Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ive been trying to feed my female fat tail repta aid to get its weight up every day or 2 and now it just wont open its mouth no matter what for me to put the syringe in...i dont know what to do to get the poor things weight looks so close to death its tail just quivers uncontrollably all the time in its cage or wherever...i got it like 2 months ago and it was the fattest thing ive ever seen and then after a month of me having it it was healthy as can be and just has started to waste...help please
www.freedesktoppc.com

well i just got its mouth open for its does today, is there anything else i can do..... : (

*dose*....

First- Take it to a vet and have it checked out. It may have worms/bugs or something else wrong.
With that said, be sure to get some real food in its gut:
- Get some crickets, super worms and Electrodize supplement from a reptile pet store (by EXO TERRA ).
- Mash, crush, blend, (what ever it takes) the combo until it’s in a semi gooey paste form.
- Get a “q-tip”, cut off the cotton ends. Use the q tip stick to place a small “glob” on the upper lip between the nostrils. If the AFT has the strength, it will lick it off. If it licks it off, feed it until it wants no more.
- If that doesn’t work, use a bigger syringe and “Gently!!” get a few drops of the mix in its mouth… don’t squirt it down its throat.

Make sure your temp in the enclosure is 85-90. Some AFT’s are in cool down now and if your temp is below 80 its might be in a brumation type state. If the temp is low, raise it slowly over a few days back to the mid to high 80’s.

Give it warm bathes to re hydrate it. If the water is warm to your touch, its usually to warm for them. Remember 80 degrees feels cool to humans. Best to get a temp gage to check it, get the water near 85 degrees. Let it bath for about 15-20 minutes a day. Watch the critter and make sure the water is shallow enough that it can hold is weak head above it. You can also just hold it and mist it with a sprayer.

Make sure it has a humid box to rest in, in the enclosure.

Don’t try and get a huge meal down it the first day; it needs to slowly regain its strength.
Is it wild caught or captive bred? How old is it? Size?
How is the enclosure set up?