All about Winter...
It is normal for Collared Lizards to slow down, eat less, and sleep more at the end of the summer. Naturally, in the wild they will prepare themselves for winter, as instinct tells their body clock that it's time to sleep for a while. The word Brumation means "artificial hibernation". Some see it as necessary to allow your pet to live as natural an existence as possible. Others brumate their collareds when they wish to breed them. If you read the home page you will know that the reproductive hormones are wakened whilst they hibernate over the winter, so to mimic this some keepers "Brumate", not only for breeding purposes, but to allow them a natural existence. Remember that in captivity brumation is not necessary as an essential part of their survival. They will happily stay awake all winter if you allow them, and will snap out of the sleepy phase when they realise that is is not getting any colder. Also remember that the females go through a lot to produce fertile eggs, so it is in my opinion inappropriate to allow them to breed if you are going to dispose of the eggs. They only need to mate once in a year to produce three or four fertile clutches of eggs, and its not ethical to allow your pet the anguish of reproducing if you do not have the time, resource or funds to support this. Equally as important is the ability to find any hatchlings new homes.
If you are planning on brumating your lizards please be careful and ask questions if you are unsure of the procedure.
Be aware that the ideal temperature for brumation is between 5 and 12 degrees. Some people put theirs is a draught proof box and place them is the shed, or garage. Be careful that their temps dont drop too low, and bear in mind that if they are too warm they dont shut down and their bodies will burn fat, resulting in rapid weight loss.
They will need to be provided with a hide to sleep in, and be placed somewhere that is dry, and not draughty or too damp. Personally I have used a solid tupperware box with clip on lid, and cut a small hole (big enough to climb through) in the side using a hole-cutting bit and a drill. I have also used a file to remove the sharp edges. In doing this I can remove the container from the vivs with the lizards in, and place them in a bigger storage container for the period of their brumation.
1: Choose a time well in advance for your brumation period, preferably over the winter months. Dont brumate in the summer, this will just mess up the internal body clock, and you might have trouble feeding him once he wakes. Be aware that he might begin to eat less in order to prepare himself for the winter, so you should ideally time your brumation to meet his body clock.
2: Weigh your lizard, and ensure that it has a healthy body weight. NEVER brumate a gravid collared, and dont brumate if they are small or underweight, remember they need to be in optimum condition before you can even consider brumation, its a tough process for a little lizard and you dont want to lose him.
3: Once you have selected your chosen date, for example mine usually go to sleep in early December, reduce their feed a month previous. In my case I reduce what they eat at the beginning of November.
4: After two weeks of reduced food intake STOP feeding them altogether, making sure there is no live food left in the vivarium. You can also begin to reduce the heat by (for example) 1 hour each day.
5: A week to 10 days after food was stopped they should have a pretty much empty gut (I cant stress enough how important it is to empty their gut, they need heat to digest food, so when you turn the heat down undigested food will remain undigested and will rot in the gut). At this stage TURN THE HEAT OFF but leave the UV light on for a further week.
It serves to weigh your lizard again at this stage so that you can monitor any weight loss. They will need a source of water, if you choose to provide a water dish, make sure that it is very shallow, they might seek water but in their sleepy state are capable of falling to sleep in their water bowl. Personally I'll drip water on their noses twice a week in order to hydrate them and avoid leaving water in the containers.
6: Switch the UV light off after a week.
7: Remove the hide from the viv, and place in a bigger storage box, place this in your chosen spot, maybe the garage or shed), and remember to check on it regularly. You should weigh the lizard after a week or two, weight loss of more than a gram or two is not good and never allow temperatures to drop below 4 or 5 degrees.
If you are brumating for breeding purposes, breeders suggest a minimum period of 6 weeks. Otherwise it is entirely up to you how long they sleep for.
When waking them up, once they are done sleeping you should do the same again in reverse order.
1: Put the hide box back into the vivarium, leave them at room temperature with the UV light on for a week
2: Turn the heat back on gradually, I tend to go for an added hour per day
3: Feed your lizard
4: Resume your regular routine!!
You might be interested to know that when hibernating your lizard might not appear to be completely asleep. They are capable of moving around, albeit VERY slowly, and appear to be dazed. Dont worry if this is the case, its perfectly normal, providing you weigh them regularly and monitor any fluctuations.
