Gecko hasn't eaten in 3 Months

[hello.gecko]

Hello,
I've posted on here before, some of you might remember. But my Leo still refuses to eat. I got him on March 17, and he has not eaten anything other than his skin. He has shed 3 times, each time eating skin, but other than that, no food! I've literally tried everything. Hand feeding, different feeders, temperature adjustments.. Nothing helps him!
The breeder I got him from (GeckoBoa) failed to inform me that he is a VERY picky eater. It's a bit unfair to me thinking I'm just getting a Leo with a deformity, but instead getting one that will possibly die on me. I love this little gecko and I would hate to see him go. The female Leo I got from him passed away, and I'm afraid this guy will have the same fate. What should I do?
The breeder will no longer respond to my emails and I'm getting very worried, he's not as spunky as he was. He's no longer pooping, even though he never really has except after his shed. I am at a loss here.

 

[kholtme]

Well something you should consider whenever you get an animal with deformity is that its not only a look issue. His eating issue could be because of his deformity. How skinny is he now? Do you have pictures from above? Has he ever tried to eat or taken chase towards an insect? What feeders have you tried? Im sure temperatures were address before, are they still in the 88-92 range on the warm side ground? It may be time to force feed... how does he do while being handled?

 

[LEOPARD1]

Thanks for informing us of a breeder who doesn't return emails and sells uh-healthy stock. That should be posted in Fauna Classified BOI (board of inquiry). Make sure you post all evidence of any neglect in contacting you from the breeder or you will get pummeled by his/her "friends".

Did you knowingly by an animal with a deformity? Are you saying the " Deformity" is not eating? I did not see your other post.

A Vet visit seems in order and possibly legal action if you have a legit claim and money.

 

[hello.gecko]

Well something you should consider whenever you get an animal with deformity is that its not only a look issue. His eating issue could be because of his deformity. How skinny is he now? Do you have pictures from above? Has he ever tried to eat or taken chase towards an insect? What feeders have you tried? Im sure temperatures were address before, are they still in the 88-92 range on the warm side ground? It may be time to force feed... how does he do while being handled?

Thank you for getting back to me. His deformity does not affect his health whatsoever. He was born with a smaller eye, I knew about this ahead of time that's why I chose him. But he can see out of that very tiny eye, so nothing with his vision will affect.
When I said the temperature adjustments I meant I just worked on getting them perfect. They were always around 83-90 and it's now 87/88-92. He has shown absolutely no interest in food. He won't look at it, he will lick it like how they do when something is in front of him, but he will turn his head and walk away. I even tried cutting the feeders to expose the juices inside, he won't even lap it up.
I've tried supers, mealworms, waxworms and Phoenix worms (all the feeders available in my area) I've tried crickets that it had left over and he paid no attention to them.
He isn't losing a lot of weight, the only thing keeping him alive is his skin.
He is good with handling, but I've tried force feeding and he gets very aggressive (biting and screaming) I'm afraid of stressing him out so I haven't tried since.

Here is an above photo
And here is one of his eye.

 

[hello.gecko]

Thanks for informing us of a breeder who doesn't return emails and sells uh-healthy stock. That should be posted in Fauna Classified BOI (board of inquiry). Make sure you post all evidence of any neglect in contacting you from the breeder or you will get pummeled by his/her "friends".

Did you knowingly by an animal with a deformity? Are you saying the " Deformity" is not eating? I did not see your other post.

A Vet visit seems in order and possibly legal action if you have a legit claim and money.

Hello,
The breeder was talking to me for a good bit, it was during that time he informed me he has always been a picky eater. On his website, under the Pet Only geckos, he puts a short description of the geckos problems (if any) and he only stated about his eye and jaw. Other than that he said he is healthy. But now after I know what's wrong, he refuses to respond to me. I've tried several times.
I knew I was getting a deformed animal, but I didn't know I was getting one with eating problems. His deformity is a smaller eye but functional (see post above) and a somewhat crooked jaw. But he can move it fine.

 

[LEOPARD1]

Well its kind of you to care for a special gecko. Can you get it to a Vet. Force Feeding is tricky. Also if you haven't looked at Elizabeth Freers Care sheet to see if it lines up with the basics of your Husbandry its worth it.

 

[LEOPARD1]

Thank you for getting back to me. His deformity does not affect his health whatsoever. He was born with a smaller eye, I knew about this ahead of time that's why I chose him. But he can see out of that very tiny eye, so nothing with his vision will affect.
When I said the temperature adjustments I meant I just worked on getting them perfect. They were always around 83-90 and it's now 87/88-92. He has shown absolutely no interest in food. He won't look at it, he will lick it like how they do when something is in front of him, but he will turn his head and walk away. I even tried cutting the feeders to expose the juices inside, he won't even lap it up.
I've tried supers, mealworms, waxworms and Phoenix worms (all the feeders available in my area) I've tried crickets that it had left over and he paid no attention to them.
He isn't losing a lot of weight, the only thing keeping him alive is his skin.
He is good with handling, but I've tried force feeding and he gets very aggressive (biting and screaming) I'm afraid of stressing him out so I haven't tried since.

Here is an above photo View attachment 34859
And here is one of his eye. View attachment 34860

I am not a DVM and the Gecko looks healthy and obviously has eaten. Genetics are tricky.

Are you sure its Husbandry requirements are appropriate?

I have had a female go 3 1/2 weeks and then was introduced to Dubia Roaches and is still VERY picky but healthy.

 

[lbanta]

He is a beautiful animal!! His eye just gives him a quirky little look. He looks healthy. Amazing that he has such a great tail for not eating for three months. Sorry you are having such a challenge with him. I can commiserate with you as I have one that I believe has some vision problems and has some trouble getting prey. But we sure love them don't we!

 

[LEOPARD1]

He is a beautiful animal!! His eye just gives him a quirky little look. He looks healthy. Amazing that he has such a great tail for not eating for three months. Sorry you are having such a challenge with him. I can commiserate with you as I have one that I believe has some vision problems and has some trouble getting prey. But we sure love them don't we!

Ibanta is spot on. Its definitely not going to "starve" short of a Vet appt. everyone here will help as much as they can. Dont use wax worms. It just makes it worse. If you can order some Horn Worms and Dubias it could do the trick. Keep us posted.

 

[hello.gecko]

Well its kind of you to care for a special gecko. Can you get it to a Vet. Force Feeding is tricky. Also if you haven't looked at Elizabeth Freers Care sheet to see if it lines up with the basics of your Husbandry its worth it.

The breeder actually specifically told me not to take him to the vet. I planned on taking him at first to get an X-ray of his skull to see what's going on with his eye and jaw. But I'm definitely thinking about it since he hasn't been eating. I've followed her care sheet to a T and made sure I haven't been doing anything wrong. I even added a moist hide and a water dish after she let me know about that previously.

 

[hello.gecko]

He is a beautiful animal!! His eye just gives him a quirky little look. He looks healthy. Amazing that he has such a great tail for not eating for three months. Sorry you are having such a challenge with him. I can commiserate with you as I have one that I believe has some vision problems and has some trouble getting prey. But we sure love them don't we!

Thank you very much! He's very comical, I just wish I could help him. His pupil in the smaller eye does dilate but it's hard to say if he can see I guess. I wish there were leopard gecko eye doctors! He's definitely taking a trip to the vet to get a better understanding of his situation.

 

[kholtme]

Well the fact that you say he licks the food means that the problem is probably something other than eye sight. You say he can open his mouth fine? Does opening his mouth seem to cause pain?

 

[hello.gecko]

Well the fact that you say he licks the food means that the problem is probably something other than eye sight. You say he can open his mouth fine? Does opening his mouth seem to cause pain?

He doesn't seem in pain. He yawns, licks his lips and opens his mouth when you rub his lips. It's hard to know what he really feels but to me it doesn't look painful. He will lap up water fine too. He just turns his nose up to everything I have to offer

 

[cricket4u]

Hi,

Unfortunately I do not have the time to read all your previous post, however, I noticed you mentioned a few things in the past:

Bubbles(armpit), was this in just the female or both?
Were they housed separately?
You mentioned him not eating food, but licking calcium. Did you remove the calcium from his enclosure as well?
Has all the insects offered dusted prior to offering? If so, with what?
If he has not eaten and is this thick, chances are he was overweight.
What supplements was the breeder using and how often?

 

[hello.gecko]

Hi,

Unfortunately I do not have the time to read all your previous post, however, I noticed you mentioned a few things in the past:

Bubbles(armpit), was this in just the female or both?
Were they housed separately?
You mentioned him not eating food, but licking calcium. Did you remove the calcium from his enclosure as well?
Has all the insects offered dusted prior to offering? If so, with what?
If he has not eaten and is this thick, chances are he was overweight.
What supplements was the breeder using and how often?

The bubbles was just the female, and she was separate from him. She recently passed..
I kept the calcium in there the first couple weeks of owning him, but after I saw him not eating it was removed. I don't dust his food, but I've tried before since he like the taste of his calcium. He wasn't interested.
I'm not sure of the brand of calcium, but it's without D3.
His tail did thin out a bit while I've had him. He never really seemed obese, just kind of thick. If you know what I mean. The breeder doesn't give out much information.

 

[kholtme]

Once we get the eating problem figured out, you should research dusting. It is very important for the health of your gecko, but cant be done if he doesnt eat. Have you tried to smear meal worm guts on his lips to kickstart his eating habits?

 

[hello.gecko]

Once we get the eating problem figured out, you should research dusting. It is very important for the health of your gecko, but cant be done if he doesnt eat. Have you tried to smear meal worm guts on his lips to kickstart his eating habits?

I will research more about it later once he gets better. I've tried cutting the worms to expose the guts and placing it on his lips, he will lick it and turn away. Is it the taste?

 

[kholtme]

The taste should be good to them. How do you like the taste, have you tried? haha just kidding. What insects have you tried? Some geckos are picky eaters. Leopard@1 had a problem with one not eating for weeks, and tried dubia roaches and the gecko ate right away. I would experiment different insects and see what he likes!

 

[cricket4u]

The bubbles was just the female, and she was separate from him. She recently passed..
I kept the calcium in there the first couple weeks of owning him, but after I saw him not eating it was removed. I don't dust his food, but I've tried before since he like the taste of his calcium. He wasn't interested.
I'm not sure of the brand of calcium, but it's without D3.
His tail did thin out a bit while I've had him. He never really seemed obese, just kind of thick. If you know what I mean. The breeder doesn't give out much information.

Are you able to post a video of you offering him food? Preferably 2 different types of insects. Crickets first would be good. I am mainly interested in his reaction when food is offered.

Edit: While in his enclosure of course. I'm mentioning this simply because some people try to feed their geckos while holding them or in a separate container of some sort and the gecko becomes to stressed to eat.

 

[hello.gecko]

The taste should be good to them. How do you like the taste, have you tried? haha just kidding. What insects have you tried? Some geckos are picky eaters. Leopard@1 had a problem with one not eating for weeks, and tried dubia roaches and the gecko ate right away. I would experiment different insects and see what he likes!

Maybe if I was a little gecko I would try it, not too fond of insects haha. But I've tried wax worms, super worms, mealworms and crickets. None of which spark any interest in him. I don't have access to roaches, and with only one reptile that eats insects I would hate for them to go to waste.