Leopard Gecko eye problem

[Abbison28]

Hi, this is my first time posting here!!!
I have a leopard gecko,Rico. Rico is about a year and a half, the stuff one the bottom of his cage is crushed walnut, the humitity in his cage is 30, the temperature on the warm side is 90, on the cool side 75ish. I'm not sure if "it" is a boy or girl I assume its a boy.

Rico has been having some eye problems. About 3 weeks ago he shed and got skin stuck in his eye and it was cloudy. We took him to the pet store and they got most of the skin out. But it was still cloudy(both eyes) I thought he was better but Rico wouldn't open his eyes. We got some drops and it seemed to help a little. We went on vacation for a day and night, when we came back one of his eyes was SUPER cloudy and the other was BLEEDING! It stopped soon after

He shed again and we took him to get more skin out of his eye. (Went to same pet store) they got most of it out. But they found a small bump ON his eye, like in the middle of the pupil. It was only as big as the tip of a needle.

Yesterday he shed again! And got more skin stuck, I'm pretty sure I got most of it out, but he won't open his eyes unless I put the drops in or touch his eye a lot! Rico's eye isn't very cloudy anymore but he won't eat his mealworms cause he can't see! I've been feeding him chicken baby food! It is really gross!!!
And he has been losing lots of weight...

I KNOW THIS IS REALLY LONG, BUT PLEASE HELP
DOES ANYONE KNOW WHAT IS WRONG WITH RICO, HOW I CAN HELP HIM, AND/OR HOW I COULD GET HIM TO EAT REGULAR MEALWORMS AGAIN!!!!!
PLEASE!!!!!!!!!

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Does Rico have a humid hide? Please post a picture of him and his enclosure.

It is very important for Rico to see a vet who specializes in reptiles asap. Hopefully he is not blind and can be helped. Without sight he will be dependent upon you for food for life.

When assisting a leo in removing stuck shed it is important to follow the soaking instructions in a post following the Leo Guidelines. :-(

You can buy some sterile normal saline and a squeeze bottle to flush out his eye. That will NOT help if infection has set it.

If you need to assist-feed, please get the balanced food Fluker's Repti+Boost. It is a complete powdered food you mix with water. Better yet get some Carnivore Care from a vet!

Please remove the crushed walnut substrate. It carries HIGH RISK of impaction. Use paper towels or porcelain or ceramic tile instead.

Please compare your husbandry to these guidelines and then get back with us.

http://www.geckosunlimited.com/comm...-demo-video-4-jan-2013-update.html#post302242

 

[Abbison28]

Rico does not have a humid hide, but I mist his tank and soak him in water before and after shedding.

The drops I'm using containe mostly sterline solution and vitiate A

Where can I get the Fluker's repti + boost?

What exactly is impaction? Because Rico seems perfectly healthy besides his eyes. He can get to his water, because he knows where it is.

The pet store we take him to is the closest place to a vet we have. Both of the people who work there have had leopard geckos before, and know how to care for them. (I can't even find a reptile vet around us)

Thank you soooooooo much!!!!! You helped a lot! I just hope he is not blind. Do you know any way I can tell if he is permanently blind, when I put my finger by his eye when it is open he moves away, I'm not sure if he smells or hears it or he just scenes it...
Thanks!

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Rico does not have a humid hide, but I mist his tank and soak him in water before and after shedding.

The drops I'm using containe mostly sterline solution and vitiate A

Where can I get the Fluker's repti + boost?

What exactly is impaction? Because Rico seems perfectly healthy besides his eyes. He can get to his water, because he knows where it is.

The pet store we take him to is the closest place to a vet we have. Both of the people who work there have had leopard geckos before, and know how to care for them. (I can't even find a reptile vet around us)

Thank you soooooooo much!!!!! You helped a lot! I just hope he is not blind. Do you know any way I can tell if he is permanently blind, when I put my finger by his eye when it is open he moves away, I'm not sure if he smells or hears it or he just scenes it...
Thanks!

You are quite welcome.

Eyes are huge! I hate to think what life would be like if I were blind .

Leos use humid hides for hydration and for shedding assist. It is super important to either make a humid hide for Rico out of any plastic tub or buy one. Fill with squeezed out wet paper towels or damp moss. (Misting is stressful for leos.)

Impaction is like constipation, but it can result in a total blockage. It results when the esophagus and/or the intestines have been filled with sand, mealworm chitin, bark chips, or other particulate matter. It can happen from ingestion of substrate when a leo is hunting or if temperatures are inadequate for digestion.

Don't know how to tell whether he is permanently blind. Need to see how reactive his pupils are.

My local Petco carries Fluker's Repti+Boost. Also available online maybe through Amazon?

 

[Abbison28]

Ok I will get him a humid hide.

We were told the crushed walnuts are safe for them to eat...

I checked on Rico today and I picked him up then put him down and his eyes were open! He was licking one alot and he closed them again soon. I think he is healing!
Thanks!

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Ok I will get him a humid hide.

We were told the crushed walnuts are safe for them to eat...

I checked on Rico today and I picked him up then put him down and his eyes were open! He was licking one alot and he closed them again soon. I think he is healing!
Thanks!

PLEASE don't believe "them" that crushed walnut shells are safe to eat. (*shaking head from left to right*)

Switch to paper towels or porcelain or ceramic tiles.

What type heating has he? Any light from above his cage?

Hope healing is happening......

 

[Abbison28]

Ok
His eyes are still a little cloudy and he has skin under one eye lid I'm almost sure... Because he has something white under his eyelid and it isn't on the other eye... So I think it is skin.

 

[Abbison28]

He does have a heat light from above his cage, on that side of the cage it is 92 degrees F

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Ok
His eyes are still a little cloudy and he has skin under one eye lid I'm almost sure... Because he has something white under his eyelid and it isn't on the other eye... So I think it is skin.

A gentle stream of normal saline may help loosen this.....

 

[cassicat4]

Simply owning leopard geckos or any other lizard does not automatically make one knowledgeable on their care. And just because sometimes a reptile can "survive" for awhile under improper conditions also does not mean that it's ok to continue to care for them in the same way, or that you are experienced in their care. If the people who told you that crushed walnut is safe to eat are the same people as these ones:

The pet store we take him to is the closest place to a vet we have. Both of the people who work there have had leopard geckos before, and know how to care for them. (I can't even find a reptile vet around us)

Then I would be leery about trusting their advice in regards to treating your Leo.

Try this link, and see if you can locate a reptile vet near you:

Herp Vet Connection

If nothing else, I would contact a local dog and cat vet to see if they'd be willing to see your gecko. If there's no nearby herp vet, many will do so, and often have contacts to herp vets they can call for treatment advice.

 

[Abbison28]

Ok thanks!
Do you have any advise on getting skin out from under his eye lid, I got some out but not all...

 

[Abbison28]

Leopard gecko eye skin

How do you get skin out from under a leopard geckos eyelid?
Is there any way to be sure it is skin?
I have drops I've been putting in, I soak him etc...

 

[cricket4u]

How do you get skin out from under a leopard geckos eyelid?
Is there any way to be sure it is skin?
I have drops I've been putting in, I soak him etc...

Post a picture of his eye and enclosure. There may be something causing the problem that you are not aware of.

 

[Abbison28]

Sorry, I'm not able to post a pic...
But one of his eyes last week had a tiny bump on it, I couldn't really tell if it is still there or not though...
The other eye I'm almost definent there is skin in it cause I got some out from the same place...

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Does Rico have a humid hide? Please post a picture of him and his enclosure.

It is very important for Rico to see a vet who specializes in reptiles asap. Hopefully he is not blind and can be helped. Without sight he will be dependent upon you for food for life.

When assisting a leo in removing stuck shed it is important to follow the soaking instructions in a post following the Leo Guidelines. :-(

You can buy some sterile normal saline and a squeeze bottle to flush out his eye. That will NOT help if infection has set it.

If you need to assist-feed, please get the balanced food Fluker's Repti+Boost. It is a complete powdered food you mix with water. Better yet get some Carnivore Care from a vet!

Please remove the crushed walnut substrate. It carries HIGH RISK of impaction. Use paper towels or porcelain or ceramic tile instead.

Please compare your husbandry to these guidelines and then get back with us.

http://www.geckosunlimited.com/comm...-demo-video-4-jan-2013-update.html#post302242

Ok
His eyes are still a little cloudy and he has skin under one eye lid I'm almost sure... Because he has something white under his eyelid and it isn't on the other eye... So I think it is skin.

He does have a heat light from above his cage, on that side of the cage it is 92 degrees F

A gentle stream of normal saline may help loosen this.....

Ok thanks!
Do you have any advise on getting skin out from under his eye lid, I got some out but not all...

Just get some normal saline solution or contact lens insertion solution (NOT contact lens cleaning solution). Fill a small squeeze bottle with the normal saline solution and gently squeeze this onto the eye.

This might prove stressful, but it is worth a try. Soak a piece of sterile gauze in the normal saline. Then gently hold it over your leo's eye for several minutes.

Can you find the posts following the Leo Guidelines which have to do with soaking?

You say 92 F under the heat lamp. What type of bulb? Is this the ground temperature? What is the air temperature 6 inches above the ground on the warm end? What are the ground and 6 inch high temps on the cool end?