so i have a problem... well, more like a series of problems. i'll start off with the fact that i was misinformed by just about every person i talked to about care and housing. we got a very thin female (ophelia) and a much larger and healthier female (hibiscus).
well, for a while things seemed good. they were in a 20 long with repti-sand, a moist hide and a few dry hides. they would eat straight from the feed bowl and drink from the water dish provided. ophelia gained more weight, though her tail never really picked up too much more fat. she had a hearty appetite, eating almost a dozen waxworms the second night we had her, hunting crix, etc. bullying was never a problem, if anything , ophelia was more dominant, controlling the better basking spot and *occasionally* patrolling the food bowl. everybody told me the temp was too high for them (usually around 95, sometimes peaking 100 Farenheit), but they seemed to love it. they were very active lizards and they liked to bask in the hottest part of the tank during the late afternoon (i figured if they didn't like it they would be in the cooler spot).
then i had to transport the tank to my gf's house. the temp became closer to the recommended range. they seemed all right at first, they were very much themselves for a few weeks. then they both started losing weight. they became sluggish. i'm sot sure if this is the point where they stop showing interest in live food or if this is due to impaction/parasites. i noticed sand around the vent of hibiscus. i'm not sure if this was from crawling around after running through her water bowl or from trying to pass an impaction.
ophelia became the larger of the two. we began giving them the nice luke warm soaks for about 10 mins, twice a day (in case it was impaction or dehydration). while in the soaks, they became more alert, seemed happier, more lively. ophelia still maintains somewhat of an appetite, eating from tongs, but hibiscus didn't. she died last night, in what seemed to be a position of trying to pass something (with her rear squatted lower and her front more lifted up). she didn't pass anything upon death (which as far as i know is the norm for animals when they die), which makes me believe it was impaction.
today i totally cleaned my cage of all the sand and put all slate
down in the bottom of the tank since they live in the rocky outcroppings in the desert. i'm still concerned about ophelia's health and i do understand it might be a parasitic infestation instead of impaction, but considering the scarcity of stool around the tank and the behaviors i have stated prior, i am assuming it is impaction.i am hoping that people can give me better advice than "bring it to the vet." (no offense, i understand a vet is the best solution, but there are no recommended herp vets in my area). is there anything else i can do to help my poor yzzard recover? i have read things about feeding them a blend of pedialyte and water to help relieve impaction, but i am unsure.
any advice that you can give me would be greatly appreciated, whether it specifically handles this problem or is just something i should look out for. seems i got into this with bad advice and now i'm trying to keep my poor pets from being the victims of it. thank you very much.
