Reptile & Amphibian Forums

So I guess most know I just got the caiman.

After 24 hours I put some large crickets in (6). He seemed to have eaten them (unless they somehow escaped). I've since placed more crickets in there (another 5) and some half dozen feeder minnows. He doesn't seem to have bothered with any of it. There is very little traffic in the room he's in which is to say I pop my head in a couple of times a day to make sure he's ok.
Other than that I may have been in for a 1/2 hr just observing him. I didn't make the changes yet for fear of stressing him until I know he's eating regularly. Is there any kind of food that they generally can't resist? My thoughts have ranged from thawed pinky's (possibly split head) to live fuzzy's to chicken gizzards.

I tried putting in a thawed pinky in the evening, but it was still there in the morning. I put it on the driftwood (basking area) if you care to review my earlier pics.

Water temp is 82 on the side farthest from the heater, and temp is 95 in the basking area. Humidity is 20%. A couple of crix finally died (since they don't get fed in the enclosure and I picked them out of the water this morning. I thought he at least would have eaten them if they were floating in the water.

He's starting to get thin in the tail and the underbelly (although I don't know if this is an effect of being underwater and buoyancy). Any suggestions?
btw, I turn the heat lamp off at night which brings the temp down to about 75. I'm not sure what other info I can provide.

Mr. F

"I didn't make the changes yet for fear of stressing him until I know he's eating regularly."

Ok, I think you are going about this quite backwards to a degree. If an animals environment isn't the way it should be (to their liking) then this alone is enough stress on the animal, which in turn can be a reason why he isn't eating.

If I remember your photo correctly, your setup (while quite nice) is pretty much mostly aquatic. I have 3 dwarf Caiman and from my experience, they spend more time out of water, than in it. In fact, my setups are 2/3s land and 1/3s water. Furthermore, in the water area there is driftwood access so that they can climb on if they so feel like it.

"Water temp is 82 on the side farthest from the heater, and temp is 95 in the basking area. Humidity is 20%. A couple of crix finally died (since they don't get fed in the enclosure and I picked them out of the water this morning. I thought he at least would have eaten them if they were floating in the water."

How cool is the room that the caiman is in? If the room is generally warm (low to mid 70's or higher) then the water heater might be an overkill. Also, if you prefer to use a water heater, are you blocking him from access? If not, A) The caiman can possibly get burnt, and B) If you are using the glass submersible heaters, then you risk him possibly breaking it and getting himself electrocuted. I would be sure that is blocked off from access.
My dwarf caiman's were a little picky with food when I first got them, but with a little work, they came around and will now eat pretty much anything you give them. They are still shy eaters and will not eat while you are in the room, but as soon as you leave the food is GONE.
If your specimen is a P.palpebrosus, they are generally more cold tolerant than trigonatus is. I have my basking spot at the center point would be approximately 105ish. However, they are provided enough space to move further from the beam thus decreasing the intensity of the heat as they see fit. My water temps are in the upper 70's without the use of a heater. The ambient room temperature fluxuates between 82 and 88 during the day.

I hope this helps in some way.

Best Wishes,
Chris

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My Website
www.herpfanatic.com

Hi Chris,

"Ok, I think you are going about this quite backwards to a degree."
Quite possibly, for some reason I figured if he was stressed, I could stress him more and it would make it even harder to get them to feed, but I suppose stressed and not feeding is the same as really stressed and not feeding

"they spend more time out of water, than in it."
I've never seen mine out of the water (likes to hide in the water behind the curtain of leaves. But tonight I will buy a couple of ledges and place them at water level behind those leaves so he can be in water or out of water and be behind the leaves.

The water heater is protected by the filter except for the tip. The plan is to put that in a pvc tube so he can't get at it. Unfortunately the room can dip to 70 degrees, that's why I put the water heater in - so there's some degree of stability in water temp.

"My dwarf caiman's were a little picky with food when I first got them, but with a little work, they came around and will now eat pretty much anything..."

What bit of work did you do? This is the info I'm looking for
Was it the food? was minced meat more attractive to them? Is there something I can feed which may not be nutritious enough long term or on its own but will sustain them until they settle down?

yes, he's a palp

Have you had him wormed? I recently got 3 and none of them ate well until they were wormed. When I first got them I fed crickets to get them started but now I feed a live rat pup to each every 3 days. Mine all came in thin and dehydrated from the wholesaler but they have put on a good amount of weight in the 2 months I have had them. The smallest of the 3 was 145g when I received him and is now 235g.I have only been able to get my largest one to eat anything that was not live. Mine actually don't eat fish. I have had a dozen minnows living in there enclosure for about a month. Mine will still not eat with me in the room and are still pretty shy but I am hoping they will get better over time. When I got them they were pretty calm but I think that was just from being in poor condition. Now they are all mean as hell but that is fine with me they are just for looking anyway.
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John Vandegrift

How do I worm him? and do i ask my vet for a worm dose for a caiman?

Mr. F

You will more than likely have to find a good exotics vet and take him in to be wormed. They dose them according to weight. If you know the vet they many give you the doses of panacur/flagyl. It should be 2 doses 2 weeks apart. When I did mine we tubed the meds in. I'm do not know if there is any other way aside from including it in there food to dose them. I am not sure if mine even had worms but from what I have read most do come in with parasites and I just wanted mine wormed just to be sure they were clean.
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John Vandegrift

Does anyone recommend any vets for worming a caiman in Toronto area? I'll be hitting up my lrs but I figurd I'd check with people who actually had a crocodilian.

Mr. F