Iguana Rehab

Question
QUESTION: Hi Diane.
Thank you for your speedy answer on my last question. We tried dome of the remedies you wrote about and they seem to be working. Especially giving him a bath. He is eating much better now, so his mood is better as well. However, he still has had no bowl movement or excretion of any kind. this is becoming rather worrisome. We've has him 8 days and he only had a movement on that day.
Hoping you can suggest something. We are giving him lots of moisture and he likes the baths!
Regards,
Marion Anderson

ANSWER: Hi Marion,
When he is in the bath, does he try to go to the bathroom?  
Do you know if the other people kept him on sand or other loose substrate that he may have eaten it, although with him eating, I don't think a blockage would be the problem.
Have you checked his cage well?  Sometimes they are good at hiding their poop piles.
One other thing that pops into my mind is that he may be eating it..but there would still be signs of the urates.
If he is looking bloated, like he hasn't gone to the bathroom there are a few things you can do.  Many times they are able to hold it just because of the change in their life.
You can offer some plain canned pumpkin. Also, babyfood prunes can be offered.  Both will work to help loosen them up.
When bathing him, you can gently massage his stomach.  To do this you would rub their underside from between the front legs down toward the vent.
If none of the suggestions work in a day or two, then I suggest a vet visit to see if there is possibly a small blockage.
Stress will cause an overload of parasites which can cause a mild blockage, so if the suggestions do work, don't be alarmed if you see a pile of parasites being expelled.  If that happens, then he will most likely need to have some medication to get the parasite load under control.  They all have internal parasites, it when the load gets too large that it can cause the problem.
Its wonderful he loves baths!!! They actually do absorb a small amount of water through their vents so soaking is good for them.


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Diane.
Thanks for your help. The massage bath worked. But, how do we know if we are seeing parasites? His stool was loose and cloudy with some larger dark clumps. I've heard it described that way, but don't really know what to look for. Thank you for all your help. We sure love this guy!

Answer
Hi Marion,
Glad he is pooping now!! If he has a heavy load of parasites, you will see tiny, tiny white worms in the poop usually.
Generally, with parasites the poop will smell sour or rotten..normal smells "fresh"...like horse poop basically.
If the feces part stays loose and or has the sour smell, I would get a fecal check done just to be sure its not parasites.  Also, if you can pick up one of the products bene bac...labeled for birds, approved for reptiles, nutri bac, acidolophliz+,or plain, human grade acidolophus that can usually fix any problems that are digestive related, but won't fix parasite related.
Their poop is actually 3 parts that you will see.  A clear to slightly opaque liquid, a white thicker liquid and the feces.  If the white part is clumpy, its generally a sign of dehydration, or sometimes other health problems such as kidney problems. Sometimes with the white part it can be tinted orange, which can be food related, kidney problems or dehydration. Don't jump to thinking any time you see the urates(liquid parts) being off color or thickness its health related...most times its dehydration and adding more wet fruit such as watermelon will fix the problem there.Glad you are enjoying your new found friend!!!!