per day. I also supplement once every two weeks or so with ReptiVite and Nekton-REP. I do know he loves to go to town on the hibiscus leaves and twigs on occasion but I don't believe it's an everyday habit. He is misted three times a day for 10 mins each time and when I'm in the room I do witness him drink. He shows no signs of being unhealthy, pyhsically or mentally. He's colors are great, and attitude is typical.
Recently I've noticed that he doesn't defecate as often as he used to. For the past three weeks he's been going every week or so, as oposed to what used to be daily. But here's the kicker, on the days he does end up "going", I find up to three distinctly large pieces. They look normal, maybe a little larger than usual, but after all, he is a growing boy.
Also, I noticed that it's difficult to find any urates with them. The stuff I do find looks normal, but again, I don't find very much of it at all. Is this normal? I've read that as they mature, they tend to go every other day or so, but once a week? He does look a little "chubby" under his neck and does have a little bit of a pot belly, but when handled he has no problems flattening it out. I've felt around his underside looking for any blockage but I can't feel anything out of the ordinary. No objects or masses, or even slighlty denser areas.
During the research phase before we purchased him, I read about high protien diets leading to gout or edema. As I mentioned before, his neck looks a little chubby and the decline in urates has me concerned for edema. Would a vet visit actually confirm my concerns? I've always waited until my animals were a little bit older to drag them to a vet and would hate to drag him through the stress if all I need to do is change something in his diet etc.
I'd appreciate any thoughts and advice.
Thanks,
Luis
