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Any Words of Wisdom?
Posted: Tue Feb 25, 2014 5:04 pm
by LizardLady46
Hi everyone! So my 1yr8 month male northern Naxos has lost his mind. About 3 weeks ago he went through a nice shed then he started dropping sperm plugs and spending the entire day roaming his cage. He trys to climb the walls and falls over, I have seen him try try to scale the ceiling of his hide( that was humorous). From morning to night. We let him out to roam and he just zooms from one room to the other. And for the first time in his entire life he just walks right by or over his food. He was always a great eater so this is new. I assume he is looking for mates. Seems like James W told me his males do that.
I weighed him at the beginning of this behavior at 458gm. He is now 430gm. I have gotten him to eat a couple blueberries and bites of banana and yesterday he took bite of dog food.
So, how long does breeding season last? When can I expect to get my calm, hungry all the time, skink back?
Thanks,
Re: Any Words of Wisdom?
Posted: Tue Feb 25, 2014 5:09 pm
by donkeybuff
It's hard to say how long it will last. All I can say is wait it out, he'll be back to normal soon. If he starts getting very thin, then you may have to worry. My indo just started taking food again after a 3+ month break, so I'm sure Naxos will be fine.
Re: Any Words of Wisdom?
Posted: Tue Feb 25, 2014 5:45 pm
by Richard.C
Yep,standard male testosterone behaviour for this time of year,picky eating,roaming and on the prowls natural instinct for wanting to find a female,he should return to normal before long
Re: Any Words of Wisdom?
Posted: Tue Feb 25, 2014 9:07 pm
by Scotts1au
Needs a cold shower. Generally when they are in this state they will take raw meat, snails, and other things that are normally highest on the temptation list. I find it is ok to feed them these things as much as they will eat during this period until they get over it, which can go on for a while. My blotchies woke in September last year (our seasons are reversed to you guys) and the males didn't start eating regularly until December. I don't expect your Northern would have anywhere near that level of silliness other than to say there could be factors relating to the climate in a particular year, the predisposition of the individual animal, age etc, with young males generally sillier than older ones.
Re: Any Words of Wisdom?
Posted: Wed Feb 26, 2014 6:04 am
by Dood
Hummmmm...
I wonder if males who were permitted to brumate would have a stronger sex drive than those who didn't go through a cool down.
Any input from experienced keepers ?
Re: Any Words of Wisdom?
Posted: Wed Feb 26, 2014 8:04 am
by Richard.C
The cooling cycle causes teste enlargement and hence male sex drive so yes cooling makes them frisky,some will brumate/cycle when folk try to keep them active,but ambient temps stimulate them to slow down still,especially tropical forms kept in temperate zones
This is a commonly asked question at this time of year,males gone off food and is very active
Re: Any Words of Wisdom?
Posted: Wed Feb 26, 2014 4:18 pm
by LizardLady46
Thanks for the replies. The snails worked. Ate a huge plate of them. Still refusing anything that is mixed with veggies.
Interesting about brumation. I did keep his temps high. He did slow down and would stay in his hide 2-3 days in a row but when food was offered he was right there waiting. Will let everyone know how long this lasts.