Concerned About Kookie's Eating Habits

[msmaui]

For the last 2 months, Kookie hasn't been eating properly. He eats 8-10 medium crickets for breakfast, never touches his salad, and sometimes he will eat about 10 PWs for dinner. Sometimes the crickets for breakfast is all he eats all day. He will never eat or drink anything that I drop on his nose.

He gets a bath every other day. He hasn't lost or gained any weight in the last 2 months. His weight is 345. He seems okay but I worry about him not eating enough. I even tried Reptaid but it didn't seem to phase him. I bought him a new ReptiSun 10 yesterday. His old one wasn't quite 6 mo. old.

I worry about him. What do you guys think?

Nancy

 

[msmaui]

Nothing? Do you think he's eating enough to keep him healthy?

 

[Krypton]

My Riley just started doing this too. I introduced some new food - canned silkworms and alfalfa for his salads. He hated the alfalfa and that might be why he stopped eating the salads (I got rid of the alfalfa but he still seems hesitant to nibble at it). But he loved those silkworms so much he seemed to stop eating his crickets in hopes of getting more silk worms! He doesn't seem to have lost or gained any weight and he runs around and acts normal, poops fine. So, maybe our beardies are going through periods of 'picky/stubborness.' I don't know. I do what I can to get him to eat any food he will. He loves the silkworms, so I at least have that as a last resort. My beardie is 10 months old, so he's at the age where he should be decreasing his amount of insects and eating more salad and greens. You didn't mention how old your guy is? He looks big, around the size of mine. Is he running around and acting normal, despite not eating much? I'd be interested to know what others think of all this. Oh, also, if he's around 9 months old (or older) 8 to 10 crickets should be fine for him (daily) if he's eating lots of veggies. Now it's all about trying to get him to eat those. There were a few times when I misted Riley's salad and then lightly dusted it with calcium. He seemed to like the calcium on it and would eat it when I held the dish in front of his nose. I'll move the dish side to side a little, trying to get his attention with it, and if he closes his eyes (his way of saying 'get that outta my face, ma!') or he doesn't show interest, I don't push it and just set it where he knows it'll be if he decides he wants it later. If anything, you're not alone in this!

 

[Krypton]

Also, there might be a chance the UVB might have 'burnt out' sooner than it should have (meaning it's not producing as much UVB rays as it should). I'd wait a week and see how the new one does. See if he starts eating more veggies. I'm glad you mentioned that, now that I think about it, mine might be close to needing replaced. I already have the bulb, so I might do that and see if there's improvement with Riley. Crossing my fingers for us both!

 

[msmaui]

Thank you, Krypton. Kookie is about 9 mo. old so maybe he and your Riley are going through their stubborn adolescent stage. Maybe I'll try some silk worms. That's one thing I haven't tried. The salads seem like a lost cause. Every week I buy his greens, usually yellow squash, different varieties of fruit. I put it in his cage every day and throw it out the next day. He's been running around and acting normal. Just pooping around once a week but I guess that's to be expected, when you don't eat. Hopefully, they'll get hungry some day!

Nancy

 

[Krypton]

The day after I changed the bulb, Riley started eating his salads again, eating crickets, and his silkworms. He's been doing a lot better. Not sure if he just 'came out of his mood' or if it was actually the new bulb that helped. What kind of greens do you feed Kookie? Also, did he used to eat his veggies? Was there anything in particular he seems to like/not like? Some beardies don't like fruits or squash. Sometimes Riley will eat bits of fruit, but he doesn't seem to care for it, same with squash. I usually only use those as occasional 'toppings.' He used to absolutely love Romaine lettuce (even though it's not the best for them) and I still give it to him, mixed with Escarole, Turnip Greens, and Collard Greens. If you buy some silk worms, try putting two or three in his salad and see if he eats them, then decides to try a nibble at the salad. Riley is very talented at digging around and getting ONLY what he wants out of his salads (sometimes flinging the rest elsewhere) and leaving the rest. :roll: :lol: Hopefully your beardie is not so talented. Also when I feed Riley, I usually wait until he's basked for about an hour or so before I introduce his salad. I pick him up and set him by his dish and give him an opportunity to eat it before he gets any bugs. He's usually hungry in the morning and eats the salad. Then, after he's finished I'll give him a silkworm treat and give him some crickets. You might try that. Try holding off Kookie's food for an hour or two longer than you normally would, then introduce the yummy greens! Good luck!

 

[Buggsy]

I just had to post as kookie look EXACTLY like my gizmo! it is so strange, i had to do a double take!

 

[msmaui]

Krypton: I'm glad to hear Riley's doing better. Kookie's not eating any better at all. I usually buy mustard greens but I've tried dandelion and kale also. I usually put a little shredded squash in with the greens but I've also just tried greens alone. I've tried apple, mango, different kinds of berries, cantaloupe, watermelon. I'm tired of buying all these different things just for him to ignore. When he was younger he would sometimes wander past his bowl and accidentally take one bite. He doesn't even do that any more. I think I'll try your suggestion of giving him his salad first. I'm at my wit's end. Yesterday he ate 2 crickets all day--nothing else. I bought him a jar of squash baby food today and put some on his mouth. He licked it off but didn't really like it. After he tasted it he started backing up, trying to get away from it. The crazy little nut. I'm getting worried about him starving to death though. I'm not going to force feed him. I hate that.

Buggsy That's funny. Is Gizmo the same age as Kookie? About 9 months? I hope you're not having the same eating problems!

 

[diamc]

Hi there, I just wanted to pop in and say that Kookie looks great. It is typical for them to slow down their eating for a short time when about 9 mo old. Changing his feeders around by trying silkworms, horns, butters, etc might spark his interest again. Another thing that is a big hit here, is sprinkling a little bit of cilantro over top of the greens, the smell entices them. Also changing the greens around by offering turnip greens, escarole, endive might also be an idea to try. They do get tired of the same things and it's important to try to keep them interested as they can become very picky at the 8 to 10 mo age. Let me know how it goes. :wink:

 

[Buggsy]

SHe is 2 yrs now ( so obviosly alot bigger than kookie) but yes, she did go through this phase where nothing was good enough for her. I had to order lots of different foods of the net and see if she liked them! she hated PW with a passion, and i was too scared to try hornworms, but at her size we compromised on supers, and locuts and butterworms for treats.

I also had to put a strict routien into place so she would eat veggies, and she still only does this when offered by hand, out of her cage! such a princess!

Its good that youve swapped the bulbs over, perhaps a change of diet would kick start him?

 

[Krypton]

Hey, just thought I'd pop back in and see how Kookie's doing? Has his appetite improved any? I sure hope so!

 

[athenae]

SHe is 2 yrs now ( so obviosly alot bigger than kookie) but yes, she did go through this phase where nothing was good enough for her. I had to order lots of different foods ...
I also had to put a strict routien into place so she would eat veggies, and she still only does this when offered by hand, out of her cage! such a princess!

ditto -- i'm still hand-feeding a few greens every time i leave a fresh bowl of them -- they love the attention, and when rinsed just beforehand, it's also a way of getting a few drops of water into them -- also, sometimes the extra stimulation of being taken out of the viv for a while [before feeding time] will awaken the appetite.

 

[Loganator]

Hi there, I just wanted to pop in and say that Kookie looks great. It is typical for them to slow down their eating for a short time when about 9 mo old. Changing his feeders around by trying silkworms, horns, butters, etc might spark his interest again. Another thing that is a big hit here, is sprinkling a little bit of cilantro over top of the greens, the smell entices them. Also changing the greens around by offering turnip greens, escarole, endive might also be an idea to try. They do get tired of the same things and it's important to try to keep them interested as they can become very picky at the 8 to 10 mo age. Let me know how it goes.

I had to chime here and say I am going through the exact same thing with my 10 month old Izzy. Diane, I feel so much better knowing that is may be normal for them at this age. I am at my wits end trying to get Izzy to eat normally again. I have tried everything, different veggies (dandelion, collard, mustard greens, kale, rocket, cilantro, all varieties of squash, bell peppers, fruits / berries), different live feeders (crickets, dubias, butter worms, wax worms, silk worms, superworms). He just doesn't seem to be interested much. He was never a huge veggie eater, but up until about 2 months ago he loved his yellow bell peppers and squash and he was always eating a ton of crickets and several superworms daily. Matter of fact, the reptile Vet said at his last routine check up in May, that he was getting too fat. It was shortly after that, that he seemed to lose interest in eating.

His other behavior and activity level has not changed. Oddly enough, he has only lost a little weight (back to normal for his age, doesn't look quite so fat now). He still poos regularly, although the poos are a smaller amount.

His tank setup has not changed. He has a T-Rex ActiveUV MVB only 3 months old. His temps are 78-82 on the cool side, 95 warm side and 102-105 basking spot. Humidity is pretty constant at 36-38%. Non-adhesive shelf liner. I take temps with the digital accurite with probe and a temp gun for faster readings. they are consistent with each other.

It is a struggle to get him to eat on a daily basis. He has fallen into a pattern of eating pretty well one day (both veggies and supers, no interest in crickets) then not eating the next day. This had been going now for about a month.

Could this be normal for him now that he is reaching adulthood? If he eats a significant amount one day and then skips a day, should I be worrying? There have a couple times where he has not wanted to eat for 2-3 days and that is when I have really become concerned and force-fed him chicken and squash baby food. But now he is in this routine of eating real good one day , then skipping a day.

Any more thoughts or is this just a phase he is going through?

 

[msmaui]

Hi, Deb. At least your baby is pooing regularly. Kookie hasn't gone poo in 2 weeks. He's gotten to where he will eat a few crickets (maybe 4-5) if I feed them to him one at a time. Tonight I put a bowl of PWs in front of him and he totally ignored them. I started feeding him one worm at a time and he ate about 20. Talk about a slave. :roll: I'm really worried about him not pooing. I've done everything I know--fed him applesauce w/olive oil, bathe him daily and massage his stomach. I don't know what else to do. They sure can make us crazy!!

 

[Loganator]

Wow! 2 weeks without a poo? Yes, at least Izzy is pooing regularly. There have been a few times that he has not gone for 3-4 days, but I have assumed that was because he didn't eat much during those times. After about 3 days of no pooing, I have used a syringe and force-fed him pumpkin mixed with some mineral oil. And that has always worked for me. Have you tried pumpkin? Someone else here had recommended that. Plain unsweetened canned pumpkin. Maybe that would work for you.

Is Kookie eating any better yet? He probably doesn't feel like it if he's all backed up! Izzy is still not eating as much as he used too. I am beginning to think that maybe this is just a normal decrease in appetite for him as he ages. I just worry a little about the days he eats nothing at all. I would feel better if he would at least eat something, if only a little bit, every day. But he fallen into this pattern of not eating at all, nothing, for a day, sometimes two, then the next day eating 5-10 superworms, fed by hand. Even the days that he does eat, he just doesn't seem real interested. He will not eat on his own. I have to hand feed him. I keep changing things up to see if he's just bored with what I'm offering, but he shows no interest in anything, he will only eat a few supers every other day or so. And I really have to coax him to get to eat those. Once or twice a week he may take a bite or two of his greens. I am now becoming concerned about him getting enough calcium. (He won't eat even the supers if they are dusted) So I have ordered some liquid calcium.

Hey Nancy! I just noticed we are practically neighbors! I'm in Simi Valley.

Deb