Savannah Monitor not eating!

[stainthedane]

My boyfriend's monitor, Shamus, has stopped eating. It's been a week and a half or two weeks now, and I'm concerned. We thought maybe we had been feeding him too much limp food and he wanted something to chase again, but sure enough, we watched the little feeder mouse crawl over Shamus and even Sleep with him.

Usually we feed him chicken gizzards/hearts, liver, eggs (boiled and raw), some dog food, and get mice every once and a while. But he wont have any of it now. He just lies under his heating lamp and sleeps all day. We gave him a bath, thinking that it might refresh him as it usually does, and noticed that if we touched the side of his belly, he started...trembling all over? Sorta Vibrating... for about five seconds and then stops. But he doesn't swim as usual, he just stays in one spot.

Well, a while ago, maybe a month ago, he burned himself on his back pretty badly with his heating lamp. The lamps been taken care of but the burn went from a red area to a blistering one, and then the blisters eventually popped, and that skin broke apart to reveal some bad scabbing underneath it. But there doesn't appear to be any infection (I thought his loss of appetite could be from an infection that went into his bloodstream). ..and...ummm...yeah let me know if you need other details, but if you have any thoughts about why he's not eating or how to encourage him to eat, Please tell me.

[emroul]

I will say I am no expert by any means. It sounds like the past couple weeks have been very stressful on his body. He has gaping open sores that have not been treated, I don't think I'd have much of an appetite either. Have you tried crickets and hissing cockroaches (I am assuming he is an adult)? Many times I have nursed sick monitors back to health and when they are up and ready to eat they go nuts for big bugs. Just a thought. Good luck to him and if I were you please find a good exotic vet near you and have him looked at. I would recommend cleaning the sores out with something mild such as Betadine, at least once daily... it would only be a matter of time before an infection starts spreading and it needs to be dealt with now. Again, good luck.

[emroul]

Also- as i reread your post, I noticed you said he spends much of his time under his heat lamp. He is literally talking to you, telling you he is not warm enough to be comfortable. He is probably not swimming because the water makes him cold. Monitors (especially Savannahs) need it quite HOT. Not to the point of burning, obviously, and any heat source needs to be out of his reach. Do you use under-the-tank heating pads? This will warm him up. Before that though, make sure to check the temps and make sure you are not frying him. If he is acting like this and the temps are right where they need to be, something else is definitely wrong.

As far as that goes, sounds like he is quite lethargic from not being warm enough AND a nasty wound on top of that equals a depressed monitor.

[BRIZZY]

You need to take it to a vet and get those blisters cleared up. Apply neosporin. I know a vet visit here is only 66.00 so it's not expensive and it will in the end save your reptile!

[~corrina~]

Try Going To A Petshop Most Peple Who Know What They Are Doing Will Help You Either To Force Feed Him Or Give You Some Advice But Yes A Vet Is The Smartest Thing

[Salzy]

If you can, get your monitor to the vet. They can at least prescribe some safe ointments to use on the sores. A vet could also check for infection, any problem bacteria, or possible other problems.

Has it always had direct access to the heat source? I mean, close enough to burn it before? I ask because something I've learned is that a sick reptile will actually seek higher heat when it is sick. It could honestly be telling you something, and it may not just be that it isn't warm enough. It's quite possible that with the shakes that it has, that there is some type of infection going on.

Get it checked out as soon as you can. Until then, try some of things suggested by these other folks as well. It would be a good idea to get food of any kind into it's system. Perhaps the best thing to do though is to be sure it is hydrated, since they can do much better without food than water.

[stainthedane]

Well he ate some beef and now he's back on Mice, so at least he's feeling better. As for a vet, I'm afraid my boyfriend refuses to take him to one. And he's not my lizard, it's his.

Either way, I've tried to convince him to at least put something on his back... I was told that polysporn, or deluted Hydrogenporoxide would be ok for it, and my boyfriend seemed to consider it, but hasn't actually done anything about it.

Either way, at least he is feeling better, which is a start!

[BRIZZY]

Sorry but if he is not willing to take it to the vet he should not own anything!! It's called reposnsiblity that he needs to take for HIS herp, tell him to give it to someone who will care for it that is ridiculous!!!

As for taking it to a petstore, DON'T most have NO clue what they are talking about! It needs a vet period!