URGENT! Syringes that won't chew through?

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CliffsMom

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My beautiful rescue Stevie is functionally blind (he can only see a little but backwards... Looking at you, coil UV). He's 3 years old. He cannot eat on his own & can't understand a spoon yet. I'm syringe feeding but he bites through EVERYTHING!! He's bitten off little pieces of syringe and I'm afraid to put anything in his mouth :-( I've tried: medicine syringes; curve-tip syringes cut back; silicone straw / aquarium tubing stuck on the medicine syringe (recommended by our specialty reptile store); and a baby silicone spoon which he bit through in a single chomp. I suspect any soft feeding tips for puppies or kittens will go the way of the silicone tube. He's very underweight so I can't experiment with the spoon yet. Please help us

Please, any ideas are welcome!!
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Feeding needles that screw on / slip into the end of the syringe are what you need.

If it's a liquid and not very viscous (ie liquid calcium, olive oil) then a 18Guage or 16Gauge will do the trick - they are made from surgical grade stainless steel and so there if no way your dragon will bits off them.

If it's to syringe feed a thicker slurry or puree , you need a bore on the needle of 3mm , ie a 10Gauge will allow good flow.

See this for more information - viewtopic.php?f=45&t=232687
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
CliffsMom":2lqjsoh0 said:
Aren't those for putting right in his stomach? I'm just putting it in his mouth.
Yes that is what they are specially designed for , you can also use them to oral medicines, liquid supps , and to deposit food in the lizard's mouth too , the rounded end will not harm the teeth or gums or lips , and the advantage is your fingers are far enough away not to be bitten.

I use my 14G feeding needle to administer olive oil to my girl Peppa occasionally. And used it to give liquid calcium (CalciVet) to my rescues.
I used my 8G to give VetaFarm Herpaboost and VetaFarm Reptile CrittaCare to rescues.

I have actually purchased a full set of these needles and a proper feeding syringe... very good to have on hand as you will not find them in regular pet shops.
 

CliffsMom

Member
Original Poster
That's what I need! The one at the bottom of the post you linked - the "indestructible" one - is what I'd go for to feed a slurry of watered down repashy. Where do you get them?

On a related note, how much do you feed your beardies when you're syringe feeding? My boy is afraid of things touching his face and I can't tell very well when he's fussing because he's nervous or because he's full.
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
CliffsMom":217z44xe said:
That's what I need! The one at the bottom of the post you linked - the "indestructible" one - is what I'd go for to feed a slurry of watered down repashy. Where do you get them?

On a related note, how much do you feed your beardies when you're syringe feeding? My boy is afraid of things touching his face and I can't tell very well when he's fussing because he's nervous or because he's full.


In the USA …. Googled them and found https://www.squirrelsandmore.com/products/12-gauge-straight-4-stainless-steel-feeding-needle?variant=18409944007 . you need a crop / feeding needle with a bore of 3mm to allow a thick slurry or paste like Repashi to flow, you my also need to drill a larger bore in the plastic syringe or better invest in proper feeding syringe.

Smaller bore needles will be very hard to get the stuff to flow through the needle.

Volume per feed is related to the body mass of the lizard …. see table in the link
29z98bp.gif

if it says 1 -4 ml / 100g , I'd be conservative and do a few feedings per day of 1 - 2 ml / 100g per feed .
I've found putting a drop of honey on the end of the needle helped get the feeds started .

You will need one person to restrain the dragon , while the feeder gets the mouth open a crack and operates the syringe.

A tip …. get hold of some stiff plastic business cards or playing cards .
These can folded in half (one long fold) .
Cut a hole big enough to slip the feeding needle into the mouth in the middle of the fold.
slip the folded card between beardie's lips and upper and lower front teeth, hold it there an slip the business end of the feeding needing past the teeth , only needs to go maybe 5mm in and then inject some paste/slurry , remove card and needle let lizard swallow , repeat , a little at a time.
 

CliffsMom

Member
Original Poster
Sorry I'm not 100% sure what's a "proper" feeding syringe. I have needless syringes with a thing to screw something on it. Is that what you mean?
I could cut back the curve tip syringe to 3mm and then the tip would be about as long as a medicine syringe.
I read another post about someone's dragon breaking their jaw on a feeding syringe?!
Thanks so much for your detailed help it means so much.
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
CliffsMom":3rn2ipre said:
Sorry I'm not 100% sure what's a "proper" feeding syringe. I have needless syringes with a thing to screw something on it. Is that what you mean?
I could cut back the curve tip syringe to 3mm and then the tip would be about as long as a medicine syringe.
I read another post about someone's dragon breaking their jaw on a feeding syringe?!
Thanks so much for your detailed help it means so much.

These are what I mean - they a designed for the job with large outlet bores (3mm +) and are able to be disassembled for easy cleaning and sterilization. http://vetafarm.com.au/product/reusable-feeding-syringe/
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
He has strong jaws so try feeding him insects. Take a large bug and squish it until the guts come out a bit. Rub that lightly on his snout, most reptiles will eat once they taste the bug juice. Be patient and try over + over until he eats.
 

kyleena29

Sub-Adult Member
When I had to make my beardie eat (he quit eating on his own for almost a year for unknown reasons) I set him on my counter and take a dubia with feeding tongs, place my finger under his jaw to gently pull down his lower lip and slide the dubia into the side of his mouth and press it gently against his teeth. I personally didn't like the idea of squishing bugs so I did this with live ones, but if you can deal with squishing them I would go for it. This way you are already touching near his mouth and hopefully won't get startled. I also do this to make him eat his veggies. If pushing it against his teeth doesn't work, try sliding it back and forth along the teeth to the tip of his mouth and back. This usually gets them to eat.
As for slurries you can try making it thicker and just set it on the snout or you can just squirt some along the outside of the teeth. I had the same problem as you when I first started out trying to find the best way to feed by using syringe, then attach a nipple and running into the same problems. The ones that held up the best for me were these: https://www.squirrelsandmore.com/products/the-miracle-nipple?variant=18410440071
But eventually I started putting it on the snout and it was better. This way you could tell if they were done when they stopped licking it. After weeks turned into months I decided he needed to eat what he was supposed to be eating and started making him eat bugs and veggies. Hope this helps.
 
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