worms in stool--but he hasn't been fed worms!

[KendraA]

Wallace is a ten-month-old male beardie who has lately been experiencing partial brumation (reduced appetite, some attempts at burrowing, napping). He hasn't lost weight in the last three weeks but hasn't grown either. I wasn't worried until today I noticed what look like the empty skins of small phoenix worms in his feces (I noticed this when I dumped his bath water out; he poops in the bath every morning). The weird thing is, he hasn't been fed phoenix worms in months! He has been eating only dubia and veggies since the fall. Perhaps I am misidentifying what look like worm skins--maybe the stringy things I'm seeing are part of the roaches or something, but I wanted to check. Could it be parasites? (He hasn't had a fecal, and the breeder said he shouldn't need one until September 2015).

 

[CooperDragon]

It's possible you're seeing part of the roaches or veggies. Hard to tell without some photos. Is the poop a good consistency? If it isn't very runny and doesn't smell unusually bad, it's not as likely to be parasites.

 

[KendraA]

His poop seems to be a normal consistency, but it's a little hard to tell due to going in the bath. I just weighed him and he is continuing to gain weight despite eating less in the past month; presumably if he isn't losing weight he's not sick with parasites? I'll try to look more carefully at the "worms" tomorrow...

 

[CooperDragon]

Yeah keep an eye on it for now. The steady/increasing weight is also a good sign.

 

[KendraA]

Nothing abnormal today. Must have been an anomaly. Thanks for your help!

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

You could always get a fecal done too just to be sure, to set your mind at ease.
Is he eating a lot right now? It sounds like he is healthy overall.
It is a great sign he is gaining weight also.

Tracie

 

[KendraA]

I haven't noticed the "worms" again since I made the post, so I'm going to chalk it up to stringy squash and keep an eye on him in the future--he's not eating much (seems to be semi-brumating), but he is not losing weight and is slowly gaining it.