Gravid Merauke waving arms?!

[Dakota]

Okay.. I'm starting to get super freaked out.. I'm 100% she is gravid. She is now doing that "sigh" breathing, going into shed. Susann has experienced her fals giving 1 weeks after shed.. so in about 2 weeks I expect her to give.. but one thing is starting to startle me.. she is waving her arms. I'm trying to upload the video but having some problems.. for the people that are experienced on the matter.. is this normal? She goes from tye left arm to the right over and over. I want to stray away from vet care, since she is about to blow.. what is needed, is needed.

Looks like a Bearded Dragon wave.. but just up to down.. and kindly fast.

Thanks

[Richard.C]

sounds odd,front arms?

is she under basking light when it happens? i see when on hot basking site they often raise arms up , feet must get to warm

bang up the video it might be easier to see what you mean though

arm waving isnt something ive seen with gravid females of aussie skinks

[Jeff]

The video would help, but I have never seen "arm waving" from my females. Most of mine give birth while I am not watching though, so I can't say none of them have done it.

[Richard.C]

from ones ive seen start having bubs only leg waving ive seen is back legs extended when they start pushing bubs out,apart from that just normal bluey behaviour

my westerns have a hot basking spot and often lift feet up instead of moving away,hot feet but still want to warm body,spiney tailed egernia are shocking for it,but still its not waving,just holding feet away from basking surface

[Dakota]

Please tell me I startled over nothing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GGNGnyYxvUA

She goes do it when she is under the light, but it is 80 this time, and last time was 98. I did spray down before I measured.. so it could be much hotter.. is 98 too hot for gravid girls?

[Scotts1au]

Was trying to picture what you are talking about. Shedding isnt ubiquitous, just an indicator and probaby in response to the blueys bulging size. I usually find they are about to blow when they reach about 30% greater than their starting weight prior to becoming gravid. Holds true for Easterns and Blotchies cant see why different for Meraukes.

Often prior to giving birth in addition to laboured breathing they will deficate easily if picked up (so much pressure going on there). They may also raise their rear legs in the air tucked tight in against the body. I get the impression they get similar to Braxton Hicks type contractions similar to humans in the weeks leading up to birth. When this happens they may writhe around a bit and drag themselves around the enclosure, but can't say I've ever seen front leg waving in a pregant bluey. It is possible that it is an involuntary response to pain or discomfort.

I did have this once in a juvenile bluey that died of impaction, presumably after eating rice hull based substrate.

[Dakota]

Her belly is super huge.



Hmm.. discomfort, huh..? So, if you think about it.. this would be something that could happen? She is starting to wiggle a lot down that area with the deep breaths she holds in.

[Dakota]

Should I soak her?

[Jeff]

After seeing the video, I wouldn't be too concerned. The way you described it, I thought she was waving her arms around wildly. They usually act very uncomfortable at times near the end. I have seen the same things that Scott described, but also sometimes they don't really show any signs at all, then you find totally unexpected babies.

[Jeff]

Why would you soak her? I wouldn't.

[Dakota]

For the impaction part Scott mentioned, but nevermind.. you enlightened me.

[Scotts1au]

The action I have seen was arms out at right angles - I wrote that before I saw the video. Looks like a neurological response of some sort. Probably nothing to worry about, but if she wasn't moving out of the hot spot at 98 F, dropping the temp by changing to a lower wattage globe is advisable.

[Dakota]

She does move around, she usually just takes naps around the basking area, but every night she is under the substrate on the cold side. She is still kindly adventurous, but today and yesterday was just sluggish.

I would say she stays under the light around 3 hours or so.. then either she starts roaming around.. or just go to sleep on the cold side or in the middle of the cage.

[Richard.C]

doesnt look as extreme as i imagined,you arent playing ricky martin dvds are you,lol

that does look odd but she may be just trying to get comfy,its like shes thinking maybe o should move then thinking naah im reasonably comfy here

keep an eye on her regardless,but try not to stress,possably just getting comfy,if she does just that though maybe something up

some females dont handle gravidity as well as others

no need to soak her,the wiggles u see are her trying to get comfy,thats quite normal behaviour,soaking her wont be of any benifit

[Richard.C]

ok if shes still moving around dont stress,sounds like just getting comfy whilst resting,everything sounds normalish otherwise

just leave her be,shes best at working out whats best for her,no need to stress her by soaking ect

[Lea]

Hmm, I've seen this kind of neurological response with compression of the spinal column and it can be related to any number of things, including constipation and pressure caused by a pregnancy.

Other things, such as back or cardiac discomfort can result in more controlled and deliberate limb movement to try and relieve the pain.

In all likelihood, it's something trivial, but since this is new behaviour for Virginia and given her possibly heavily gravid state, I would consult a vet. Arm waving can be just a spinal nerve irritation, but this can lead to permanent damage, so I'd err on the side of caution and take her to the vet for a checkup, but keep her cool, quiet and dark on the journey to minimise stress.

[Scincoides]

I am kind of a worryer, so in your situation I would take her to a vet. You said that you wanted to stray away from vet care. Why is that?

[donkeybuff]

He wanted to cut back on the stress that would result from taking her to the vet. However, I would take her to the vet in this situation, since I feel that the stress is a necessary sacrifice to make sure that she is healthy.