If your uromastyx is not eating much or not eating at all, you will naturally start worrying and asking questions. In this post, you will find possible reasons why your uromastyx is not eating and what you can do when your uromastyx is not eating.
Uromastyx can go quite a long time without eating – juveniles and older uromastyx can go without eating for 1-2 months during brumation. Generally, not eating for few weeks won’t kill a uromastyx.
However, if the appetite decrease is not linked to brumation or other short-term valid reason, please take your uromastyx to a vet. Below you will find a list of possible reasons why a uromastyx won’t eat.
Reason #1: Your uromastyx needs to acclimatize
When you bring a new uromastyx home, it will be very stressed and scared. New uromastyx mostly hide, sleep a lot and don’t come out much. Expect your new uromastyx not to eat for a week or two. During this time, please make everything possible for your uromastyx to feel safe, so it can start eating as soon as possible.
If your uromastyx is extremely flighty and skittish, you can cover 2 sides of the tank with a dark cloth (don’t block ventilation holes though). Leave the food near the hide so it doesn’t need to search for it or roam the tank. Make sure not to handle your uromastyx for at least first 2 weeks. Don’t try to watch it eat, as it might not eat in front of you in the beginning.
If your uromastyx is 6 months or older, it should be fine with not eating for 1-2 weeks at the time. However, babies need to eat more often to grow. Make sure to weigh your uromastyx when you bring it home. If your uromastyx hasn’t eaten for 2 weeks or longer – make sure to weigh it again.
In case your uromastyx has lost weight, please take its poop to the vet for a full parasitic check. Always quarantine your new uromastyx for 2-3 months, separate from other reptiles that you have. If the seller has not checked the poop for parasites, make sure to do it yourself, as soon as you bring your uro home. Always do it for wild caughts, as not all sellers are honest.
Reason #2: Your uromastyx is infected with parasites
Parasitic infection is common in wild caught animals and it decreases appetite and stunts growth. If the seller does not seem to be too genuine – then take the fresh poop sample (2 hours old or less) to the vet for a full fecal test.
Please do it if the animal is wild caught – even if the seller has told you that the check has been done. Many sellers will also hide the fact that the animal is wild caught. If your uromastyx comes from a trusted small breeder that tells you that uromastyx is healthy, then you might skip testing unless you see any alarming symptoms.
If the parasitic check comes negative and all is clear, and your uromastyx still looks sick, then it could be a blood-borne bacterial infection. Please take your uromastyx to the vet immediately if you notice any alarming symptoms. Those can be extreme lethargy, sunken eyes, bloody/runny/smelly poop, lack of movement etc. Weight loss is also a big indication of parasites or an infection.
Please do not attempt worming yourself and don’t let the vet deworm your uromastyx if the infection has not been confirmed. Wormers kill a lot of worms in the guts, so this can be dangerous if done without an actual need. This ruins the healthy gut-flora. Same goes to antibiotics – these are strong medications and will kill a lot of bad (and good) bacteria in the guts. This can then hinder digestion of food etc.
So to summarize, please always test your new wild caught uromastyx for parasites. With captive bred uromastyx, you can also test the poop if you are unsure about animal’s condition or if you notice any alarming symptoms. Do not attempt giving wormers or antibiotics without a diagnosis, as this can be dangerous or even life-threatening.
Reason #3: Your uromastyx is stressed
Stress can have a big impact on the well-being of your uromastyx. Stressed uromastyx not only stop eating, but also doing other activities. For example, a completely new environment is a short-term (relatively) stress for your uromastyx. Even if it takes months for your uromastyx to get comfortable in the new surroundings, hides and food will help it calm down.
But sometimes, there can be stress factors that you are not aware of. Prolonged stress can cause appetite loss, lots of hiding and lack of basking activities. And if your uromastyx is not eating or basking, it won’t be pooping or growing. Long-term stress, therefore, can even lead to death.
Stress factors can be different and sometimes you might need to review the husbandry and the setup. These can be:
- New environment – take can few weeks to months to get used to
- Wrong temperatures in the tank
- Very high humidity levels in the tank (20-40% is ideal)
- Wrong foods (too many dry foods, edible substrate etc.)
- Not enough hiding spots – make sure to have at least 2 hiding spots that your uromastyx can squeeze in. They need to feel the hide touching their belly and back to feel secure.
- Too many people approaching the tank too soon
- Loud noises or music around the tank
- Handling too soon, incorrectly, or for too long as temperatures are lower outside the tank – 5-15 minutes at a time is enough
- Other cage mates or pets
Reason #4: Low tank temperatures
One of the serious reasons why your uromastyx is not eating might be low tank temperatures. However, it is not hard to fix it, the main thing is to realize it as soon as possible.
If the tank temperatures are too low, your uromastyx won’t be able to digest food and it will start rotting in the guts. This will eventually lead to poor appetite, constipation and impaction, low energy levels. Immune system will also be affected.
Please do not use stick-on/analog thermometers, as they are very inaccurate and can be off by 10 or more degrees. Please replace them with digital thermometers like this – place one on a hot side, middle and cool side. Digital thermometers will give you more accurate readings of ambient temperatures.
However, you also need to measure temperatures in specific spots of the tank – inside the hides, on a basking rock etc. For that, you can use a handheld infrared thermometer like this that will give you exact temperatures in various spots.
Ideal basking temperatures should be between 131-140 Fahrenheit (55-60 Celsius), with ambient hot side temperatures of 95-110 Fahrenheit (35-43.3 Celsius). Cool side should allow your uromastyx to cool down properly – ideal temperatures there are 80-85 Fahrenheit (26.6-29.4 Celsius).
Night time drops are also crucial – most owners won’t need to use any supplemental heating. Ideal night time temperatures are 70-75 F (21-24 C). Please don’t use any under tank heating because uromastyx often burrow and it will ruin the thermoregulation and can cause overheating.
If you notice that temperatures are too low in the basking spot, lower the light bulb closer to the basking spot. You can also increase the wattage of the bulb or install an additional bulb to increase temperatures. Make sure to use a ceramic tile or a rock in a basking spot because they hold heat very well.
Reason #5: The tank is not well-lit
Bright light in the tank is a must for your uromastyx. This is very important because bright light stimulates activity and appetite. Without bright light, your uromastyx won’t come out much or eat.
When choosing light bulb/basking bulbs for the tank, make sure to pick a basking bulb or a bulb with a daylight rating of 6500 Kelvins. Anything lower than that should be avoided – soft white or cool white bulbs are not sufficient for your uromastyx.
This is of course on top of the UVB light. Most UVB tubes are 6000K and higher, but you must have another source of light as well (bright basking bulb). Having said that, you must also make sure that a small part of the tank has a shaded area too.
This can be often achieved by having a UVB tube that covers the most surface of the tank (50-70%), and including 1-2 light bulbs near to each or at some distance. Or, if you cannot fit a UVB tube – one UVB producing bulb and 1-2 heat bulbs at some distance. Don’t setup 2 UVB sources in one tank.
Your goal is to replicate/mimic sunlight, so that uromastyx can be healthy and happy. Even though you won’t be able to replicate the intensity of sunlight in a small tank, you must aim to make the tank well-lit.
You can red a full lighting and heating guide here.
Reason #6: Your uromastyx doesn’t like foods that you are offering
Each uromastyx has its own taste and preferences! There are even owners who feed their uromastyx same vegetable or green for years, without diversifying the diet. Not only it will bore your uromastyx, but also lead to nutritional deficiencies (unless it’s a good staple).
When choosing vegetables and greens, always mix 1-2 staple type greens such as mustard leaves and chicory and 1 type of occasional green/veggie such as watercress. If your uromastyx is new, you will need to take time to learn its food preferences. Please experiment and rotate veggies and greens to see what your uro really likes. If your uromastyx didn’t eat today, try other veggies and greens tomorrow.
Once or twice a week, you can offer treats such as bee pollen and lentils, as they are high in protein. Most uromastyx love bee pollen, and almost all love lentils and beans. Bee pollen is high in vitamins, minerals and protein, and is an appetite stimulant, too. But make sure to limit high protein foods to 1-2 times a week.
Reason #7: Your uromastyx is picky about the food placement in the tank
Believe it or not, many uromastyx are very picky about where you put the food dish in the tank. You have probably chosen the spot where you put the food bowl every day, right? Well, if your uromastyx is not eating, it might be worth trying to experiment with the bowl and the spot.
First of all, you can try to scatter food around different spots in the tank. Leave food pieces in few spots on the cool side, few spots in the middle, and few spots on the warm side. If your uromastyx is shy to eat with you watching, leave your phone camera recording so that you can watch the footage later.
You might find that your uromastyx prefers eating in a different spot of the tank. Try with different types of bowls, shallow bowls often work better than deeper ones. You might be really surprised that your uro did not like where you were putting its food at all.
Reason #8: Shedding
Many uromastyx refuse food just before and during shedding. Shedding can be quite a stressful time for your uromastyx, so please be patient.
Uromastyx take around a week or so to shed fully. You will notice a dull skin, often lower energy levels and a lot of rubbing against various objects. After the shedding is over, make sure to check around the head, toes and tail for any stuck skin.
You can read a full guide on uromastyx shedding signs and tips here.
Reason #9: Brumation
Brumation is a period when some reptiles slow down to survive colder months of the year. Your uromastyx might start brumating even if you don’t change the temperatures in the tank.
Some animals can sense winter, and most houses also tend to be cooler during winter, too. When your uromastyx is brumating, it doesn’t mean that it will sleep for few months and not come out at all.
Brumating animals will mostly hide and sleep, but they also come out at different times to roam and eat a little. Brumation can last from November-February or June-August in countries of Southern Hemisphere such as Australia. Eating just a little during brumation period is normal.
However, make sure that your uro is brumating and not sick. Weight loss during brumation is a sign of sickness.
Reason #10: Impaction
Impaction is when the guts are blocked with substrate, food or other foreign particles. The main causes of impaction in uromastyx are food and substrate (and its small particles such as fibers).
While uromastyx love to dig and burrow, you must be careful with the choice of substrate that you use in the tank. Try to avoid using any loose substrate such as sand or soil in the tank until your uromastyx turns 3-4 months old.
Before that, use ceramic tiles and paper towels as substrate. Once your uromastyx gets older, you can use the mix of topsoil and sand to allow digging, but the impaction risk still exists.
Many uromastyx don’t tend to get impacted on sand and soil substrate however. Also, don’t use millet or seeds as substrate, as uromastyx can get very filled on them. Babies can get impacted on bigger seeds, too.
However, there are some very bad types of substrates that you must not use at all. Those are corn cob, moss, walnut shells, cat litter and more. These substrates can cause serious gut impaction, and some will raise the humidity as well. Please do not use any Calci-sand either.
A big sign of impaction is a big belly and low energy levels. Another main sign is eating but not pooping. If your uromastyx is eating regularly (apart from brumation period, when gut mobility/peristalsis reduces during brumation normally) – it should poop every 1-4 days, at least once a week.
If your uromastyx is eating, but not pooping it could be impacted. Other signs of impaction are lethargy, thin poop and pushing hard to poop. Take your uromastyx to the vet if you suspect impaction.
You can read a full post on best and worst substrates for uromastyx here.
Reason #11: Dehydration
If your uromastyx is dehydrated, it won’t eat properly. The issue is, many imported animals are usually very dehydrated and thin. If you have just got your new uromastyx and it seems to be lethargic and thin, it might be indeed dehydrated.
Signs that your uromastyx is dehydrated are sunken eyes, wrinkly skin, low to no urates in the poop (white part of the poop). If you pinch the skin, it won’t go back to normal immediately when the animal is dehydrated. Most captive uromastyx do not get easily dehydrated, though.
If your uromastyx seems to be a wild-caught (even if seller did not confirm this), make sure to offer a water dish for few hours a day and spray the vegetables and greens with lots of water.
Don’t offer any high protein foods until dehydration has passed. Instead, make a humid hide with some moist moss inside, so that your uromastyx can go in there when needed. Soaking is not a good idea unless a uromastyx is extremely dehydrated.
Reason #12: Infection/illness
Various kinds of infections or illnesses will cause your uromastyx not to eat, along with other symptoms. While uromastyx are hardy, prolonged stress or wrong living conditions will cause problems.
Metabolic bone disorder (MBD), respiratory infections are two of the diseases that will affect not only appetite, but also well-being of your uromastyx. Mouth rot, for example, will make it painful for your uromastyx to eat. The signs of a mouth rot infection are red gums, drooling, pus, swelling.
If you suspect an illness or infection, please review the setup and take your uromastyx to a vet immediately.
To learn more about uromastyx diet, please see this full guide on feeding and supplements.