Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My adult/sub adult BTS are sleeping all day and stopped eating for a week now. The temperature never drops from 85 degrees and I always provide them with water, live and canned food. They have everything so what gives??? It's too early for them to brumate.

does the temp get higher than 85F? More info on your setup would be beneficial.
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PHLdyPayne

The temperature does get higher than 85 degrees. It doesn't go lower than that. Water is clean. Living in a fifty gallon reptile tank. Has bark as a hiding area and Exo-Terra Jungle Earth Tropical Terrarium for Substrate. And a bowl for their food. I give them variations-- pinkies, cooked and raw meat, moist adult dog food at times, cooked eggs, crickets, heart, grated carrots. Then all of a sudden they stopped eating. Specially the female, she just burrows herself and sleep.

Are they housed together?

Blue tongues should not be housed together. They can seriously injure each other and quickly, if one or the other decides having the other around is disagreeable. Could be why your female is hiding all the time and not eating.

Also, what temperature is the basking/warm end? IF its' not high enough, that would explain why they are not active and eating. Basking area should be around 100F.

The diet is way to high in protein, need to give them much more greens and vegetables, especially as adults.
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PHLdyPayne

Yes I know you shouldn't house two BTS but they never fight, it's a female and male. And yes, I know they are not fighting. I have a video cam in my pet room so I really know. As far as temperature, it goes to a maximum of 105 degrees so that isn't it either. As far as food, they always have access to greens and fruits but that's not really my concern right now. The only thing is why they aren't eating and sleeping too much.

Could it be that what you have is 2 female blue tongues? If you never see a confrontation between them, that is quite unusual. When breeding time comes around, most females will chase off the male when she has conceived - or if she isn't receptive to begin with!

How long have you had them?
How old are they?
How do you know they are male & female?
Do you keep the temperatures and lighting schedules the same year round?

~Morgana

How long have you had them?

I've had them for a couple of months, like 6-7.

How old are they?

Less than 2 years old about close there.

How do you know they are male & female?

My Gut feeling... Duh! sigh... Well of course I bought it from a breeder and had a vet check it. I wouldn't claim it's male and female if I'm not 100% sure.

Do you keep the temperatures and lighting schedules the same year round?

Yes

They are too young to breed though it may not be too much longer before the male starts to get the breeding urges. I believe females only reach maturity when they are three years old or older.

my suggestion is to separate each blue tongue, set them up in proper conditions and blend the food up so they can't pick out the 'meat' from the greens etc. Make sure they have fresh water and proper lighting/heating and UVB light (though it isn't known if BTS actually require it, it certainly won't hurt them). If they don't start to eat in another week, then have them examined by a vet for any other problems that isn't visible.
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PHLdyPayne

85° in the night as well???
Probably your animals are "summer-brumating" (do not know the English term, German: Trockenruhe) because of too high temperatures. Cool down (68°)during the night and you will see.

Trachydosaurus

First off, the "summer brumating" post below may be on to something. I don't do the whole night time drops in temp, but there is a gradient and the cool end of the cage is in the low to mid 70s. Make sure your cage is set up properly. Though my breeding experience with blue tongues is limited, I have had a very few that lived together. You do run the risk of one no longer "appreciating" the other's presence which can lead to bad injuries. I now keep all mine separate. Better safe then sorry. The only reports of blue tongues living in close proximity are with T. rugosus.
If they were mine, I would create a better gradient and allow them to have access to cooler temps than 85 degrees. Also, I would separate them. Offer something different to stimulate the appetite. I have had success with baby mice or just pouring apricot baby food on their normal food. Check your husbandry situation and make sure the essentials are taken care of: Heat gradient, humidity, cleanliness, etc. If that checks out and they are not eating, take them to a vet since other issues may be present that you cannot see or remedy on your own. Hope this helps.