Reptile & Amphibian Forums

While browsing the web, I came upon a caresheet for PTS that said kale should only be given in small amounts, but did not explain why. I was dismayed to read this, as kale has become the mainstay of my skinks diet - he eats it at every meal. He has become a very picky eater - will only eat kale, kiwi, banana, carrots, and occasional tomato. I've tried other greens, mango, sweet potato baby food (used to like), green beans, lima beans, tofu, and he just turns up his nose. Any advice?

Probably because Kale has High amounts of vit. A, moderate oxalates and goitrogens.

Oxalic acid is just as dangerous as phosphorus because it binds calcium. In other words, it removes calcium from other foods where it would otherwise be

Goitrogens are foods which suppress thyroid function. Goitrogens can induce hypothyroidism and depress thyroidal function. Goitrogens work by interfering with the thyroidal uptake of iodine. Iodine restriction will cause the thyroid to increase in size in an effort to filter more blood to get more iodine.

I follow the same diet (minus protein of course) regime that I do with my BTS using the charts/info found on http://www.bluetongueskinks.net/blue.htm
(in the diet section)
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First I would suggest that variety is always ideal and you should definitely try mixing other greens into your lizard's salad like mustard, collards, bok choy, chard, etc.

I'm not really sure why kale wouldn't be recommended. It's high in Calcium and has a better than 2:1 Ca ratio. It's also relatively high in protein and fiber. (see: http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/cgi-bin/list_nut_edit.pl)

The next thing I thought was that maybe people don't recommend it because it's high in oxalic acid which binds calcium (although I suspect oxalates aren't a problem for PTS), but a quick check shows that Kale is actually relatively low in oxalic acid.(http://www.repticzone.com/articles/oxalicacidvegetablelist.html)

A little more poking around finally revealed the reason: Kale and other members of the Brassica family contain a substance that inhibits iodine uptake. This causes the thyroid to become enlarged (hyperthyroidism), resulting in a condition known as goiter in mammals. However, MK has this to say about it: "Selection of foods for (amphibians and reptiles) should include risk/benefit assessment of safety. The risk of inducing goiter in reptiles fed mixed salads containing kale is exceedingly low. The benefit - a nutritious green that most herbivores love to eat seems greater than the risk."
(http://www.anapsid.org/factfict.html)

Note that she's talking about using Kale as part of a "mixed salad". A good way to switch your lizard from it's all-kale diet to something more well-rounded would be to chop up the new greens very finely and add them in increasing proportions to the salad, mixing them in well. For the first week, make the new greens only 10% of the salad mix. If that's readily consumed, increase it to 20% the next week. Keep that up for a few weeks and you're lizard will be eating whatever you give it.

Good luck!

Thank you very much - I found the replies (and the associated links) very helpful. I will work on getting Mo a more varied diet!