Reptile & Amphibian Forums

All...
Is it a bad idea to house 2 males of similar size, together without a female? I seem to remember hearing that they will fight. Thanks.

Surprise! It wasn't a male, but a female I picked up today! Now I have 1of each. When I introduced the little girl, both started wild head bobbing, sniffing & licking each other. She is eating, right off the bat, the boy seems to enjoy sitting on her.

Is this all normal behavior?

Jon

How big are they? Do you know their ages? Male and female together is probably safe. She will defer to him, but he may pursue her and tire her out. If they seem to bask together OK, all is well. These are social lizards and they do like to sit on each other and bask.

The male is about 6" (snout-to-vent), & the female is about 2" smaller. That 2" looks like a lot but they are getting along well, basking together & racing for the kale, which is what they favor.

I did see something disturbing tonight...in 20 years of chuck husbandry, I have NEVER seen one urinate....I always assumed that the white ures was solid or at least gooey. Tonight, the male actually lifted up his haunches, & let go several big drops of clear liquid. Is this normal?

It is common, but not necessarily normal. There is a huge difference in output of captive chucks (wc and cb) and chucks in the wild, and it has everything to do with diet.

Kale is not a great staple, or even a great addition to the diet of desert herps. It has a moderate amount of oxalates, which bind with calcium and prevent absorption, and it contains a moderate amout of goitrogens, which can cause hypothyroidism. Perhaps they would go for curly endive if they like the texture of kale. Mine will rip the leaves off of the stems of curly endive and have a blast doing it. They aren't as enthusiastic about any other type of greens, but they eat their salads with a mix very well.

Mine have gotten closer to the kind of output that might be seen in the wild because I cut out spring mix entirely, and increased the amount of chickory type produce (endive, escarole, and some radicchio) plus flowers in their diet.

Thanks for the info! I'll switch them off kale, switch to endive.

So the urinating isn't a worry?

Normal urinating might not be, but excessive urinating is a problem over time. It points to health problems, like hypothyroidism, diabetes (yes, reptiles do get diabetes), and the possibility of stones.

What are you feeding your chucks besides kale?

Bok choy, shredded carrots, collard greens & occasional Spring mix salad, about 1x a month, some spinach, chopped apple, smashed bananas, hibiscus flowers (when in season). They seem to like the kale best.

I am noticing dandelions on my lawn, I don't use chemicals or fertilizers...is that safe?

Thanks for your help/input! I appreciate it...

By the way, I got some endive this morning & they love it! The store says they rarely get escarole, so next I'll try the more gourmet markets.

That is good news about the endive. Make that your staple. They should get that as the bulk of their diet daily.

Your diet definitely needs tweaking or your animals will run into problems. Here is one of the better diet lists that I have come across, but there are some questionable food items in the staple section. I do not consider collard greens to be safe because they have a fairly high amount of oxalates. the mustard and turnip greens do as well, so endive and escarole are your best bets for staples. And the dandelion is an excellent daily component as long as it does not have chemicals on it. Also, be sure it truly is dandelion. Lots of plants look like dandelion, but could be toxic.One other thing that you should try to add is edible flowers that are safe for herbivores. Hibiscus is a great one as are nasturtiums,roses, and of course dandelion.
birdandexotic.co.za/documents/Foodsforherbivorouslizards-lecsistableGreens.pdf

THank you!

Hi Rosebuds...

I just noticed the list of foods you shared lists hibiscus LEAVES...are these ok? Hibiscus only have flowers seasonally, but obviously, leaves all year.

I have switched to endive as their staple& they LOVE it. Sometimes have to feed 'em twice a day.

One question...before feeding, I always rinse then squeeze the water out. Are they getting too much water in this manner? About once a week, I sprinkle a small amount of mineral supplement on food.

Thanks...

That is great news that your chucks are endive crazy! That is a very healthy staple.

Hibiscus leaves are fine as long as they have not been sprayed with chemicals.

I wash my store bought greens, hang them to dry, then chop and store them the day before I feed them. I do not wash home grown flowers or plants. I don't think that you can completely avoid the moisture in greens. I try to reduce it a bit by letting the greens dry before I feed them, but I am not sure that wet greens are the issue with excessive fluid dumps in chucks. I think it might be more diet related, but I can't say for sure.

I use Repashy superveggie sprinkled on their food a few times per week and I sprinkle minerall calcium indoor a few times per week. I am not sure what you mean by mineral supplement. Is it a calcium plus trace minerals supplement?

Rosebuds...

I just use the phrase "mineral supplements" as a catch-all...I'm sparingly using alternating :

ZooMed Reptile-Calcium

Rep-Cal Herptivite

I suppose I should go raid a neighbors rose bush for a sample bud & try that. Hibiscus are down for the season, but I'll try some well washed & dried leaves.

Thanks!