My green iguana is skinny, not gaining weight. What should I give her?

Without a physical exam, it is difficult to determine if she is "okay". Normal iguana feces is composed of a fecal pellet, which is brown to black, and the urates which are usually liquid but sometimes white as well. You can submit a sample of stool to diagnose intestinal parasites.If she is abnormally thin, this could be a cause. Have her examined by your veterinarian or a vet experienced in treating reptiles to diagnose illness or injury. Review her diet and environmental parameters with the vet to confirm proper care and feeding.

Submit a stool sample to your veterinarian to diagnose intestinal parasites. Offer fresh crested gecko diet daily. Repashy or Pangea are brands I recommend. You can also offer appropriately sized prey (crickets, dubia roaches, mealworms, etc). Be sure to gut load them for 24 hours prior to offering to maximize nutritional value. Confirm proper environmental parameters. Low temps can affect appetite and digestion in reptiles.

Have her examined by your veterinarian or a vet experienced in treating reptiles to diagnose illness or injury. Submit a stool sample to diagnose intestinal parasites or bacterial overgrowth. Confirm proper environmental parameters. Low temps can affect appetite and digestion in reptiles. Be sure to feed appropriately sized prey, nothing bigger than the space between her eyes.

Make sure any prey is appropriately sized, no bigger than the space between his eyes. They should be gut loaded for at least 24 hours prior to offering to maximize nutritional value. Consider adding LaFeber’s Emeraid for Carnivores, Oxbow’s Carnivore Critical Care or Fluker's Repti-Boost to get weight on him. Submit a stool sample to your herp veterinarian to diagnose intestinal parasites. If there are cryptosporidium in his stool, they may be responsible for his condition.

Have the skinny one examined by a veterinarian experienced in treating reptiles/amphibians. Submit a stool sample to diagnose intestinal parasites. Although this is a docile species, monitor for bullying or aggression in case the larger one is not allowing its cagemate to eat.

Thanks for reaching out about Green and including a photo. Causes of anorexia in young reptiles can range from improper husbandry/diet, intestinal parasites or infections, metabolic disorders and others. A veterinary visit is recommended to assess and assist. Measure and correct temperature, humidity and UV exposure. A warm water soak can possibly stimulate defecation and water intake. A small syringe without a needle can be used to offer a vegetable baby food. Good luck.

Have him examined by your veterinarian or an experienced herp vet to diagnose and treat any infection related to the loss of the tail. In the meantime, increase tank temps by about 5-10 degrees F, soak daily in a warm 50/50 solution of water and unflavored PediaLyte for 20 minutes. Once he warms up and rehydrates, offer appropriately sized prey. Gutload prey for 24 hours prior to offering to maximize nutritional value. Supplement with a product such as Fluker's Repti-Boost to get weight back on him. You can clean the stump with diluted betadine or chlorhexidine. Use paper towels for substrate until the stump is healed.