Toileting... Excessively?

[Styx]

Okay, so my tegu, Guts, seems to be filled with urates and fecal matter always. He eliminates up to 5 times a day.

...Is that normal? I have been trying to potty train him for a year, but he'll eliminate in the tub, then several more times while he is out free-roaming, once in his enclosure, ect ect. I literally spend at least a couple hours a day cleaning up after him, and I'm going through tons of substrate because he soils it so badly so quickly. I am no slouch when it comes to trying, I take him out every single day to attempt to get him to go in the tub, to feed him, to handle him so his inner d-bag doesn't take hold, and so on.

I fear this may make me look like an idiot, but that seems like a lot to me. Does anyone else have a tegu that is like that? His last checkup was at the beginning of the year, could it be a sign of some problem? Should I take him to the vet again? He is about a year and a half and he is small because of some health problems when I first got him (and a surgery) so I still feed him every day. But my god... he craps a lot. EVERYWHERE. And pees, all over the place... so much tegu pee.

 

[chitodadon]

What r u feeding him amd also when the r active they go to the bathroom more

from Samsung Galaxy S3

 

[laurarfl]

That seems excessive, even for an active lizard. Was his surgery for intestinal issues or did he have a prolapse? Maybe some muscle tone has been lost. Or maybe it is a simple issue of a parasites. I'd give your vet a call and see what they think. Of course, they'll probably tell you to bring him in, but see if you can leave a message to talk to the vet over the phone.

 

[Styx]

Chitodadon, he eats a wide variety of fruit, mice, insects, whole small fish, fish fillets, ground meat, offal, and soft boiled eggs. Currently he is eating f/t mice, f/t gourami fish, ground venison (farm raised), cactus fruit, offal, mangos, and boiled eggs. With calcium, vitamins, and cod liver oil of course.

Laurafl, both. He has a really bad prolapse of his intestines, and I rushed him to the vet where he needed surgery to put his guts back inside. They didn't cut his abdominal wall though, he just had the purse stitch. I will call them today and see what they say, if they want him brought in or just a fecal done. I just noticed he is eliminating even more than usual, he's always gone a couple times a day, but lately it seems like way more. Thanks.

 

[chitodadon]

Hope all goes well and don't feed to much eggs

from Samsung Galaxy S3

 

[laurarfl]

Cactus can cause loose stools and frequent elimination. I don't know how much he is eating. It's good for them, but some may have a more sensitive system.

 

[Styx]

Interesting. He has had a bit more lately than he usually does because he stopped liking some other fruit he used to like (blueberries, for example). When I'm at the vet's I'll have to ask her about that and other foods that could cause that if he comes back clean for parasites.

 

[laurarfl]

Let us know what she says about it. Cactus pads and fruit are used to treat mild diarrhea, but ironically also have them as a side effect. Like aloe, it is supposed to be good for cleansing your GI and healing inflammatory bowel issues. We like to drink aloe juice but I can say that we do not experience the side effects, lol. TMI

 

[Styx]

Whoops, forgot to update this. So his fecals came back totally clean, my vet ended up saying he just might be an oddball like that. I did mention the food thing you suggested Laura and my vet agreed fruit might have a lot of fiber in it for him causing him to go... a lot more than usual. She suggested cutting out all fruit for a while and see if his bowl habits change.

I did that, and he finished off his cacti fruit food, and there has been some change. He still goes a lot, but not as much. Down to 2-3 times a day. If I'm lucky once a day haha.

 

[laurarfl]

After he gets back to a regular routine, add back one fruit at a time and see which ones seem to upset him.

 

[Styx]

Great minds think alike, that is my plan. Also, thanks a lot for the suggestion, until I brought it up, my vet didn't even think the fruit might be a cause. I'll probably come back and update this once I figure out which fruits are the worst offenders.