Help!

[-Exotic]

Alright well I heard alot of chirping before I left for drum lessons in my armadilo cage. What I found was that I have 3 new offsprings of armadilo lizards. I think there a couple days old not sure. How do I take care of them? I removed the sand and put them on aspen shavings. Please guys I need your help.

 

[El Viejo]

Alright well I heard alot of chirping before I left for drum lessons in my armadilo cage. What I found was that I have 3 new offsprings of armadilo lizards. I think there a couple days old not sure. How do I take care of them? I removed the sand and put them on aspen shavings. Please guys I need your help.

WOW! you have a rather valuable bunch of lizards there. I looked online, but couldn't come up with much. There is a Wikipedia article on them that says they live communally, and that the parents may actually help to feed their young. Hmmm? There is a gecko forum that discusses these lizards. In one thread, they mentioned the fact that there is only one person in the US that is breeding them & that he had an article on the Chicago Herpetological Society website, but I couldn't find it. You might try contacting them for the name of the guy who's raising these things. Other than that, if it were me, I'd just feed the little guys a smaller version of what you're feeding their parents.

 

[-Exotic]

Omg sorry guys there not armadilo lizards i did further research and that this species East African Spiny-tailed Lizard (Cordylus tropidosternum) is the exact i have. Im sorry to you guys for the miss named lizards. Im going to feed the babies 1-2 week crikets is this okay? and other things i need to watch out?

 

[Jmugleston]

Alright well I heard alot of chirping before I left for drum lessons in my armadilo cage. What I found was that I have 3 new offsprings of armadilo lizards. I think there a couple days old not sure. How do I take care of them? I removed the sand and put them on aspen shavings. Please guys I need your help.

Dump the aspen and put them back on sand. Past that, keep them like miniature versions of the adults. Just remember smaller lizards dehydrate relatively quicker than larger lizards so make sure they have ample access to water. A shallow dish works. Depending on your area and relative humidity, they may benefit from the occasional mist from a spray bottle. (Depends on your area and humidity levels).

 

[-Exotic]

Dump the aspen and put them back on sand. Past that, keep them like miniature versions of the adults. Just remember smaller lizards dehydrate relatively quicker than larger lizards so make sure they have ample access to water. A shallow dish works. Depending on your area and relative humidity, they may benefit from the occasional mist from a spray bottle. (Depends on your area and humidity levels).

I live in calgary and its getting cold , but my house gets really warm.
Why should i ditch the aspen shavings because I feed the babies in the tank and i dont want them get impacted from it.

 

[ShellsandScales]

I wouldn't do sand or aspen. I would keep the babies on peat mulch mix until they get a little size on them. Sand will dry them out and both sand and aspen could cause impaction. Just feed smaller prey items. They should be hardy and easy to care for.

 

[Jmugleston]

Dirt won't cause impactions on healthy reptiles. Think about where they come from. That is a common misconception up there with the false idea that mealworms will eat out from their stomachs. If you get sand, don't use playground sand (silica sand) use dirt. Dirt from a dry riverbed works well. If you provide a deep enough substrate, it will hold the moisture and provide ample opportunities for burrowing, digging, etc. I use it on my ackies and other desert lizards and I've never had a problem with dirt in the gut. These lizards, as do most animals eating from the ground, swallow dirt. It happens. It will pass through a healthy animal. If the cage is set up properly, dirt won't dry out the lizard. If it is set up like a dehydrator, then yes you'll make jerky. If set up properly, it will be a more suitable vivarium.

 

[-Exotic]

Update.

Well thanks for the advice guys I love it.
Following up with the update it was feeding day.
I fed the parents to regain there strength, the mother is still really tired.
This was the craziest thing ever, a 5 week cricket was running and my baby lizard tackled it and started to chomp it like it was nothing. The criket got away after. I fed the babies 2 week crikets and they were chirping after.
They seem fine on the shavings I dont want to desturb them anymore. I will soon change the substrate to the green carpet maby.

 

[Jmugleston]

Maybe I'm missing something. In trying to tell you that a arboreal/rupicolous lizard should not be on aspen, I failed to notice the mention of "chirping." Could you clarify? Are you trying to say there were audible "chirps" coming from the cage? Plus, please explain how aspen is safe while sand can cause an impaction. Do a quick search and see that almost everyone online uses dirt. This includes those that have successfully reproduced them (not just received a gravid female). Now you mention reptile carpet? So instead of dirt which can hold moisture in the deeper parts (Go outside, find dirt, and dig down.....you'll find moisture even if the top is dry.) Dirt also allows the animal to dig its own burrow, it can help keep the claws from growing too long, and the list continues. Instead of all this you'd rather keep them on aspen. Dirt is small and passes through a lizards digestive tract without issue. Aspen is large and not easily digested. Much easier to see a potential problem there. Reptile carpet is a joke. The first post asks for help and some have regurgitated information from other sources, and others have told you from personal experience. The best part is you ended with saying (paraphrasing) "never mind I'll do what I'm already doing. They aren't dead yet." Good luck with that. I'm thinking you didn't want "Help" as you stated in the title. Now chirping?

 

[-Exotic]

Jmugleston Maybe I'm missing something. In trying to tell you that a arboreal/rupicolous lizard should not be on aspen, I failed to notice the mention of "chirping." Could you clarify? Are you trying to say there were audible "chirps" coming from the cage? Plus, please explain how aspen is safe while sand can cause an impaction. Do a quick search and see that almost everyone online uses dirt. This includes those that have successfully reproduced them (not just received a gravid female). Now you mention reptile carpet? So instead of dirt which can hold moisture in the deeper parts (Go outside, find dirt, and dig down.....you'll find moisture even if the top is dry.) Dirt also allows the animal to dig its own burrow, it can help keep the claws from growing too long, and the list continues. Instead of all this you'd rather keep them on aspen. Dirt is small and passes through a lizards digestive tract without issue. Aspen is large and not easily digested. Much easier to see a potential problem there. Reptile carpet is a joke. The first post asks for help and some have regurgitated information from other sources, and others have told you from personal experience. The best part is you ended with saying (paraphrasing) "never mind I'll do what I'm already doing. They aren't dead yet." Good luck with that. I'm thinking you didn't want "Help" as you stated in the title. Now chirping?

By chirping I mean like almost a crocodile noise hard to belive. Dude im learning so give me a break an. There my first species of lizards EVER owned. I guess dirt could be a good option.

 

[Jmugleston]

By chirping I mean like almost a crocodile noise hard to belive. Dude im learning so give me a break an. There my first species of lizards EVER owned. I guess dirt could be a good option.

Sorry if I came off cross. I'd like to blame it on it being early when I was typing, but excuses are irrelevant. My purpose put in a much less abrasive manner is this: Forums should be used to share information. Too often I too get involved in the back and forth arguments on this forum. This behavior is not conducive to this hobby so I apologize for my approach earlier. That said, if you ask for help, be ready to adapt to the new information you gain. Not all of the information you will see is good, but some is quite helpful. If somebody recommends something, use it as a starting point for further research. There is not cookie-cutter route to successfully keeping these animals. There are a few common requirements that must be met and the rest can have variation. The trick is to learn what the requirements are amidst all the BS you'll see online. I only ask you look at what was recommended and view other websites that offer information on the lizards. You can probably keep them fine on the shavings. They may even survive on the carpet, but I still think you'd be better off in a more "natural" type set up. Just don't use this thread as your sole source of information. Look at the other sites and see what works for others too. Then find what works for you.

Do you have pics or your lizards?

 

[-Exotic]

Here are some pics some of the cage and some of the adualts and one of the babies.
Set up:http://i216.photobucket.com/albums/cc307/Crimson_/lizards002.jpg
My male lizard Ripper: http://i216.photobucket.com/albums/cc307/Crimson_/lizards004.jpg
My female Tiny:http://i216.photobucket.com/albums/cc307/Crimson_/lizards003.jpg
One of my babies waffles:http://i216.photobucket.com/albums/cc307/Crimson_/lizards006.jpg


@ Jm I quickly rehoused them in dirt, oh man they love it there digging all over the place. Also its okay if you got a little over your head. Thanks for the adivice I am moving them to a 30 or maby a 40 gallon when the babies get a lil bit bigger.

-Exotic,