Leopard Gecko Won't Poop!

[Rose23]

My 4ish year old leopard gecko, Ren, has developed quite and interesting pooping habit lately. She poops once or twice a month and when she goes it looks normal besides the fact that its HUGE. The brown bit and the urate and massive. I took her to the vet last month because she hadn't pooped in a few weeks and was licking her vent. The vet gave her an enima and once i got her home she did a ginormous poop in her enclosure. The last time she has pooped was February 23rd. She still eats and drinks, she begs me for crickets when I feed my other geckos. She only eats 2 times a week (dusted with vitamin and D3 calcium appropriately) as she is a bit fat and gains weight easily. I give her 2-3 large crickets each feeding. She is 88 grams currently. Her ground temp is 86-90 degrees F. I've owned her for 3 years and its always been this temperature and she used to poop normal sized. Should I be worried or do you thing with the less feeding shes just holding it longer as she is not getting as much food.

Thanks!

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Have you checked the temps and the humidity lately?

Fresh water always?

Can you feed her hornworms on a regular basis? They are 85% moisture! Petco now sells hornworms in 4 packs.

Hornworms: Approximate nutritional content of hornworms (source Mulberry Farms)

• Protein: 9%
• Fat: 3%
• Calcium: 46.4mg/100mg
• Calcium : phosphorus ratio is 1:3. That ratio is quite low compared to other worms! [Phosphorus impairs calcium absorption. Serve plain or lightly dust hornworms with pure precipitated calcium carbonate (withOUT vitamin D3) to rebalance the calcium and phosphorus even further.]
• Moisture: 85%

For link 33 click: Hornworm Care Guidelines

 

[Rose23]

Have you checked the temps and the humidity lately?

Fresh water always?

Can you feed her hornworms on a regular basis? They are 85% moisture! Petco now sells hornworms in 4 packs.



For link 33 click: Hornworm Care Guidelines

Her humidity and temps are normal. I could give that a go, I’ve seen them at petsmart but I’ve always thought the hornworms were kinda cute haha. I can get over that if it’ll help my gecko though! When she has been pooping, her urate was perfectly white.

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Her humidity and temps are normal. I could give that a go, I’ve seen them at petsmart but I’ve always thought the hornworms were kinda cute haha. I can get over that if it’ll help my gecko though! When she has been pooping, her urate was perfectly white.

Let's try hornworms! Having extra moisture in your leo's tummy might keep her "regular". Maybe 1 hornworm (2 inches long) @ every feeding will be successful.

Last I checked PetSmart only carries individual hornworms. These 4-packs from Timberline @ Petco are better. Try ordering online. Order very small hornworms and grow them up yourself. I've ordered from Great Lakes Hornworms. Rainbow Mealworms probably carries them too.

All one needs to extend the hornworms' lives are:

1. medium size Playmate picnic cooler (by Igloo), not the tiny "Little Picnic" Elite size Playmate
2. 2 solid ice packs to switch every 12 hours
3. egg carton
4. analog or digital thermometer
5. hornworms with enough food to last!

Be sure to read all the details on my link. If something is not clear, please ask.

 

[Rose23]

Let's try hornworms! Having extra moisture in your leo's tummy might keep her "regular". Maybe 1 hornworm (2 inches long) @ every feeding will be successful.

Last I checked PetSmart only carries individual hornworms. These 4-packs from Timberline @ Petco are better. Try ordering online. Order very small hornworms and grow them up yourself. I've ordered from Great Lakes Hornworms. Rainbow Mealworms probably carries them too.

All one needs to extend the hornworms' live are:

1. medium size Playmate picnic cooler (by Igloo), not the tiny "Little Picnic" Elite size Playmate
2. 2 solid ice packs to switch every 12 hours
3. egg carton
4. analog or digital thermometer
5. hornworms with enough food to last!

Be sure to read all the details on my link. If something is not clear, please ask.

Thanks! I have a mini "soda can" fridge where I keep my mealworms and cricket food cubes cool. I took its temp and it sits at about 50 degrees F. Would this temp be too cold for the hormworms? Instead of buying a cooler could I keep them in there to slow down their growth? My only concern with feeding her these worms is that they are fatty and she is already overweigh and that she hasn't pooped in a month, I don't want to feed her more and block her up.

EDIT: This afternoon I did some math and since the last time she's pooped she has only eaten 10 large crickets. Maybe thats whats contributing to her less frequent bowel movements? I decided to feed her 2 smaller crickets dunked in a small amount of water to get some liquid in her just incase- they were not soaked wet they just had a few droplets on them. She very eagerly ate them both up with no hesitation. Her appetite is most definitely still there. Now she has had a total of 12 crickets.
Heres a pic of her belly

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Thanks! I have a mini "soda can" fridge where I keep my mealworms and cricket food cubes cool. I took its temp and it sits at about 50 degrees F. Would this temp be too cold for the hormworms? Instead of buying a cooler could I keep them in there to slow down their growth? My only concern with feeding her these worms is that they are fatty and she is already overweigh and that she hasn't pooped in a month, I don't want to feed her more and block her up.

EDIT: This afternoon I did some math and since the last time she's pooped she has only eaten 10 large crickets. Maybe thats whats contributing to her less frequent bowel movements? I decided to feed her 2 smaller crickets dunked in a small amount of water to get some liquid in her just incase- they were not soaked wet they just had a few droplets on them. She very eagerly ate them both up with no hesitation. Her appetite is most definitely still there. Now she has had a total of 12 crickets.
Heres a pic of her belly View attachment 48600

You're welcome! Please share a top-down photo of this leo. That way we can judge her girth-to-length. Eating twice per week is perfect for adult leopard geckos.

Her belly looks quite normal.

In January 2015 a hornworm breeder told me that 50*F/10.0*C is too cold, that 50*F makes the hornworm food too tough for the youngest hornworms.

Hornworms are extremely low fat @ 3%. Feeding hornworms regularly is far cheaper than enemas.

Hornworms: Approximate nutritional content of hornworms (source Mulberry Farms)

• Protein: 9%
• Fat: 3%
• Calcium: 46.4mg/100mg
• Calcium : phosphorus ratio is 1:3. That ratio is quite low compared to other worms! [Phosphorus impairs calcium absorption. Serve plain or lightly dust hornworms with pure precipitated calcium carbonate (withOUT vitamin D3) to rebalance the calcium and phosphorus even further.]
• Moisture: 85%

(click to enlarge)​

By the way, what food do you feed your leos' crickets? Please tell me more about your cricket food cubes.

 

[Rose23]

You're welcome! Please share a top-down photo of this leo. That way we can judge her girth-to-length. Eating twice per week is perfect for adult leopard geckos.

Her belly looks quite normal.

In January 2015 a hornworm breeder told me that 50*F/10.0*C is too cold, that 50*F makes the hornworm food too tough for the youngest hornworms.

Hornworms are extremely low fat @ 3%. Feeding hornworms regularly is far cheaper than enemas.

View attachment 48601
(click to enlarge)​

By the way, what food do you feed your leos' crickets? Please tell me more about your cricket food cubes.

I’ll buy some Hornworms tonight online! I’ve already got a igloo cooler and ice pack so I can use those. The crickets get fluckers orange cube complete cricket diet and when I’m being good they also eat carrots and kale. However, I have not gut loaded with veggies my last group and this group of crickets since the grocery stores right now are crazy! I do have some carrots I can throw in tomorrow. I’m out tonight so I can’t get a picture of her from the top until the morning.
EDIT: I just ordered some hornworms from the site you suggested! I don’t have a small cooler- I do however have a larger one. Would that suffice? It’s a medium sized igloo cooler. If not, my basement is quite cold at the moment. Probably around 60 degrees F.

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

I’ll buy some Hornworms tonight online! I’ve already got a igloo cooler and ice pack so I can use those. The crickets get fluckers orange cube complete cricket diet and when I’m being good they also eat carrots and kale. However, I have not gut loaded with veggies my last group and this group of crickets since the grocery stores right now are crazy! I do have some carrots I can throw in tomorrow. I’m out tonight so I can’t get a picture of her from the top until the morning.
EDIT: I just ordered some hornworms from the site you suggested! I don’t have a small cooler- I do however have a larger one. Would that suffice? It’s a medium sized igloo cooler. If not, my basement is quite cold at the moment. Probably around 60 degrees F.

Your Playmate Igloo cooler probably will work just fine if you can get 55*F - 60ish *F. If your basement stays around 60ish, keeping hornworms there will be easier than switching out ice packs!

My "medium" Playmate Igloo cooler has dimensions of: 12.25 x 7.5 x 14 inches at the base and height.

Please link the exact fluker's orange cube complete cricket diet you use to feed your leos' crickets.

"A commercial gut loading food like Bug Burger or Superload (both by Repashy), Cricket Crack, Dinofuel, etc. is going to make your life easier AND provide a nutritious diet to your crickets at the same time. Avoid Fluker's gutloads, as they are super feeble in their formulas."

"If you opt for making your own gutload at home, here is a list of great ingredients to use:
Best: mustard greens, turnip greens, dandelion flowers & leaves, collard greens, escarole lettuce, papaya, watercress, and alfalfa.
Good: sweet potato, carrots, oranges, mango, butternut squash, kale, apples, beet greens, blackberries, bok choy, and green beans.
Dry food: bee pollen, organic non-salted sunflower seeds, spirulina, dried seaweed, flax seed, and organic non-salted almonds.
Avoid as much as possible: potatoes, cabbage, iceberg lettuce, romaine lettuce, spinach, broccoli, tomatoes, corn, grains, beans, oats, bread, cereal, meat, eggs, dog food, cat food, fish food, canned or dead insects, vertebrates."

 

[Rose23]

Your Playmate Igloo cooler probably will work just fine if you can get 55*F - 60ish *F. If your basement stays around 60ish, keeping hornworms there will be easier than switching out ice packs!

My "medium" Playmate Igloo cooler has dimensions of: 12.25 x 7.5 x 14 inches at the base and height.

Please link the exact fluker's orange cube complete cricket diet you use to feed your leos' crickets.

https://flukerfarms.com/orange-cube-cricket-diet/ That’s the link to the page. I’ve always gotten it because it’s easily accessible to get at my local petsmart and the bottles last me awhile. Ideally, I was just using them for moisture for the crickets. I try my best to gutload them with veggies but I haven’t in awhile as my schedule has been pretty tight. I will put some veggies in today for the crickets to try to get back into the habit again.

Heres the top down photo of Ren:
As of today, it has been 3 weeks since her last poop.

 

[Rose23]

Your Playmate Igloo cooler probably will work just fine if you can get 55*F - 60ish *F. If your basement stays around 60ish, keeping hornworms there will be easier than switching out ice packs!

My "medium" Playmate Igloo cooler has dimensions of: 12.25 x 7.5 x 14 inches at the base and height.

Please link the exact fluker's orange cube complete cricket diet you use to feed your leos' crickets.

Just thought I'd post an update. I took Ren to the vet and she had another enima which helped a lot as she did an MASSIVE poop. I received my hornworms and she has been getting one worm along with 2 crickets twice a week and she is pooping regularly and normally again! However, she is getting a bit picky and would rather only eat the hornworms so I'm going to cut down to just one hornworm per week. Thanks for the help, I hope you are well!

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Just thought I'd post an update. I took Ren to the vet and she had another enima which helped a lot as she did an MASSIVE poop. I received my hornworms and she has been getting one worm along with 2 crickets twice a week and she is pooping regularly and normally again! However, she is getting a bit picky and would rather only eat the hornworms so I'm going to cut down to just one hornworm per week. Thanks for the help, I hope you are well!

You're welcome, Rose. I'm hanging in there. Please stay safe.

Thanks for your update. I wonder if there is some reason why Ren is not drinking enough to poop regularly. Be sure to keep your crickets well-hydrated too.

I'm figuring you'll adjust Ren's hornworm:cricket ratio, if necessary.