Life and death - no exaggeration - Fat Tail not eating for 3 months

Hamish_s · #1 07-02-2010, 08:02 PM

My son has a fat-tail (close enough to a Leopard). 1.5 years old. Yes ... it has not eaten on its own for 3 months now.

before we are accused of being evil pet-owners, we have tried and tried, and the local vet has recommended force-feeding wet dog kibble.

he used to eat crickets - large and small, but would walk over the silk worms. Now, he will eat nothing. Now he is a thin-tail

so, this business of force feeding is obviously not sustainable, nor fair to the gecko.

he has an injury - he smashed his own nose into the glass attempting to capture a large cricket, and his upper jaw/nose is 1-2 mm shorter than the bottom, and so his tongue sticks out. it has taken 3 months for the skin to heal, and in the doing, the cartilage substrate has not re-formed.

Maybe he cannot taste? maybe he cannot smell?

he sheds regularly, but his "toilet" is chronically empty. at 1.5 years, he is 15-17 grams, depending on how much we are able to force into his mouth.

The vet had suggested we use metal tweezers to pry his mouth open, with the risk of mouth cuts. we have found a better way using a plastic syringe to lower his lower jaw and squeeze food in.

OK - anybody have any experience with anything like this?

we do not want the pretty little fella to die!

Thanks for any advice or help you all can provide.

Hamish

Allee Toler · #2 07-02-2010, 08:09 PM

There's an African Fat Tail section, located here: African Fat-tailed Geckos | and other Hemitheconyx - Geckos Unlimited

You may have better luck posting this, or if an admin/mod could move it over there.

**Riverside Reptiles** · #3 07-02-2010, 11:57 PM

I have moved your post to the fat tailed forum.

acpart · #4 07-04-2010, 12:49 PM

It is possible that there's nothing you can do for him. However, I have found fat tails to be more stubborn about going off feed than leopard geckos. The best I have been able to do when some of mine stop eating is to hold it and push a mealworm against the side of the mouth. I know most of them don't eat mealworms, but the crickets are too squishy. The mealworm is strong enough and narrow enough to convince the gecko to open its mouth. It's possible that your gecko will accept them and hopefully get back to eating on his own.

ALiza

Inyoka · #5 07-04-2010, 06:13 PM

I had a female go off feeding for a while after laying a clutch. She lost a considerable amount of weight. I tried different food items until she found one she liked and went after it. She won't touch anything else. I also offered crested gecko diet nightly in a shallow dish, after it was suggested by a breeder. I saw her lapping some up one night. I think it peeked her appetite.

You can also make a slurry for him instead of using dog food.

""In a blender, combine:
1 small can Hill's A/D pet food (available at most vets)
1/4-1/3 cup Ensure (not chocolate)
1 jar baby food squash
1/4-1/3 cup Pedialite
2 tablets or contents of 2 capsules milk thistle (herbal supplement, liver purifier, found at most drug stores.)
1/2 tsp. each calcium powder and herp vitamin powder
1 large handful of mealworms, added slowly while mixture is blending

Puree all ingredients until completely smooth, and pour into ice cube tray(s) and freeze. Store cubes in zip-lock bag in the freezer until ready to use, then thaw out 1 cube at a time and store in fridge for 2-3 days. I use the empty baby food jar for this purpose, washing it thoroughly after each batch.

Using this mixture, draw a full dropper (eye dropper type) and place a drop on the gecko's nose. It will lick it off, and as it does, slowly squeeze out a little at a time. Most geckos love this food, and will lap it up."
The Reptile Rack Knowledgebase / Slurry formula from Marcia at Golden Gate Geckos

Lala · #6 07-09-2010, 08:12 AM

I do know that some geckos will go off their food for a certain period of time, however three months can be a long time. What is his tail like? they can go a long period of time when thay have

General things that could be a problem,
Whats the temperatures? sometimes if its too cold they wont eat or even if too warm. Are you putting food in and taking it out again if he doesnt eat it? some get used to the food being in the tank and dont realise they are meant to eat it. what are you feeding him?

From what you are saying, it sounds similar to what my first gecko went through and it was the temps that messed her up

temperature was fine during the day but at night it dropped far too low because the tank had too much ventilation, even with a heat mat in. What tank are you using? And what are the temps like where you live?

Also even try puttin him in a large box and put the crickets in the box with him to see if he shows any interest. As for mealies, if you are trying them, nip the head of them so that a little juice comes out lol, its hard for them to resist the smell, and as harsh as it seems push it into his face, not forcefully but make sure he knows it is there!

oh and check his belly, is there any wierd spots are markings?

please let us know how he gets on

Hamish_s · #7 07-13-2010, 10:07 PM

Thanks all for your comments.

Mealworms - he has not demonstrated any interest, and my thinking is that if i am going to force his mouth open, i want to get as much nutrition in the few bites as possible, and so, my gut tells me that the dog food might be a more complete diet.

ditto - for the blender ****tail - if i am going to pry his mouth open, best to get the complete prepared-by-scientists diet seems better. plus, my wife will have no part of mealworms in the blender!!

so, we went away for a week, and 3 crickets disappeared, so he will eat sometimes.

we have 1" of moist dirt as substrate, and maybe i ought to clean that out and just place in mealworms, and silkworms as well as crickets, and hope he eats from the broad menu.

thoughts?

temperature - we have the under-heater under his cave, and the temp is around 80. and now we have a red heat lamp that he seems to like (??) in that he actually comes out for walks in the night now. (Or at least, we can now see him). so, maybe the warmth is better. Air conditioning in summer is actually cooler than heating in the winter i feel.

acpart · #8 07-14-2010, 09:25 PM

If the heat in the air near the hide is 80, you're OK. If that's the temp of the heat on the floor, it needs to be at least 10 degrees higher. I recommend mealworms for assisted feeding only because I've had more success getting the mealworms into the mouith than the crickets. In general, none of my AFT's will eat mealworms. I'm glad he's a little more active.

Aliza

diplodactyla · #9 07-16-2010, 09:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by acpart

It is possible that there's nothing you can do for him. However, I have found fat tails to be more stubborn about going off feed than leopard geckos. The best I have been able to do when some of mine stop eating is to hold it and push a mealworm against the side of the mouth. I know most of them don't eat mealworms, but the crickets are too squishy. The mealworm is strong enough and narrow enough to convince the gecko to open its mouth. It's possible that your gecko will accept them and hopefully get back to eating on his own.

ALiza

This is EXACTLY what i do with my geckos that don't want to eat for too long periods...leo or nephrurus, soon or later they will open their mouth and you have to be quick enough to push the insect into the mouth...always, after three or four times that i do this thing, the gecko restarts eating normally!