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I bought a group of 10 geyri in the fall, I now only have one left. I have been keeping herps for over 10 years. I tried everything with these guys. They all ate in the beginning, went through a deworming protocole, but one by one, they stopped eating and died. I even tried antibiotics on some of them, without success.

I woudl like to try another group soon, but I don't want to loose these guys. Can anyone help me?
Thanks
Julie

Julie,

You might now understand the reason I usually start off most of my Geryi post with the sentence "Geryi are notorious for not acclimating as well as some other uromastyx species".

I agree with your logic of not jumping into another group until you can determine what may have gone wrong with the first group.

One of the reasons Geryi take longer to acclimate is because of their unwillingness to eat after shipping. The fact that your geryi started eating and you did not mention any signs of illness, leads me to believe that you may need to take a closer look at the enclosure, temperatures, and other husbandry issues before disease.

Did you separate the uromastyx upon arrival? How soon after you received them did they begin to go downhill? What were the signs (other than not eating) and symptoms? Was a vet consulted and if so, what were the findings? Did you consult a vet for a cause of death? What led you (symptoms) to de-worm them and what was used? What led you to administer antibiotics and what was used?

One big thing I have learned with geryi is that because of their slow acclimation, it is imperative that outside stress, movements, and handling are minimized until they have adjusted. If ‘I’ have a geryi that does eat for a week but everything else look fine, I am not concerned. I almost expect this in adult males. I do not try to medicate during this time unless I see very apparent signs of illness. If I do see urgent signs (coccidia, respiratory) I immediately take the animal to my vet. If you try to guess with parasite medication or antibiotics and the only problem is stress to begin with, you are sending the animal on a downward spiral towards a crash and burn situation. Sometimes time (with the proper environment) is the most beneficial preventative medication you can give.

There are probably a hundred more questions I could ask in order to try to narrow down the problem or problems. It might be a better idea if you could post some additional details regarding the enclosure setup, symptoms….ect

I have also just received three new geyri and one acclimated very quickly but the other two have not. Although they are active at times - basking, moving around - they have yet to eat much or eat at all. It has been just over one week. They are all together in one enclosure with the right temperatures and gradient heat from one side to the other. There are enough hides for each of them. The one that is eating is a brighter color although its belly is pale - could it be that it is a male or is just somehow dominating them? I do not see any signs of this - actually they will go into its hide and curl up with it.
When should I begin to worry. I have made a vet appointment for next week but don't want to stress them out even more. Any suggestions would be helpful

When housing more than one uromastyx in an enclosure, it is difficult to tell who is eating unless you happen to see them in action. It is possible that the other two may be nibbling as this will often take place when you are not around. It would probably be a wise investment for you to purchase a gram scale as you have more than one uromastyx. Keeping track of weight is one of the best ways to determine who is eating and when action needs to be taken. I continually track weight on all my uros with newly acquired specimens being weighed more often than those that are acclimated.
From what I have seen, geryi are stressed easily if housed in too small of an enclosure. This is magnified if you are housing more than one uro in the same enclosure. I personally would suggest a ‘minimum’ five or six foot enclosure for three uros.
You may want to cover any glass on the enclosure until they have adjusted to their new surroundings. This will minimize the stress caused from movement outside the enclosure.
It is impossible for me to tell you when to begin worrying. This will depend on the condition of your uromastyx prior to shipping and how the uro is behaving under your care. I would suggest a daily soak for those that are not eating or not eating well. Use about an inch of very warm water (less if younger uro) and allow them to soak for about ten minutes. Make sure that the water is not too hot for you to hold your hand in. I shoot for temps around 110-115 as it tends to cool rather quickly.
Do you see any signs of illness or have any specific concerns about certain actions that are exhibited?

were they treated for worms before you got them?

if they were then i would say definately don't do it again!!!! cuz most uuros keep some parasites in their bellies (nematoads, and other stuff) coccsidia (sp) isn't ok though....most first doses will take care of the co. and then the second one takes out all their digestive parasites that are helpful. in most cases....in some though they are majorly co. ridden and need more....i wouldn't recommend more than one, either theirs or yours and then gets a fecal done and see if they are in a good range.

hope this helps

trevor
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Trevor Bennett
E-mail: yruemailinme15@yahoo.com
yahoo SN: yruemailinme15
location: Salem, Oregon