Tegu health issue

[dp97]

Hi everyone. I am a new member of this forum and this is my first post. I own a 1.5-year-old black and white tegu and lately he has been experiencing an uncommon issue, one which I cannot seem to find others who have shared the same problem before that shared it on the web. I recently noticed that he was kind of wobbling slightly from his limbs whilst moving, however, it's his head movement that mostly caught my attention. He came out of hibernation in the first week of May and this behavior has occurred ever since. This is most noticeable when I'm feeding him. His head kind of bobbles up and down for no reason and when he attempts to feed insects from the tweezers, he tries to bite the food but the bites are nowhere near where the insect actually is. He usually bites the air 10 times before actually grabbing the food. In some cases, he also just gives up and turns away. In addition, the basking spot in his enclosure is located on a bit of elevated area which is connected through a turf patched piece of wood (as one can see on the image attached).

Lately, he is also giving up on taking the ''stairs'' to the basking spot and just sits beneath the basking light on the base. I have noticed him before that he had no problem going up the stairs and bask the whole day there, however, when he notices I open the cage or calls it a day, he does not go down the stairs the same way he goes up, but decides to jump down. The fall is not a long way down however, he sometimes lands upside down which I do not think helps at all. Currently, I blocked the way up the stairs to avoid any further damage. (you can see in the second image). Since he is basking in a different area now, the temperature of the basking spot is 33°C/91.4°F. His usual basking spot was 38°C/100.4°F.

Link to video regarding stated behavior:
https://vimeo.com/user99756516/review/342453281/84d481f792
OR
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x7b9pbi

Before anyone asks, yes I have already taken him to a vet yesterday and he prescribed anti-inflammatory liquid which I am injecting in his mouth daily and pills every 48hrs for 20 days for infection purposes. I am due to visit the vet again in 8 days to check regarding progress. So far vet stated that it should not be an MBD issue and that it is more likely to be a nervous system problem that could have occurred from a possible fall, however, it is too early to be sure what the actual problem is. Has anyone else experienced this kind of behavior from their tegu before? Any feedback would be greatly appreciated as I am currently worried about my lizard's health. Thanks.

 

[Walter1]

Nearest I have to that is stiff-legged, sort of uncoordinated for first week post emergence of a 5 mo. slumber.

 

[Tizzay89]

Head Bob and miss of prey like that reminds me of spider ball pythons. Those that dont know they have a neurological issue. I know certain food drain tegus of a nutrient that leads to a neurological issue like this. But I dunno how tegus are after they go down for the long nap. Just offering a possibility not a diagnosis. Best of luck

 

[dp97]

Head Bob and miss of prey like that reminds me of spider ball pythons. Those that don't know they have a neurological issue. I know certain food drain tegus of a nutrient that leads to a neurological issue like this. But I dunno how tegus are after they go down for the long nap. Just offering a possibility not a diagnosis. Best of luck

He only eats superworms and the occasional pinkies, so nothing was introduced to his diet recently. At least his appetite is still there. Every time I go near the enclosure, he comes forward eagerly waiting for food. He's pooping normal and I've seen him drink also. Movement is still awkward so far but the head tilt is the most noticeable factor. I have heard that neurological problems in lizards tend to be mostly fatal. At this point, I'm just trying my utmost and hoping for the best. Thanks for the reply.

 

[AlphaAlpha]

I'm not too sure on condition but wish you look with it....... but I would suggest ripping out all that wood in his enclosure as hes getting too big to be climbing all that and put in a tile/slate or stone that will absorb heat for his basking area.

 

[Zyn]

Seems a bit old for such small prey items pinky’s and superworms don’t offer much to a nearly adult Tegu he could be woofing down small rats and small fish by now. I’d also watch he might of taken a spill off those risers they are ground dwellers and not great climbers. They do as babies because they do it in the wild to escape predators but not so much as adults they are better fallers than climbers. I’d say his diets way off he seems very small for a year and half. He should be three times that size. My guess is he’s lacking all sorts of nutritients. Hate to say it but it could be early onset MBD

Pinks have no calcium very little protein. They don’t have fuller formed bones till they are fuzzies. They are mostly little meat bags of fat and mother’s milk which isn’t all that great for them anyway.
Superworms without being dusted just offer some
Protein and fat

I suggest moving to adult mice or small rats
Dubia if you really want to feed insects though it’s kinda pointless after they’re a year old in my opinion.

Start feeding a mix of turkey cod liver oil beef liver some fish.

Some high end cat food salmon can be great as well

Repti links are good as well as Maseri croc diet

 

[dp97]

Seems a bit old for such small prey items pinky’s and superworms don’t offer much to a nearly adult Tegu he could be woofing down small rats and small fish by now. I’d also watch he might of taken a spill off those risers they are ground dwellers and not great climbers. They do as babies because they do it in the wild to escape predators but not so much as adults they are better fallers than climbers. I’d say his diets way off he seems very small for a year and half. He should be three times that size. My guess is he’s lacking all sorts of nutritients. Hate to say it but it could be early onset MBD

Pinks have no calcium very little protein. They don’t have fuller formed bones till they are fuzzies. They are mostly little meat bags of fat and mother’s milk which isn’t all that great for them anyway.
Superworms without being dusted just offer some
Protein and fat

I suggest moving to adult mice or small rats
Dubia if you really want to feed insects though it’s kinda pointless after they’re a year old in my opinion.

Start feeding a mix of turkey cod liver oil beef liver some fish.

Some high end cat food salmon can be great as well

Repti links are good as well as Maseri croc diet

Thanks for the reply mate. For the past two days, I've introduced raw chicken breast to him dusted with calcium and he seemed to like it. Yes, I'm also planning on re-adjusting the enclosure sooner rather than later. The movement has improved a bit but the head tilting is still present. With regards to the MBD, the vet said it doesn't seem to be the case but also stated it's too early to judge. He suspects it's more of a neurological issue rather than MBD. I don't know which is worse tbh. I've heard certain reptiles can recover from MBD if not that serious. I still plan on giving him an X-Ray in the coming days just to make sure. So far he stands at 2 feet long and weighs 0.5kg. Before he went to hibernation, which was around November, he was having dusted super worms and the occasional pinkies. I did not introduce him to meat that early because I was conscious about gout, which now I kind of regret. I just hope I got to it in time whatever he has and I'm not too late.

 

[Lavar R Mathena]

Your basking area temp is to low, Should be closer to 110 to 115 degrees.

 

[Ivyna J Spyder]

What kind of UVB light are you using? Do you have a Solarmeter to test the output?

And I haven't seen it from a tegu but, I had a similar issue with my bearded dragon, with the wobbling and lack of coordination.

Turned out to be a sign of kidney failure. Have you had blood work done?

 

[dp97]

Just a brief update. He has significantly improved lately. After 4 vet visits in a month, the vet said he was really surprised by his progress. Head twitching has vanished completely, he is eating normal and not missing prey. His back legs are still a bit weak but are improving at a steady rate. So far I'm relieved seeing him progressing well in terms of health. The basking spot has increased to 44°C, however, he is mainly hanging around the water dish and attempting to soak. I don't know if I should be concerned about that. But overall, I say he has made great progress

 

[bocacash]

Excellent ! Good news !