Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi there i stay in the uk and got a cf baby salvator about 6 weeks ago now as a captive farmed baby he was 15" long then and 22" long now so thats 7" in 6 weeks, i keep him in a 4 by 2 by 2 vivarium which is heated by a 160w zoomend powersun bulb , his baskin spot is 140 F with parts being 120F and the coolest part of the viv being 78F i use a bark type mulch for the ground and he has lots of cark bark hollow hides to hide under, he is bathed every second day in warm water which is kept warm by the box being placed on a heat pad to stop the water from getting cold , hes being feed daily on dusted crickets , rodents and turkey mince, all of which he eats really well, because of the intense heat of the basking spot and lots of ventilation at the rear of the vivarium i do struggle keeping it humid as it dries so quick and im using like a litre of water in there daily to soak the viv but it still drys pretty quick hence why i bathe him so regular, i try to keep him to the pro exotics care sheet ,but the problem is is that when i got him he was very sniffally with the odd bubble coming out his nose when hes breathing and the slight vet look of saliva at the side of his mouth and you can kind of see hes got a bit of a cold, it has went a way a bit but hes still got it 6 weeks on although he has been wormed and has really grown and seems a healthy active monitor, im just wandering how i would cure it if it is a respiratory which i think it is syou to the dealer i got it from probably not keeping him at ample temps, i have tried giving him costant daylight and heat for 20 hours of the day to help fight it and have kept him like this for the 6 weeks ive had him, sorry for the size of this im just trying to give you guys the exact details of how hes kept, he has a great appetite and aint shy where foods concerned , so any ideas or anybody had any similar symptoms with there baby salvators , hes also sometimes makes a slight weezing sound but this is maybe only twice when im holidng him, would it be a vet to treat him or would it ware off with constant good care? thanks for your help, also any ideas on his sex , the vet probed him as male but as we know even probing aint 100% , i havent seen a thing pop out at any of the times hes crapped on me

I had a sav with similar symptoms took it to the vets and he is currently undergoing treatment with Baytril it was a respiratory infection. It could be irratation from the substate or some of the decor though, Also out of curiosity where did you get it from as i am in the u.k and recently brought one
cheers
mat

Also forgot to add they should always have a bowl/pool big enough for them to get themselves into

hi there, i got him a place called southcoast exotics, yeah hes got a really large swimming container at all times

Got mine from the same place, was yours underweight when you brought it?,and did it have worms when you got it as i suspect mine may possibly have i am trng to collect a stool sample to take to the vets for tests.
cheers mat

hi matt, mines has had two worming treatments he was underweight but ive fattened him up, when i got mine they only had two left leaving one left when i got mine i wander if that is your one , mine also had atiny nick out of his tail, do you have msn or email if so whats your email and ill keep in contact with you so we can share our experiences with the salvators, best wishes keith

Hi Keith,
My E-mail is matthew.mchugh1@btinternet.com.
Mine was also underweight when i got it although it is fattening up quite nicely now,mine is very skittish and has some quite extreme mood swings when i first got it it was so docile i thought it was going to die then started biting me now just runs off and defecates everywhere i have had him 4 weeks but leave him to do his own thing only interacting to clean,mist and feed, Mine is currently in a 4x2x2 with a 6x2x2 connected to it in an L shape i also have an 8x4x4 tank which connects to the other two but don't think i'll use it as he has a room ready prepared for him with a drainable heated pool just have got to work out a few issues with humidity. Also did yours have the respitory infection when you got it as I have been racking my brain trying to think where one of my savs could have picked one up from as i ceck my temps e.t.c 2x daily(8am/2am) and am obsessive about cleanliness and husbandry but I broke one of my golden rules on the first day i got my water after messing with him placing him in his new home i fed my sav without washing my hands.
cheers mat