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veiled drinking

smcallister Aug 28, 2003 05:08 PM

this afternoon, after ive been heavily nursing my cham from some possible MBD, i noticed my cham wandering around deep inside the pothos plant. then, where i had clipped off one of the leaves, he started licking for about 30 seconds. then he stopped and moved over onto another cut part. i guess he was getting the moisture out of there. is that normal or is he doing this because he is getting dehydrated and i need to water more?

already i mist two-three times daily, do some ice cubes if he looks hot. i also have a humidifier that i can run from underneath his cage. what should i do?

Replies (9)

iso Aug 28, 2003 05:11 PM

but isnt a pothos mildly toxic? If so would a fresh stem cutting cause the plant to generate it's wax or healing agents? And that would be the most toxic material from a plant?

speedracerbecki Aug 28, 2003 06:35 PM

I was under the impression that pothos were the best plant around for reptiles because the are completely non toxic.

I've had my cham for less than a week, so I am by no means an expert, but I do have an enclosure FULL of pothos b/c I was told repeatedly it was safe. Anyone know for sure?

spydergirl Aug 28, 2003 06:44 PM

Pothos ar eonly toxic if they are freshly cut or borken, so i wouldnt do too much trimming if i wer eyou.They can be a mouth irritant.

iso Aug 28, 2003 06:46 PM

exactly - and his veiled was going up to the fresh cut and drinking it. Just concerned is all.

smcallister Aug 28, 2003 07:00 PM

I wouldn't say "fresh" cut. I got this plant on Monday morning and that was the first and last time I cut the stems. Thanks for the advice.

lele Aug 28, 2003 07:12 PM

Pothos can be an irritant when eaten, but if, as you said, you cut it a few days ago, this should not be a problem. Something that pothos do (which I think is totally cool - being a plant person and all) is that if they have been ion the dry side (soil) and get a hefty drink they will exude excess moisture from their leaves, This is typically seen gathering at the tips of the leaf but may also come from other parts.

On the other hand, could it just be where water droplets have remained (from you misting) and he is just drinking?

lele

>>this afternoon, after ive been heavily nursing my cham from some possible MBD, i noticed my cham wandering around deep inside the pothos plant. then, where i had clipped off one of the leaves, he started licking for about 30 seconds. then he stopped and moved over onto another cut part. i guess he was getting the moisture out of there. is that normal or is he doing this because he is getting dehydrated and i need to water more?
>>
>>already i mist two-three times daily, do some ice cubes if he looks hot. i also have a humidifier that i can run from underneath his cage. what should i do?

jcunitz Aug 28, 2003 08:59 PM

pothos are non toxic. the only concern with pothos is that they contain something that can inhibit absorbtion of calcium if your herp eats a lot of them. they are perfectly fine for your cham to eat, mine do it all the time and always have. it is a common mistake that people make thinking that pothos are toxic, but they have been used successfully by many herpers.
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iso Aug 29, 2003 01:42 AM

thanks you two. Ive wanted to get one for along time, but I dont recall seeing it of a safe plant list.

spydergirl Aug 29, 2003 01:01 PM

Agreed. I use pothos in all my frog,snakes,cham and tarantula enclosures, ad have yet to see a problem. There are different kinds of pothos,i forget which one is bad news,it can give even human skin a rash, but im sure its not in the market so i wouldnt worry. If you look up most plants we commonly use in our tanks and enclosures most of them fall under an irritant or mouth-irritant,pothos and philodendron being 2 of the most common we use.

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