I'm sorry to hear you are sick! get well soon!

As for the collard greens, some weeks my lizards decide they just aren't going to eat them no matter what, I don't know why, other weeks they love 'em.
(i've found it is helpful that my boyfriends day loves cooked collareds, so when the collards aren't up to par for my pets, I just give them to him)

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"If you're not falling, you're not trying." - Sonni Trotter

~*~Lacey~*~

My Photos

2 questions that aren't really related to lizards - we have about 4 pounds of collards left - how do I cook them? They are large and rather frightening looking - do they taste good?

And how has everyone else managed to get colour and small size and italics and stuff for their signatures??? I tried several times and I still got plain black and ordinary.

On behalf of sick people everywhere, I demand better treatment [hey, I can only play this card till Thursday, maybe Friday, so I'm gonna use it!]

Allie.

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1.0.0. Niger Orange Uromastyx [Shadwell]
1.0.0. Great Husband [John]
1.2.0. Terrific Children [Diana, James, Aislinn]

Honestly i've never eaten them...they ladies at the grocery store always ask how they taste or how to prepare them, and I just have to shrug and say,"Who knows?" They really aren't as popular here as they are down south.
I googled recipes and apparently they are usually eaten with pork.
http://www.chitterlings.com/collards.html
http://www.elise.com/recipes/archive...ard_greens.php
(the second link looks the most appealing)
Personally I think they would probably be the okay if they were just steamed with some cauliflower, broccolli and carrots and covered in butter, cheese, or vinegar.

As for the signature problems, have you tried highlighting all of the text and then pressing the bold button or the color button? That was what my problem was at first, until I finally figured it out!

As for the better treatment of the sick, i'm with you on that one, i've been sick for a couple of weeks with a weird head cold...I can't hear and its driving me nuts!

how about we demand more cost effective treatment of the sick too?

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"If you're not falling, you're not trying." - Sonni Trotter

~*~Lacey~*~

My Photos

Be careful with the meal worms for your uro, uros can become impacted quite easily, only offer them about as often as you do crix, and try and only offer him the feshly molted ones, they will be white, and the shells (exosceleton) is softer, and easier to digest. Just as with crix, mealworms (though not at high as crix) still have protien in them, and too much protein for a uro can cause kidney problems...

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Jayr & Mandy Robinson
J&M Herp Shack
"Are you watching closely?"

My uros hardley get any insects, maybe every coupkle months i'll throw a few crickets in so they can chase them.
the main part of my uros food is collard greens and butternut squash (becuase it stays fresh the longest) the i just ad to them endive.escrole.mustard green, turnip greens, bok choy,dandelion, i also alternate the squash with speggetti,and acorn sqush, aswell as sweet potato.
i dont ad to many other veggis usually green beans,bell peppers,carrot, or peas.
Most Uros LOVE green peas as a treat
I also leave a bowl of finch seed which gets picked at during the day
you can mix the calcium and vitamins in with the seeds, it coats the seeds in a fine powdering and the excess ends up in the bottom of the seed bowl
i just put a small sprinkle on the greens and mix it in.
oh and I shread then chop my Uros food ina food processer so they have bite size peices

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0.0.1 Mali Uromastyx
1.3.0 Nigerian Uromastyx
1.2.0 Bearded Dragons
1.0.0 Green Iguana
1.0.1 American Toads
2.0.1 African Clawed frog
0.1.0 Dune Gecko Steno Petrii
0.0.1 Leopard Gecko
1.1.1 Red Spotted Newts
0.1.0 Red Eared Slider
0.1.0 Box Turtle

Hey Allie,
First of all, Never use Chitterlings with your greens. I cook collard greens quite often. They are not difficult at all, just time consuming. Wash them well, cut them into smaller pieces (just not the whole leaf). I don't include the bulky stems. I usually buy a couple smoked turkey legs or smiked hamhocks and throw them in the pot, add a pound of bacon (chopped, uncooked). Add a little salt and pepper and boil til tender. You have to stir them frequently and continue adding water.
I know I am quite late on this, just catching up. I had to respond cuz it is a shame to have people get the wrong impression of greens.
Like Jade, I put my greens and other mixed veggies through a food processor so that it is easier on the uro (and my Bearded Dragon too). Another "treat" my babies have began enjoying is rose petals and alfalfa sprouts. I go to the flower shop and buy a few roses. I pull the petals off and place them in a ziploc bag. They last about 2 weeks and Spike LOVES them!
Anyway, I responded to your email as well, sorry I have been out of sorts.
Angel

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Hard to notice, gleaming from the sky
When you're staring at the cracks
Hard to notice what is passing by
With eyes lowered

"The Leaving Song"- AFI

0.0.1 Mali Uromastyx (Spike)
1.2.0 Bearded Dragons (Hercules, Megora & Eeyore)
1.0.0 Bi-color Flame Point Himalayan (Koda)
1.2.0 Children (Dimitri, Mercedes, and Mariah)

This thread is very interesting to me actually; I was thinking the same thing - our uros don't seem to eat very much at all, although they do go to the toilet daily and we do see them eating more and more as they get more settled. Another factor may be that temps are a little on the low side right now because of the cold weather, but I feel that as it warms up we may see a bigger appetite from the two of them.

We feed mainly greens and cress, with occasional defrosted peas, some butternut squash, and other veg we have in, but they definitely prefer their greens. I have only tried live food once, in the form of wax worms (one ripped it out of my hand, while the other ignored it!). I am quite reluctant to feed live food, as many things I have read strictly advises against this, while other items suggest that occasional live food is beneficial or at least not harmful. What is the correct answer here???

I have the same trouble with the supplementation - the uros just don't seem to like the veg with calcium sprinkled on it (i found this the same with our Bearded Dragons a few years ago, where they will only get their vitamin intake on the live food), and I don't want to miss anything out of my uro's diets, but at the same time I don't want to risk any harm by feeding live food if it is bad for them.

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"If you know everything you may as well blow your brains out because the reason for existence is to learn more everyday." - Mark O'Shea, 2004

Wax worms are not a good idea especially with uros. They are more likely to cause an obstruction due to the encasing. Meal worms are a better choice, but gut loaded crickets are the best.

Has anyone tried the spray vit/calcium supplemet as opposed to the powder? I saws ome in the store but was hesitant to spend the money if it was going to be a wash.

I posted a thread a few weeks back becuase of the decline in our uro's appetite. General concensus seemed to be that maybe the uro was going into a brumation period. He is using the bathroom daily and still growing, so I am not too worried at this point.
Angel

__________________
Hard to notice, gleaming from the sky
When you're staring at the cracks
Hard to notice what is passing by
With eyes lowered

"The Leaving Song"- AFI

0.0.1 Mali Uromastyx (Spike)
1.2.0 Bearded Dragons (Hercules, Megora & Eeyore)
1.0.0 Bi-color Flame Point Himalayan (Koda)
1.2.0 Children (Dimitri, Mercedes, and Mariah)

Thanks Angel.. generally I wouldn't try wax worms or meal worms, but would really like to see what the general consensus is on crickets or locusts and live food in general for the diet of the uro...

I've not personally seen a spray calcium/vitamin supplement over here in the UK.. might be better accepted than the powder on veg though. I find also that the powder calcium dries up the veg quicker and is hard to get a good covering without putting too much on one spot and not enough on another if you know what I mean. I haven't tried a proper feeding of bird seed yet, I tried some once without success but I will try again - perhaps the powder mixed in with this (this is what we do for our bird) will be better accepted than on the veg.?

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"If you know everything you may as well blow your brains out because the reason for existence is to learn more everyday." - Mark O'Shea, 2004

My uro won't take the powder on the bird seed either. Finch seed seems to be the most highly recommended. It is accepted with ease by my uro. Live food is great but only once per week, too much protein can cause kidney damage and subsequently failure in the uros.
If I end up trying the spray vit supplement, I'll let you know how it goes.
Angel

__________________
Hard to notice, gleaming from the sky
When you're staring at the cracks
Hard to notice what is passing by
With eyes lowered

"The Leaving Song"- AFI

0.0.1 Mali Uromastyx (Spike)
1.2.0 Bearded Dragons (Hercules, Megora & Eeyore)
1.0.0 Bi-color Flame Point Himalayan (Koda)
1.2.0 Children (Dimitri, Mercedes, and Mariah)