Reptile & Amphibian Forums

OK. Finally I got some pictures of my new babies. I'm not very good with a camera.

This is "Tippy". I gave her that name because she's missing the very tip of her tail. But she is a very brave and outgoing girl. She likes to pose for the camera, so maybe I'll get some good shots as she grows. Tippy's legs are a beautiful yellow and I can't wait to see her color as she grows up.

John, they are cuties, but they are just a bit thin and dehydrated. The male seems either stressed or he doesn't feel good. Do you have water in the viv? Are they drinking? If not, you might need to either put an air stone in the water or get one of those bowls with the airstone built in. Also, collareds do eat greens. Do you put a small salad in each day? Are you removing all uneaten crix every evening? They will drive the lizards crazy overnight if you don't, resulting in poor sleep and even injuries from bite marks.

Did you check the lighting as I suggested? They need very bright light to be healthy and active, and to eat well. Also, it wouldn't hurt to get a fecal done. They could have intestinal parasites.

Sorry to nag! I am a rehabber, so I worry about these things!

Yep. I know they are a little scrawny. They looked pretty sad when I first got them. It's been about 2 weeks now. I was really worried about them at first. The girls are eating well now and are starting to put on weight. The boy is a picky eater....he eats, but just not very much. I'm still a little worried about him.

I've been soaking them in a nice tepid bath about every other day, a little worried about dehydration. They usually seem nice and perky after the bath. They crawl and hop through their water dish often, and sometimes drink, but I don't see them drink a lot.

I mist them about once a day. They get very excited when I do that.

I think the temps are good, but I need to get a temp gun to be certain. One thing I've noticed is that Kermit is always on the cool end in the morning and likes to sleep there. The girls all sleep together under the rocks on the hot side. I think my lights are appropriate, but I wonder if the screen lid blocks some of the light and maybe should be brighter. I'm going to play around with that some and see how he responds.

As far as behavior goes, the girls are very active and display all kinds of amusing behavior.

I hope that they will fatten up and be happy. I think it might take some time. I'm very diligent though. I'll keep you all posted.

Did you tell me whether or not you turn off the lights and let the tank go dark and cool down at night? You should allow 8-10 hours of darkness every night and let the temps fall as low as the upper 60s, low 70s.

If you have only had them that long, then it might just take time. I would also add the air stone to the water bowl. Some of mine won't drink unless the water is moving.

You'll get them going. It takes time to get the set up just right, and then winter sets in,and you have to fiddle with it all over again!

They are cuties, and will be little gems before you know it!

Hey! Thanks for the advice. I wonder if I'm keeping it to hot. I have a piece of heat tape on the hot side for underground heat. I have a Reptisun 10 bulb along the back, a ceramic heater on one end, and a Sunglo spot lamp on the warm end next to the ceramic heater. This gets the temp gradient about right. It seems like a lot, but it's a big 75 gallon tank, and I'm up in Ohio where the weather and temps are variable. BUT, you have a good point. I have been turning off the lights at night, but not the heaters. And I've noticed that Kermit always strays over to the cool end to sleep at night. Maybe I'm keeping it just a little too hot, or at least need to cool it down a little at night. I think that could be worth a try, and maybe get the light a little brighter. I have good lights, but they have a strong layer of screen underneath them that might diffuse the light some.

Wasn't there some posts from CollaredGuy or someone (not sure I got the name right) a while back about a setup with temps a little too high?

I'll continue getting it to their liking. I think the girls seem happy. But the main problem with Kermit is his picky and spartce eating habits. I feed them every few days as many crickets as they will eat. The girls eat like pigs, but he usually just grabs a cricket or two and that's it.

By the way. These were said to be CB, but considering who I got them from, they could possibly be wild caught. They were scrawny and dehydrated when they arrived.

It takes some work, but I'm enjoying it. I'll keep you posted and I'll keep some pictures coming. I need to learn how to take great pics like Eve's!

Thanks!

John (Hayseed)

John, I feed crix every day, and I put in a salad with a little fruit every day, and all of my collareds eat salad. They go eat greens in the wild, especially dandelion greens and flowers. For thin critters, it is especially important to feed them all they will eat every day. But you have to remove the uneaten crix at night or they will bite the collareds.

yes, you can have the temps too hot. The BASKING SURFACE should be between 100-110, and the basking END will be in the upper 80s. Then they need a cool side in the 70-80 degree range.

I have 65 and 75 gal. tanks as well, and I can heat them just fine in an unheated uncooled sun room in the dead of winter with just a 100 watt Megaray and one additional bright 40 watt household at the other end. Remember, the higher temps are just for the BASKING SURFACE, so the ambient temps will not be above 90ish even on the hot side. You can accomplish the same thing with a 100 watt halogen, but 100 watt standard light bulbs don't produce as much heat as the MVB or the halogen. I do run heat emitters at night in the winter, but go bright, bright bright during the day year round.

Well, here is the best collared care sheet around. Its the one that Eve wrote, and its the one that I follow. It might be worth having a look just to make sure that your setup is the best that it can be.
http://suncharmers.com/id15.html

Thanks for the advice. I think maybe I have it a little too hot on the warm end. I've tried hard to get the basking surface up over 100 degrees. The ambient temp on that end was exactly 94 when I read it last. The cool end ranges from 70 to 80 depending on what the weather is like, but usually around 75 to 78 degrees. Maybe I should replace the ceramic heater with another bright light. This would give them a little more light and maybe not overkill for heat.

I'll give that a try first thing when I get home.

Now....about salad. I've mixed up a perfect salad for my lizards a few times (turnip greens, collard greens, grated carrots, and a few bits of juicy peaches and plums, all organic from my garden and my own fruit trees!). The lizards walk right past it and look at me like I'm crazy. They don't seem to have any interest in the salad. Should I keep trying with the salad? Maybe try a different salad bowl?

Sorry for so many questions, but I want to get this exactly right. I think I have some improvements to do.

Thanks,

John (Hayseed)

Well, darlin, I have 25 lizards and about half are herbivores, so my collareds get whatever they get! I would say yes, keep it in there because if they don't eat it then the crix will, and that is the best gut load for feeder crx and worms.

You know, one way that you can increase the basking surface temps without raising the ambient too much is to raise your basking surface. Is that possible? You can build a small hill with slate or rocks and wood, but be sure it is all secure. You can even build it in such a way that you incorporate hides in it. Does that make sense?

Hey Rosie,

Thanks so much for the great advice. I really appreciate it!

I checked the temps again last night and the ambient temp on the warm end was 95! The cool end was about 80! So my gradient was a bit off and too warm. So, I took out the ceramic heater and swapped it for a 40 watt bulb. It was so much more bright and really made me think I didn't have enough light. Now, Kermit slept on that side with the girls for the first time. This morning he actually seemed a little more bright eyed.

I think I have this set up much better now. I'll try some fresh crickets this afternoon and see what he thinks about it.

Thanks a million!

John (Hayseed)