Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My friend just got a Mali from deer fern. We have never been able to see her eat, but she is going to the bathroom. But it seems she is teetering on the line of looking really thin. we have tried feeding it everything. all vegetables, fruits, baby foods, and flower pedals. it wont eat anything....at least, not in front of someone. It may be eating a little, just because its so hungry. But wax worms, it practically eats from your hand. I know this isnt a healthy diet for a uro though. what can we do? How can we get it to eat the more balanced diet of fruits and vegetables?

i had the same problem when i got my newest mali. in the first few days she was getting acclamated. she would always take a cricket from my hand, but other than that i didn't think she was eating. but she wasn't getting any skinnier. i just kept providing her with fresh turnip and mustard greens, peas and veggies, dusted. turns out she was eating just not in front of us, and she's starting to get over that. we just got a hibiscus plant for our kiddies and she goes absolutely bonkers for them when i put one in her cage.

unless you notice a real decline, i wouldn't worry just yet. there are some "appetite stimulant" sprays that petsmart sells and such. i have never used them so i can't say if they work or whatever.
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1.2 Mali Uromastyx (Ricky, Quinn, Anna)
0.1 Yellow Ackies (Roxie)
1.0 Timor (Zealot)

Emily
www.egomantra.com/npoh

Well, my friend has had this one for about 2 weeks now i think. and its probably that it is eating very slightly, but it doesnt seem like its enough to gain weight, just kinda enough to stay alive. we have tried the habiscus plant. it doesnt seem to show any interest in it, at least, no more than the other plant food we have been feeding it. the only thing left is boc choy, and dandelions. we havent tried those yet. i hope its because he is still acclimating, but my geckos generally take a week to be fully acclimated. this guy is definately at the 2 week point. And its starting to worry me.

My two young Mali's took a few weeks to over a month before they started gaining weight. It seems to take them longer to acclimate than some other species. If you make sure they are warm enough and maybe leave him alone to calm down a bit, he will probably come along. One of mine wouldn't eat anything but Pretty Bird Finch food for awhile, but at least she was eating.
Keep us posted!
Beth

Hi my malis pair from deer fern farms took about a month for them to really start eating their veggies. Try to give your malis dry food like bird seeds, or iguana food that has flowers and veggies in it. If that doesn't work, mix the wax worms up in a salade so when it goes to eat the wax worms it will get some veggies with it. Hope this works.
Mike
1.1 malis(Spike, Marshmellow)
0.2 geryi(Flame, Sunset)

thanks for your replies so far. The bedding we use is bird seed, with the sunflower seeds sifted out. it seems she eats a bit of this, and like i said, the wax worms. my friend just found a "poopie" and a "peepee" so it is eating something. but the poopie seems to be alot of birdseed. It makes me happy that we are find droppings, but its only 1 or 2 every 2 or 3 days. not consistently.

i swear, my girl just did the same exact thing. i meant to mention that she definitely took to the bird seed. just make sure that it's not losing weight. ours had recently laid eggs when we got her so she wasn't unhealthy but desperately in need of putting on a few pounds. just make sure she is hot enough and getting her vitamins. oh, and mine prefers the pistil of the hibiscus to the petals, tho she eats those too. she really dives on the pollen. ooo you could try that bee pollen stuff? everybody else says it works and is available in pet stores but i've never used it. just make sure she's always got the greens available, mix the bugs with it if you need to. we offered her a cricket or two a week anyway to help her put on weight. peas with a vitamin supplement are good for weight gain too.
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1.2 Mali Uromastyx (Ricky, Quinn, Anna)
0.1 Yellow Ackies (Roxie)
1.0 Timor (Zealot)

Emily
www.egomantra.com/npoh