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I posted a week or so ago about my Caiman not eating for a few weeks now. Well he's still not eating, I've been putting fresh food in his enclosure every other day and he still hasn't taken any of it. I put 50 fish in the water but it's hard to tell if he has eaten any. His tail is still nice and fat as are his sides but I would think he would have eaten by now. He seems to be sleeping a little more recently. The water ranges from 79 to 84 throughout the day and he has 300watts of heat lights (115 degrees directly under it) 10 to 12 hours a day. Any ideas?

besides not eating, is he doing anything else that is not usual for him? Is he active,swimming & basking?Is he normally aggressive and now docile? What types of food does he eat? 115 is a bit high, if thats the basking spots temp,then when he is under it, it will be about 118 on his back. I would aim for 100-105. Is it cold in the room the enclosure is in? Many (if not all)crocodilian species go off food this time of year in captive environments, some for a week, some for a couple months.

For the most part he is acting the same. The room he is in is the same temperature as the rest of the house (around 72). He has been slighty less agressive, he'll usually hiss a little whne I'm cleaning his enclosure - but now he just watches or shuts his eyes. I'll work on getting his basking temperature down a little.

After a great Summer of eating almost everyday, my caiman has had 1 small rat since November 19 (I keep records). Once she stops eating for more than 2 weeks, I throw about 50 large goldfish in the pond so I know more or less when she's firing up again. Right now, the safest place for a goldfish in the house is swimming right along side their harmless caiman buddy.

After more than 10 years now of this Winter fast (some years it starts earlier, other years a bit later - but it always starts)I've learned to just shrug it off and offer 1 small rat, once weekly to see what happens.

Best of luck,

Rob

Just to clarify, I don't incorporate goldfish into my animals diet, just use it to measure appetite - when the fish disappear in a day or two I know business is meant.

Rob

Dwarfs are also known to be picky eaters. He may be bored of the same types of food. I dont know what his diet contains, but maybe try some new items.

115 is 20 degrees too warm that can hurt him id keep it at 90-97

You mentioned 115 degrees directly under the heat source, I agree that this sounds high, more importantly what type of gradient temperature is provided? (ie. can the caiman move to a cooler section away from the heat and depending on where he moves to in the enclosure what would be the highest and lowest temp he could reach) You mentioned that a different behavior you observed was that he closed his eyes when you cleaned the enclosure. Closing of eyes signifies stress, did you change the layout of his cage, remove cover areas, increase traffic through the room, and does he have a place where he can hide and feel safe? How old and large is your caiman? The reason I ask is older/larger individuals can certainly go long periods of time without eating, but younger/smaller individuals typically won't go as long. A couple weeks would not cause concern speaking from my experience, but something you might want to do is check the tail. Crocodilians store fat in their tails, so if the tail is thick and solid, no worries. However, if it appears that this is not the case, there may be cause for concern. Finally, can you check the mouth...check for any abrasions, mouth rot, or missing teeth. If the problem is still ongoing please reply with the answers to these questions and I'll help as best I can. Best, Drewsky.

...by the way, I had a similar experience when my caiman was younger and became really worried. As it turns out it's natural for them to simply fast sometimes.

He still hasn't been eating. A few fish have disapeared but he hasn't taken a variety of other food left out for him. I haven't check inside his mouth yet, his tail and sides are still full and round. He has plenty of land area away from teh heat lights and has about a 30 degree temperature range with the top being in the high 90's and low being at 70. I did some trim work and painting in that room in the last month but it didn't seem to bother him too much.

Since he still has fat stored, I wouldn't worry too much. The heat gradient is important, but it sounds like you have that covered. High traffic, when the animal is not used to it, or changes around the environment can sometimes cause stress which can be a reason for him to stop eating. If he is eating some of the fish and has his fat stored, no worries. Just keep an eye on him and keep offering food periodically, sooner or later he'll start up again.