Reptile & Amphibian Forums

This is about my previous message about my two new plated lizards that will not eat . They havn't eaten about six days and I am worried that they will die if they don't eat . Does any one know what I should do or if this behavior is normal because they are in a new enviroment . Also what is the best food for them . PLEASE RESPOND SOON

Ok, I will bite. First off, I think it is a poor decision on your part to rely on people who have no idea how your lizards are set up, or know in what condition they are in. Let alone the fact that you have no idea what real experience the people on the internet have. But I will try to give you some advice.
First, contact the person or store you bought them from. How long had the lizards been in the store, or for that matter how long had they been in this country? Did they eat in the store-if so what did they eat, and how frequently? If they ate in the store, what where the stores conditions like?
Aside from that, review your own conditions. Make sure your basking temps are appropriate, make sure that your substrate is appropriate, make sure you have enough places for the lizards to retreat. Try offering different types of food, dont think that just throwing more crickets in is an answer. Have you tried talking to a vet, or maybe getting a fecal sample tested for parasites?
It could be any number of things, so work quick to find an answer. But dont expect someone online to be able to just fix the problem for you.
Good luck.
Paul

No, this is not normal behavior. Do not rely on Petshop for advise as husbandry and breeding is not well known. I have kept and breed several species of Madagascan & African Plated Lizards from 1975 thru 2001. Since I'm not sure what species you have I will give you general information:

#1 Panacur and Flagyl each animal for parasites regards less of history.

#2 Cage lenght should be 4x the length of the adult size and 2 1/2 x in width. Use 2" to 3" of Aspen as burrowing substrate with rubbermaid humidity/nest box; soil & sand mix with layer of moss. Cork bark rounds & flats, piecies of slate under spot light.

#3 Lighting consists of spot light (your preference) @ 90f-95f air temp. ambient variables 75f-82f; UV florescent light(s) length of cages. I used 7.0 or 8.0, or Lumicrome XX or XXX is great.

#4 Weekly Food consists of crickets, waxworms, small superworms on occasional, sweet fruit (kiwi, strawberries, blueberries, apple, & banana), vegetables (romaine leaf, red leaf, collarded greens), and pinkie mice for calicum control. Bottled drinking water. Best to gut load insects 24 hrs before feeding.

#5 Vitamin supplements used TriCal on crickets only 1x weekly, Nekton Rep once biweekly.

I never had to cool down to breed, they are seasonal breeders. They will brumate on their own. Usually imported adults will not breed until the second or third year in captivity. This imformation is from my personal experiences and you should gather information from all sources to see what works for your animals.