Reptile & Amphibian Forums

just got a mali 1/11 Sun. looks healthy and alert although has not eaten. he toured the cage and picked his favorite hiding spot. he has been in this same spot since 1/14 Wed. it is now 1/16 Fri. i'm pretty sure that cage conditions are favorable. i know that brumation is usually Dec./Jan. should he be acting this way? should i pull him out of hiding as i did earlier this week as i was not too clear on this brumation thing? i'm starting to worry as i just lost a red saharan uro not too long ago. what should i expect and what should i do during this time please help as i'm driving my husband nuts! i really need to know whats happening. thanks for all and any help! laura

you're "pretty sure" his conditions are favorable? it would be very hard for someone to make suggestions without an idea as to what "favorable" conditions actually are...

for any intelligent feedback, you will need to share details like temps (exact basking and ambient temps, and what you use to take them), diet, setup, cage size, hidespots, history of the animal etc.

otherwise it is like calling a Doctor, and without any other info, asking "hey Doc, i don't feel so good, what's wrong with me?"
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robyn@proexotics.com

Pro Exotics Reptiles

thanx for the speedy reply. i've gathered that you know alot as far as the forum goes. he is probably over a year old, in a 55 long breeder tank, finch food substrate, 3 hide spots, 1 basking site, 150 watt zoo-med basking light, zoo-med under tank heater as the temp here in nj is well below 0 (now is the time we all find drafts around our windows), eclipse natural daylight bulb across top of tank, basking temp 130, tank temp is 83-85, cool side is 78-80, fed him romaine dandelion greens collard greens strawberry banana supp d-3 vits, he may have eaten very little if at all. i hope i gave you enough to go on. i would appreciate it if you could get back to me just as quickly. thanx robyn!

setup actually sounds pretty good, except i hate that type of substrate, but that is a different thread

is this a recent wild caught animal? LTC? captive bred? from another keeper, or a store?

temps and all sound fine, so i would lean towards stress being the main problem causing the anorexia. a parasite load can be stressful, have you done a fecal on the animal? that is where i would start.

is there a night time heat source for the cage, and do you know what your night time drops are, at their very coolest point?
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robyn@proexotics.com

Pro Exotics Reptiles

i got this mali from a store. didn't have good luck last time with a breeder. not sure if wild or captive bred, somewhat skitish but otherwise very handlable. my concern was not anorexia but brumation activity. he does not seem stressed at all. i haven't had a fecal test but will have one done as soon as possible. since my first post he slept without moving from wed to sat. that is why i inquired about brumation. as of today sat afternoon he awoke. he was very mobile, moving about the entire cage. i fed him peas, dandelion greens, collard greens, d-3 vits. i actually counted the peas so i could tell if he ate any. i have not retrieved the bowl yet but i'm certain he ate something. the temps have gone up since fri afternoon as i placed a towel over top of screen as per your advice to someone else-you said screens were not so good. which now brings me to some more questions. basking site is 144, is this o.k.? also, i do not have a nighttime heating source. i have the under tank heater-should i leave it on at night? as of now i turn it off. or should i get the red heat lamp? i was just very happy to see him out and about although he retreated back into his hidespot about 1.5hrs later and hasn't been seen since. also, is there a way to tell the age? thanx again for all feedback. laura