**HELP** Gecko Not Eating

[bmaxwell93]

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Hi,

I have had my leopard gecko close to a year now and within the past couple months (ever since winter has started) I have had nothing but issues with my gecko and her health. She progressively stopped eating. She was first eating mealworms, then i had to force feed her them. Then I was told to feed her waxworms since they really love them due to their high fat content. (This was just to get her to start eating again and get some fat stored back into her tail.) Well, she ate maybe 8 of them throughout a week and just wouldnt take them again. Next, i was told to feed her baby formula with greek yogurt and dilute that with water and force feed her a small amount every so often. Well, i was getting her to open her mouth and accept the food, but the other day she started to look like she was dry heaving and making a small weeping noise. My gecko is the world to me and i want her to be ok!!

I have taken her to the vet 4 times.. and with many vet bills later, they only could tell me is that the humidity is too low and that she has an issue with shedding. (which she does, she doesn't shed very well and her eye caps get bad, i try my best to help her.) But it just seems like nothing goes well for her.

Also, ive noticed when i open her mouth, there are these little white looking "pebble sized" things in her gums and when you rub your fingers over them they fall out. they dont look like teeth. But i have noticed her getting them alot more before she sheds and they stick out on the sides of her mouth (they look really painful!)

My temps on the warm side are between 89-96F and on the cool side are around 70-75F.. The humidity is around 30-40%. I cannot control that, it might be because of my house. I try to always spray water in there to help her with shedding but nothing seems to help.

If someone could please help me! i would hate to see her get progressively worse!!

-A very concern pet parent!


additional notes: I got my gecko at PetSmart. She has plenty of things to crawl on in her cage, the cage is lined with repticarpet. i try to dust her food 2-3x a week when i was feeding her. I have a heat lamp and a UV lamp on her.

If someone could please comment back and give me some advice, it would be greatly appreciated!

[XoVictoryXo]

Hi please fill out this questionnaire so we can further help you!

Gender:
Age:
Weight:
How big was the reptile when you first acquired it?
Source (pet store, breeder, previous owner):
Captive bred or wild caught?
Do you handle him? If so how often?

Enclosure:

Cage: type, size:
Substrate provided?
What types of hiding places are provided?
Is there a humidity hide? location?
Please describe any other furnishings:

Lighting:

Artificial lighting?
incandescent (“screw-in” bulbs): wattage(s) ?
fluorescent (tube bulbs)?

Temperature:

Do you have a thermometer(s) in the cage? what type?
What is the temperature in the warm part of the cage? under the warm hide? In the coolest part?
What device(s) are used to maintain the temperature? hot rock, UTH, heat light, ceramic heater, other:
Are you using a thermostat?
Which hide does she/he spend most of her time?

Is the temperature decreased at night? by how much?

Humidity:

Is the humidity measured? Range:


List other animals that are kept in the same cage:
Recent acquisitions (new pets within the past 6 months)
Are any of your other pets ill?
List recent changes in the environment, if any:

Diet:

Insects, list type?
Are they “gut loaded”? If so with?
How often do you feed your reptile?
Please list any supplements used. How are they given and how often?
What calcium brand are you using? with D3, without or both?
Is the calcium in the tank with D3 or without?
Multivitamins?

Please list any recent additions/changes in the diet:

If your reptile is sick, please describe the signs and how long your reptile has been showing these signs:
Is your reptile’s general activity level normal, decreased, or increased?
Is your reptile’s appetite normal, decreased, or increased?
Have you noticed any of the following?
Weight loss, Weight gain
Discharge from the eyes or nose
Increased breathing rate or effort
Change in the droppings
urates white or yellowish
Abnormal skin color or shedding
Parasites on the skin or in the feces
Weakness

[Elizabeth Freer]

Hi Britt ~

Be sure to fill out that questionnaire.

Very much wish that you had found GU much sooner.

Crystalline deposits in her mouth is NOT good. Sign of fatty liver disease = hepatic lipidosis.

Does she have a humid hide? Make one Drop the warm side temps a few degrees. Have you a thermostat? Important to keep the temperatures stable, even more so now. Hydrofarm MTPRTC thermostat (small metal probe, digital readout, $25).

NO MORE WAXWORMS. Crickets only and other much less fatty feeders: silkworms, hornworms, freshly molted mealworms.

When was your first vet visit? I would find a different vet. Is your current one an Exotics Specialist?

Then read the exceptionally thorough caresheet linked in my signature AND make changes right away.

[cricket4u]

Hi Britt ~

Be sure to fill out that questionnaire.

Very much wish that you had found GU much sooner.

Crystalline deposits in her mouth is NOT good. Sign of fatty liver disease = hepatic lipidosis.

Does she have a humid hide? Make one Drop the warm side temps a few degrees. Have you a thermostat? Important to keep the temperatures stable, even more so now. Hydrofarm MTPRTC thermostat (small metal probe, digital readout, $25).

NO MORE WAXWORMS. Crickets only and other much less fatty feeders: silkworms, hornworms, freshly molted mealworms.

When was your first vet visit? I would find a different vet. Is your current one an Exotics Specialist?

Then read the exceptionally thorough caresheet linked in my signature AND make changes right away.

I would take this gecko to a vet ASAP and have the exotic vet R/O gout.

[bmaxwell93]

Gender: female
Age: between 6month-1 year
Weight: (i cant remember what the vet said, but it ended up dropping.. tale is pencil thin)
How big was the reptile when you first acquired it?: she fit in the palm of my hand (was a baby)
Source (pet store, breeder, previous owner): PetSmart
Captive bred or wild caught?: captive bred
Do you handle him? If so how often?: quite frequently.. everyone is always wanting to hold her

Enclosure:

Cage: type, size: 10 gal exo terra terrarium (stands tall) and i have a reg flat 10 gal tank
Substrate provided? repticarpet
What types of hiding places are provided? i have a rock den (not heated) for her and i put sphagnum moss thats wet to keep her moist, she loves it (vet told me to do so.. she wouldnt shed before) I have a lot of plants in there she climbs on and under
Is there a humidity hide? location? her den, she wouldnt go in any other wet hide so i had to force her to go into the house
Please describe any other furnishings: i clean her water everyday and her food bowl hasnt been used in quite a while.. I'm thinking of getting her more stuff to play with and climb on

Lighting:

Artificial lighting? yes
incandescent (“screw-in” bulbs): wattage(s) ? red heat bulb 75 watt.. had to raise it because she was getting too cold. (vet told me too)
fluorescent (tube bulbs)? 50watt for the UV

Temperature:

Do you have a thermometer(s) in the cage? what type? yes, all living things therm.
What is the temperature in the warm part of the cage? under the warm hide? In the coolest part? warm: her house, a few plants cool: her water bowl plants
What device(s) are used to maintain the temperature? hot rock, UTH, heat light, ceramic heater, other: lamps
Are you using a thermostat? no
Which hide does she/he spend most of her time? either on top of her rock, i used to have a little log house in there and she would NEVER use it so i took it out

Is the temperature decreased at night? by how much? i turn the uv light off and the heat stays on it goes down to about 80 degrees at night

Humidity:

Is the humidity measured? Range: yes. between 30-40% vet told me to increase it so her eye caps would shed


List other animals that are kept in the same cage: none
Recent acquisitions (new pets within the past 6 months)
Are any of your other pets ill?
List recent changes in the environment, if any:

Diet:

Insects, list type?: ever since she lived at petsmart, this gecko would not eat crickets.. so i have fed her mealworms.
Are they “gut loaded”? If so with? yes, but i buy them at petsmart they said theyre gut loaded.
How often do you feed your reptile? well i used to feed her everyday but now every couple days and thats if she even lets me get her mouth open
Please list any supplements used. How are they given and how often? reptical 2-3 a week
What calcium brand are you using? with D3, without or both? i think w d3
Is the calcium in the tank with D3 or without?
Multivitamins?

Please list any recent additions/changes in the diet:

If your reptile is sick, please describe the signs and how long your reptile has been showing these signs: ( all listed in the first message. to many to retype)
Is your reptile’s general activity level normal, decreased, or increased? decreased alot
Is your reptile’s appetite normal, decreased, or increased? completely deminished
Have you noticed any of the following?
Weight loss, Weight gain: weight loss
Discharge from the eyes or nose: from the eyes, but thats because her eyecaps dont shed
Increased breathing rate or effort: she doesnt look to be doing that until after i force feed
Change in the droppings: really watery
urates white or yellowish: no
Abnormal skin color or shedding: her skin looks great, but she is just a bad shedder.. always has been
Parasites on the skin or in the feces: none
Weakness: just looks tired probably due to not eating...

[bmaxwell93]

[QUOTE=bmaxwell93;385448]Be sure to fill out that questionnaire.

Very much wish that you had found GU much sooner.

Crystalline deposits in her mouth is NOT good. Sign of fatty liver disease = hepatic lipidosis.

Does she have a humid hide? Make one Drop the warm side temps a few degrees. Have you a thermostat? Important to keep the temperatures stable, even more so now. Hydrofarm MTPRTC thermostat (small metal probe, digital readout, $25).

NO MORE WAXWORMS. Crickets only and other much less fatty feeders: silkworms, hornworms, freshly molted mealworms.

When was your first vet visit? I would find a different vet. Is your current one an Exotics Specialist?

Then read the exceptionally thorough caresheet linked in my signature AND make changes right away.




My vet says she does do reptiles and she has had a few geckos in her life... there arent any other vets close to me and that are affordable. she was doing well when i took her there (a couple months ago) which cost me a lot of money (im a college student!) and now im just going over the same things again and nothing is changing when i try to change our routine. how do i stop the chrystalline deposits? she used to be so fun and outgoing, now she just doesnt do anything

[Embrace Calamity]

1) Read over Elizabeth's care sheet in her signature.
2) Your supplement doesn't contain any vitamin A. That would probably be why she isn't shedding right. You need to purchase a multivitamin that contains vitamin A acetate/retinol, not beta carotene. Vitamin A deficiency in Insectivorous Geckos | Gecko Time
3) Your gecko needs three hides at all times. You need to have a humid hide somewhere in the middle/toward the hot side, a dry hide on the hot side, and a dry hide on the cool side.
4) Ditch the red light. Why NOT to use colored lights in your geckos cage at night... Get a UTH (with a thermostat) or a CHE.
5) Do not handle her while she is sick. She needs to be eating well and perfectly healthy before she should have to deal with the stress of being handled.
6) Ditch the analog thermometer. You need a digital one. I'd ask what the temperatures are, but it's kind of pointless since analogs are crap. You need a hot side that's 88-93 degrees, with a cool side about 15 degrees cooler.
7) You listed two enclosures but didn't say which you're using. The regular 10 gallon is better, however, still unsuitable. You can't provide a proper temp gradient in either of those enclosures. You need to pick up a 20 LONG to give a proper temperature gradient. You do that, then put in a warm dry hide, a dry hide in the middle, a cool dry hide, and a humid hide somewhere between the warm side and the middle.

I have to question your vet if she didn't bother to cover any of these very basic things.

~Maggot

[Elizabeth Freer]

Britt ~

Have you an update?

[bmaxwell93]

HI GUYS!!

Okay, so i am sorry for not updating sooner.. i came back from college and am on break at the moment, but so far i am pleased with the results and advise i received!!

i went to the local petstore and got some gecko supplement and i have been feeding her 2x a day with it.. and i noticed her tail is already starting to get fat..

i have been soaking her to help remove some of the eye caps, but they are finally starting to pop out a little more so they are easier to take out .. i put new decor in her cage and she is starting to climb more and be more active, which i am very happy to see! i really appreciate you guys and your advise!! i have followed a lot of it and it really helps to have people who know what you are going through and help you through it.

also, as for the deposits in her mouth.. i called the vet, she told me to keep an eye on them, but i havent seen any recently..


THANKS GUYS!!

Britt

[Thin Lizzy]

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HI GUYS!!

Okay, so i am sorry for not updating sooner.. i came back from college and am on break at the moment, but so far i am pleased with the results and advise i received!!

i went to the local petstore and got some gecko supplement and i have been feeding her 2x a day with it.. and i noticed her tail is already starting to get fat..

i have been soaking her to help remove some of the eye caps, but they are finally starting to pop out a little more so they are easier to take out .. i put new decor in her cage and she is starting to climb more and be more active, which i am very happy to see! i really appreciate you guys and your advise!! i have followed a lot of it and it really helps to have people who know what you are going through and help you through it.

also, as for the deposits in her mouth.. i called the vet, she told me to keep an eye on them, but i havent seen any recently..


THANKS GUYS!!

Britt

Just curious what the supplement is... please share.