Best Foods for Tegu-Mash

[tresh]

I've got a special needs tegu, who is missing teeth and has a severe underbite. She's woken up from hibernation the last week or so, and she's showing signs of hunger finally.

Yesturday, she ate nearly an entire raw egg with vitamins mixed in.

Today, she tried to eat some superworms. But it's very apparent that she can't eat most solid food.

So. When faced with a severely emaciated sickly tegu who can barely lift her head, much less try to chew or eat solid food, what are the best ingredients for tegu mash that I'm going to end up feeding her with something like a baby dropper?

We're all taking it as a very good sign that she's wanting to eat. She's been hibernating for 2 months, and she's so emaciated (she was before I rescued her back in august) we're constantly afraid we'll find her dead one of these mornings.

But somehow, somehow she is still surviving. If I knew anyone local who knew tegus, I'd be giving her to someone better equipped to take care of her, but I have not found anyone, and so I am doing the best I can to help the poor girl.

So. What's the most nutritious food I can grind/mash/mix for her, to help her gain strength and weight?

 

[Dubya]

I've got a special needs tegu, who is missing teeth and has a severe underbite. She's woken up from hibernation the last week or so, and she's showing signs of hunger finally.

Yesturday, she ate nearly an entire raw egg with vitamins mixed in.

Today, she tried to eat some superworms. But it's very apparent that she can't eat most solid food.

So. When faced with a severely emaciated sickly tegu who can barely lift her head, much less try to chew or eat solid food, what are the best ingredients for tegu mash that I'm going to end up feeding her with something like a baby dropper?

We're all taking it as a very good sign that she's wanting to eat. She's been hibernating for 2 months, and she's so emaciated (she was before I rescued her back in august) we're constantly afraid we'll find her dead one of these mornings.

But somehow, somehow she is still surviving. If I knew anyone local who knew tegus, I'd be giving her to someone better equipped to take care of her, but I have not found anyone, and so I am doing the best I can to help the poor girl.

So. What's the most nutritious food I can grind/mash/mix for her, to help her gain strength and weight?

Try feeding it ground chicken mixed with egg without the shell for now because it may not digest the shell being that it is weak now. Chicken is higher in protein and fat than turkey, so it will give more of a boost than turkey. My vet recommends "Carnivore Care" from OX-bow. It is a supplement for sick and recovering reptiles and other carnivores. I always have it on hand. It stimulates their appetite and is full of vitamins. Good stuff.
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[Little Wise Owl]

Perhaps you could puree ground meat (chicken, turkey, etc) with gutloaded crickets, superworms, roaches, egg yolk, a variety ripe fruits/veggies and Repashy's Calcium Plus (my personal favourite supplement)

If I was in your situation, I would personally do this for my tegu. One third meat, one third insects, 1-2 egg yolks (not whites), one third ripe fruits/veggies (different varieties per batch made) and the supplement. You can mess with the ratios of each to find the consistency you prefer (and for variety).

 

[laurarfl]

If she's really bad off, I would start with Carnivore Care and then move on to Owl's mixture. The Oxbow formula is already balanced with the proper ratios and formulated to be easily digestible. There is another product that is the same, Emeraid Carnivore. You can order these on-line or purchase them from a vet.

 

[tresh]

I've got the Carnivore Care on order, coming tommorrow morning. I've been getting some raw egg mixed with reptile vitamins and water into her, and today she decided to eat half a raspberry...but that's not nearly enough for a a lizard of her size. So, fingers crossed, I'll get some real nutrition into her when I get that Carnivore Care tommorrow.

She refuses to bask under her lamp, but she's awake/aware. She just lays at the back of a dog kennel most of the day. I've got a wrapped heating pad in there with her (not a rock, a heating pad that doesn't get hot enough to burn, just enough to keep her warm since she won't bask).