bts baby not eating

[gloom_kitty]

hi,

ive got a 6 week old bts and im having trouble getting it to eat fruit/veg.

will sometimes eat a small bit of dog food and maybe some cooked tomato or raw egg but only a tiny bit. what he has decided he wants to eat is raw liver and only raw liver.

how bad is this? i have tried squash, potato, apple different dog foods, raw mince, tuna and nothing else sees to tempt him. wont touch anything alive though does have a death wish when it comes to the egg as he insists on going under and submerging himself if not dragged out in a slimy heap (done this twice now)

any help would be great as loki is my first bts and id like to do my best for him.

[AneesasMuse]

Welcome to the forum, first of all!

Have you read the Caresheet on this site, yet? It's all inclusive and very informative on diet and tricky eaters, etc.

Have you tried sneaking any veggies and/or greens in with his preference of liver... like just adding a wee bit and gradually increasing it? How about also trying to eliminate the "raw" liver with some partially cooked or barely cooked and replacing that gradually with something more healthy?

I would even try making some small slits in pieces of liver and cramming greens inside the slit... like someone snuck some greens into empty snail shells for their larger skink and it worked.

Good Luck! I'm sure some "experts" will be along with some great advice soon enough.

~Aminah

edited: I forgot to also mention, "cold turkey" is an effective way to get stubborn eaters to go for new stuff... or "tough love", if you prefer it... but you have to be strong or it won't work.

[Funda]

to the forum Gloom_Kitty!!

Maybe if you try grinding some vegies or greens together and mixing it in with the dog food.
Making it small enough so that your bluey doesnt pick it out. It works.
My skinks are also picky eaters so i grind up some greens and mix it in with their dog food or egg.

Also as Aminah mentioned the 'caresheet' has everything you would need to know!

f.C

[gloom_kitty]

oh i forgot to mention i tried that trick with greens. didnt work how long can i go without feeding?

i have read the caresheet and its great. its also nearly midnight and been a long day so brain dead at the moment and will reread it tomorrow.


hi back

actually before i sleep my axolotls need feeding. they are lined up and staring at me. cute lol

[Lucifer_Spades]

I think this may become my catch phrase on here:

In general an animal will not voluntarily starve to death, offer good food everyday eventually it will get eaten.


A bluey (even a baby) can go for several days without eating with no side effects.

[mom22wins]

Welcome gloom_kitty,

I think the old food processor trick might eventually work if you try the tough love approach.

Good luck!

Diane

[KyleWeiss]

It sounds like there may be a temperature issue. Blueys will sometimes lose interest in food with temperature inconsistencies or too low of basking temperatures.

Basking surface (not the ambient air) should be about 100'F, and the cool side should be around 75'F. I'd convert it to celsius for all involved, but I'm tired, so I'll pull the lazy American card this time.

KW

[gloom_kitty]

that could be it. im using a heat mat at the moment, uv light is coming tomorrow. been taking him outside for some sunshine.

he will eat if i offer him raw liver or a bit of cooked tomato but NOTHING green, so if it was the wrong heat surely he would refuse everything?

going to get sneaky....

oh i even cooked the egg with some cabage and he ate around it!

[Zach]

that could be it. im using a heat mat at the moment, uv light is coming tomorrow. been taking him outside for some sunshine.

he will eat if i offer him raw liver or a bit of cooked tomato but NOTHING green, so if it was the wrong heat surely he would refuse everything?

going to get sneaky....

oh i even cooked the egg with some cabage and he ate around it!

What about your heat light? The purpose of the basking light is to simulate the sun's rays on the animal's back. With no spot light, the animal can't bask! Heat mats do nothing but warm the underside, and can actually even be dangerous. There is no use for them. A standard heat light is all you need, and the UV is good too, only the UV will not provide the necessary heat.

Good luck!

[Leigh]

If the Essex your in is in England , find some snails{small if he's little} as long as they've been de-toxed, yet to get a refusal to them,keep trying different mixes of things until he eats,I had to roll blueberries past his nose to get him into them ,as mentioned they wont starve them selves to death, but will try to be naughty and get you to feed what he wants, bits of cooked/boiled or roast chicken/turkey are GOOD, do you offer super worms or other live feeders as well, other contributing factors maybe
1=going into shed
2= temps{from KW}
3=still not settled in properly
4= has a back log, that needs projecting

post some photos, so we can see what you've got, dont stress and good luck

[gloom_kitty]

during the day i have a lamp on at one end of his home and at night the tub sits on part of a heat mat. problem is he is always buried so dont know how much heat he gets.

he wont eat live food. im in a flat so dont really have access to snails that i can say are 'clean'

is liver such a bad diet?

i have left him for 3 days now without him eating anything im offering...tough love is fine but i dont want to make him ill.

oh the tub is only temporary while he is so small. one of the plastic reptile/small animal homes you get from petshops. he can see out and plenty of air. planning on getting a 3 foot glass viv when he is a bit bigger.

[gloom_kitty]

oh he just finished a shed when i got him which was about 2 weeks ago.

going to the toilet fine, so i dont think he is blocked up.

[KyleWeiss]

Suggestion:

1.) Get rid of the heat mat. Your bluey is probably staying buried because of it. It's warmer at the bottom.

2.) Get a real basking light. Anything from a brand reptile basking light, or a flood light, and use it with your UV light. Point the light at a nice, flat surface, like tile or rock, on the warm side of the tank.

3.) Get a real vivarium. It can be a piece of furniture with good area and a glass front, to an old fish tank. This "tub" you're speaking of doesn't sound too great.

KW

[gloom_kitty]

ok. i might not be able to get a viv and lamp till next week, as its to late to place an order now this week. the tub is a clear plastic fish tank. tub was prob not the best word lol

any viv i get next week will just be a small one as the big one is going to get is going to cost nearly £200 and i cant really afford to spend much. i was told the small fish tank would do for a little while until loki got a bit bigger.

could it be as simple as he doesnt like veg?

i will take it off the heat mat at night but i doubt that will help stop him digging as he has only been on it for a few nights.

thanks for all the help and advice.

the skink reminds me of my brother. he also refuces to eat his veg lol

oh....tried cooked chicken. didnt like that either.

[KyleWeiss]

Honestly, I'd worry about the enclosure far more than what he is or isn't eating right now. Once you have the proper environment, the eating should fall into place normally.

If not, I still wouldn't worry, as a point was made, they won't purposely starve themselves due to being picky eaters. They will adapt, you simply have to keep feeding them good stuff to make the switch.

So ease your stress, get some good equipment and a vivariuim together, and we'll tackle the problems one at a time.

KW

[Lucifer_Spades]

Honestly, I'd worry about the enclosure far more than what he is or isn't eating right now. Once you have the proper environment, the eating should fall into place normally.

If not, I still wouldn't worry, as a point was made, they won't purposely starve themselves due to being picky eaters. They will adapt, you simply have to keep feeding them good stuff to make the switch.

So ease your stress, get some good equipment and a vivariuim together, and we'll tackle the problems one at a time.

KW

for some reason it always surprises me when you're logical, almost scares me.


Good advise though.

Deep breath, their's no panick til it's been a couple weeks of no eating then you can worry.

One problem at a time and you'll be through this in no time.

[gloom_kitty]

at what point should i give in and feed him liver? two weeks seems a long time for a 6 week old to go without food (thats if he keeps being stubbon) i dont doubt you but i would rather feed him liver than for him to starve. he already seems a little thinner.

dont worry im not going to panic, im used to some animals taking time to settle in and as he will eat at least one thing im not to worried.

this is what i have
a clear plastic fish tank....known as the tub
a lamp for light/heat
eco fibre
water/food dishes

half the tub was on a heat mat but will take that off of it

coming tomorrow or friday
arcadia d3 compact
aspen bedding

beyond a glass fish tank and a different light is there anything else you can recomend?

[Jenn]

What do you have in there for hides?

I would take all my veggies/greens and blend them with the liver. Make everything small so that he can't pick them out.

[gloom_kitty]

that was something i was thinking of trying. i dont have a blender but thought i could get a cheap one and if it works feeze some portions.

got some toilet roll tubes in there he can use as hides.

[Jenn]

I've found that having lots of hids and fake plants allows them to feel more secure and they are actually out more often.