Good job! Isn't it a thrill the first time you see a hatchling?! I had some this past summer too, for the first time ever. It was really fun to have them, and still is. Wait til you first notice a tiny chuck doing push-ups to show everyone how cool he is! Very funny!

You've already had several excellent suggestions about letting your babies eat adult chuck poo - these guys are hindgut fermenters. My understanding is that adult poo allows the babies to inoculate themselves with the microbes necessary for their brand of digestion.

My young'uns crunched away on dried poo for a week or so as they ignored green food. I was told by various forum writers not to expect much salad consumption for up to a month. That was right on. FINALLY, the babies started eating greens enthusiastically.

One very helpful tip I was given was to spray water on the walls of the cage and maybe on the top of a cave so the babies could lap it up. This was a big hit with all 8 babies. They spent a lot of time drinking, so you might want to get a spray bottle and mist parts of the enclosure several times a day.

Good luck with your hatchlings!

[ Hide Replies ]

• New to chuckawalla hatchlings - Repit, Thu Oct 18 05:01:43 2007
• RE: Congratulations :0) - PHEve, Thu Oct 18 08:55:15 2007
• RE: New to chuckawalla hatchlings - gahlenfr, Thu Oct 18 18:28:27 2007
• RE: New to chuckawalla hatchlings - ksterry, Mon Oct 22 12:55:01 2007