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Never give up! That's what they say.
My amel, Sutekh, went missing between April 9 and April 13. I just found him today, after six and a half weeks. I believe he was hiding in the vents, as he came out half an hour after turning on the a/c.
He has lost 2 grams from when I last weighed him April 9, and currently weighs 14 grams. I am feeding him the smallest pinkie I have, and will get him back on schedule.
I have two cats and my roommate has a dog, so I wasn't sure he would make it. One of my cats alerted me to him, she spotted him before I did, and thankfully I was in the right place/time to see her being weird and have a look before leaving for work.
I was worried he'd get too cold. I live in Wisconsin and we still had snow when he escaped. I assume he was in the vents and kept warm enough that way. I had my fingers crossed but didn't want to have my hopes up. I've made double sure all the tanks are secure, with extra clips, though I want to get reptile vivs in time that have sliding doors and built in security. They are just so expensive to buy several at once.
What weird is Udjat had been in that same tank for nearly 8 months! Never an escape, and I had clips on it. I moved Udjat into the 40g and put Sutekh into the 15g Udjat had been in, and no escape for a couple months. When he got out, the lid was still secure, no gaps that I could see. When I got Ankh and shifted them around, Udjat is back in the same 15g and Cairo is in a second 15g with no problems. I'm sure Sutekh squeezed out somehow, obviously, but it baffles me.
Sutekh is in a feed tub, a tupperware food dish with a tight fitting lid with a small vent hole in the top center that's smaller than Sutekh's head. No escaping that! I'll get a sterilite tub, maybe one of the waterproof ones with snaps on the lid, and a heat mat in the next couple weeks. Pop some ventilation holes into it, and it'll be a great enclosure that's escape proof.
I was so excited to find him that my hands were shaking as I put him into a tub with water/bedding/hides.
He was extremely calm, just like he's always been. I would think he could recognize my scent and remember I wasn't a threat. He didn't even get scared when I picked him up so quickly, but 6 weeks without food might also be a factor. The vent I think he came out of is right next to my cats' food and water dishes, so it's possible he's had water from that. I don't know how to tell if he's dehydrated, but he didn't drink while I watched him, though he's not been bothered letting me see him drink before. Hopefuly that means he has had water.
I don't see any evidence that he's shed, or that if he has shed that it was a bad one. It's also possible he hasn't shed because of a lack of growth from going so long without food.
My fingers are crossed that he'll start gaining after a few feedings and that his escape won't cause any harm to his health. He has plenty of energy and ate without a problem, so I think it's a pretty good shot he'll be find once he's on feed schedule again.
I didn't post here when it happened because I knew people would want to know if he'd been found, but the questions and reminders that he was missing and it was my fault would have just been upsetting to me. I am more than happy to share the experience and the good news that he is back and safe again, however
My amel, Sutekh, went missing between April 9 and April 13. I just found him today, after six and a half weeks. I believe he was hiding in the vents, as he came out half an hour after turning on the a/c.
He has lost 2 grams from when I last weighed him April 9, and currently weighs 14 grams. I am feeding him the smallest pinkie I have, and will get him back on schedule.
I have two cats and my roommate has a dog, so I wasn't sure he would make it. One of my cats alerted me to him, she spotted him before I did, and thankfully I was in the right place/time to see her being weird and have a look before leaving for work.
I was worried he'd get too cold. I live in Wisconsin and we still had snow when he escaped. I assume he was in the vents and kept warm enough that way. I had my fingers crossed but didn't want to have my hopes up. I've made double sure all the tanks are secure, with extra clips, though I want to get reptile vivs in time that have sliding doors and built in security. They are just so expensive to buy several at once.
What weird is Udjat had been in that same tank for nearly 8 months! Never an escape, and I had clips on it. I moved Udjat into the 40g and put Sutekh into the 15g Udjat had been in, and no escape for a couple months. When he got out, the lid was still secure, no gaps that I could see. When I got Ankh and shifted them around, Udjat is back in the same 15g and Cairo is in a second 15g with no problems. I'm sure Sutekh squeezed out somehow, obviously, but it baffles me.
Sutekh is in a feed tub, a tupperware food dish with a tight fitting lid with a small vent hole in the top center that's smaller than Sutekh's head. No escaping that! I'll get a sterilite tub, maybe one of the waterproof ones with snaps on the lid, and a heat mat in the next couple weeks. Pop some ventilation holes into it, and it'll be a great enclosure that's escape proof.
I was so excited to find him that my hands were shaking as I put him into a tub with water/bedding/hides.
He was extremely calm, just like he's always been. I would think he could recognize my scent and remember I wasn't a threat. He didn't even get scared when I picked him up so quickly, but 6 weeks without food might also be a factor. The vent I think he came out of is right next to my cats' food and water dishes, so it's possible he's had water from that. I don't know how to tell if he's dehydrated, but he didn't drink while I watched him, though he's not been bothered letting me see him drink before. Hopefuly that means he has had water.
I don't see any evidence that he's shed, or that if he has shed that it was a bad one. It's also possible he hasn't shed because of a lack of growth from going so long without food.
My fingers are crossed that he'll start gaining after a few feedings and that his escape won't cause any harm to his health. He has plenty of energy and ate without a problem, so I think it's a pretty good shot he'll be find once he's on feed schedule again.
I didn't post here when it happened because I knew people would want to know if he'd been found, but the questions and reminders that he was missing and it was my fault would have just been upsetting to me. I am more than happy to share the experience and the good news that he is back and safe again, however
