My savannah is not eating right now .. ?

[lonewulf]

My savannah Monitor is not eating right now ... he has been eating fine up until about 4 or 5 days ago .. Shan-Yu ate a feast of crickets and a pinkie and was looking fine , now a day later than that which would be about 4 days ago he regurgitated what was left of the pinkie and has not eaten a thing since then except for a couple of crickets today .. he has been sleeping almsot all the time , when he is up he is active and when I have him out he is very active as well ...

any thoughts ?

could he be trying to hibernate ?
he is beginning to look thin so I am getting worried now

basking temp is around 135 , the cool side is about 80 , around 80 humidity and the substrate is dirt ..

any thoughts would be appreciated.

[crocdoc]

Have the ambient temperatures dropped? Is it cooler at night? Is there a lot of daylight coming into the room, enough so that the monitor can notice the days shortening?

In the meantime, I wouldn't worry about it starving in a real hurry - they can go for a very long time without food.

[Double J]

What exactly do you mean when you say that the substrate is dirt? Dirt could mean soil, eco-earth, peat moss, sand, or plenty of other things. Let us know just for clarification.
Let's not forget, that just because an animal is eating well, that does not necessarily mean it is completeely healthy. An animal with a massive appetite that is losing weight could easily have some sort of worm or other intestinal parasite. You should get it checked out... wither that, or get yourself some panacur from a vet. You can wetheer dust the crickets with panacur powder, or give him the liquid orally. Luckily, panacur is a relativley safe drug, and is far less likely to give a dangerous overdose than many other medications.
Best of luck with your savannah.

[lonewulf]

Substrate is soil .... simple potting soil , not fertilzed

as for him losingweight .. it has only been the last few days that he has not eaten .. before that he was gaining .. well atleast he looked like he was I have not been able to get him on a scale ...

I am heading back to the place I got him tomorrow and asking them about the problem as the ae very knowledgeabel about monitors .. thansk for the advice about the panacur ...

[crocdoc]

I'd take faecal sample to a vet to make sure it actually has parasites before giving medication - you may just be compounding whatever problem was there to start with, if it isn't parasites.

[Double J]

True....
That said, I always administer panacur to any wild caught anmal that comes into my collection while it is in quarantine. Panacur is safe, and I will bet has saved me a fair amount of trouble.

[mbayless]

Hi,
During this time of year in West Africa V> exanthematicus brumate or hibernate during their summer months, which they frequently do on a annual basis. They slow down, stop feeding, sleep alot, and will use their reserves for energy during these months. I had robust fat animals stop eating for 3-4 months, sleep most of the time, and then go on feed in march or so....V. albigularis too. It is a natural thing.

I would keep temps the same as 2 months ago, and offer food to them on bi-weekly basis if they want it they will eat, otherwise not.

Good Luck,
markb

[lonewulf]

Well today got home from work and he was out and about he ate the remaining crickets I think it was 5 or 6 but not too sure , I fed him 12 more and he ate maybe 3 and went back to sleep .. he is a little more active today , I am meeting an expert tomorrow about him and will get some parasite meds for him ..

he looks alot more alert today .. a few days ago I picked him up from a sleep and he hardly even reacted ... today I looked in on him and picked him up and he puffed and hissed and bit ..a good sign .. I am going to leave him for a week or so before I pick him up again .. let him have time to himself . I know when I don't feel well that is what I want ..

thanks guys for the advice and thoughs .. your great and I appreciate it alot thanks !