Leopard Gecko Rex: Swollen left eyelid??

[XoVictoryXo]

swollen eye on left - and on the right is his pictures from last WEEK I take pictures of all angles to photo document and monitor my geckos.
Today is feeding day, I go to the tank to find Rex has a swollen left eyelid. :yikes: :*(
Overnight? How? I dont understand how this could happen?? I look at him everyday!
I ran to the store and got eyewash (I planned to get this as an emergency but wanted to find out the best one first actually i posted in another thread about it today!) and rinsed his eye with saline and took a qtip and rub over his eye. He opens it and it is not cloudy or liquidy or anything like that- but clearly his eyelids are swollen. Im panicking now! I searched here and did not see any similar circumstances- all of them had to do with supplement or substrate issues. He gets a supreme variety of food, maybe the gutloading issues I am having with crickets as I am using a manufactured product could that be an issue?
I dont understand!!! :-x:-x my husbandry is perfect and Ive worked so hard, on everything! 3 hides, tiles, thermostat & temps, clean, humidity levels - everything. They eat every other day dusted crickets (w/reptivite once a week) and a variety of phoenix mealies butters and occasionally silks
Any ideas? Help! (maybe a stray cricket bit his eye? or he scratched it on the side of something?)
I should rush to the vet tomorrow - or give time to see if the saline rinses work? I am paranoid worried now.
Please God dont be an infection, I still have antibiotics my vet gave to me from the last trip with Rex.

added detail - eyelids are not hard to the touch, in fact they are very soft and appear to be full of air, if i pet gently against his eyelid it "deflates" momentarily

right eyelid is just fine

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

I don't know what could have happened Xo. Did he shed overnight?

What do you feed your crickets? Gutload?

 

[cricket4u]

Can you take a picture of the enclosure? I just want to see if anything stands out.

Did he just shed?
I know you live where at this time of year it's very dry, so are you monitoring the humidity?
Did he just changed his poop spot recently?

 

[XoVictoryXo]

Phone is dead -daughter killed it. charging now and will post enclosure soon as I can.I'm on a dinosaur computer. no shed this week unless he did it quickly that I missed it?? and actually his eye is less swollen then it was an hour ago

 

[XoVictoryXo]

Got a bit of juice on phone posted enclosure in my Rex album. Not able to post link from phone check there. I'm thinking maybe it could have been calcium dust in eye? He walks thru it and tracks it which adheres to slate tile...

 

[XoVictoryXo]

Im just going to call the vet in the morning if its still swollen and get him to look at him pronto and get some medicated eyedrops just in case... and try not to worry and think the worst.
Ive narrowed down a few things could have happened that are my fault
aggressive cricket (i fed larger then the small size ones on monday)
he has a habit of launching himself against glass when he sees me approaching with food
calcium dust may have got into eye
not enough nutrients on gutload with crickets/mealies - I use Zilla cricket and insect food along with the orange cube an let them munch 24 hours.

 

[cricket4u]

Fill this out and I expect perfection.:biggrin:Names of everything
Please fill out this questionnaire as completely as you can:

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

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

Past health conditions

 

[XoVictoryXo]

Filling out my questionnaire (I am in for a big time scolding) but first:
The good news! Rex's eye is no longer puffy!! woohoo! :yahoo:
anyone ever heard of 24 hours puffiness?

He is currently in a shed... I am going to take a better pic of his eye tonight so you can see it back to normal! super happy. THANK GOD!

Fill this out and I expect perfection.Names of everything
Please fill out this questionnaire as completely as you can:

Gender: Male
Age: Unknown... I am Scared he is old and suffered years of bad care before I saved him.
Weight: 64 grams
How big was the reptile when you first acquired it? adult
Source (pet store, breeder, previous owner): Precious Pets - in bad shape in a small tank with many other sized unhealthy skeletal geckos, he was a pet store "rescue" - which I do not support!

Captive bred or wild caught? CB - albinos surviving in the wild? lol :rofl:

Enclosure:

Cage: type, size: 10g (which will be upgraded to 20g immediately Sunday. the reason i have not already purchased 20g is financial reasons - I have not been able to find one cheaper then $150) YES This is a MAJOR issue I am aware of and working on. I am embarrassed that I was unable to afford proper size tank for 11 months (dont judge me too harshly)
Substrate provided? Slate tile - changing to porcelain with new tanks.
What types of hiding places are provided? A warm, A cool, a moist
Is there a humidity hide? location? center of tank
Please describe any other furnishings: water dish and calcium cap. Very plain and boring which will change in the future - I will build him the rolls royce of enclosures.

Lighting:

Artificial lighting? Exo-Terra Night-glo Moonlight Bulbs 75 watt - on rheostat dimmed.


Temperature:

Do you have a thermometer(s) in the cage? what type? i have the exo terra digital therm, & I monitor temps with my temp gun.


What is the temperature in the warm part of the cage? 95
In the coolest part? 85
What device(s) are used to maintain the temperature? UTH, heat light
Are you using a thermostat? Yes - set to 92
Which hide does she/he spend most of her time? Warm

Is the temperature decreased at night? by how much? Yes... The lights turn off to mimic night time.

Humidity:

Is the humidity measured? Range: Yes 50% (AcuRite humidity gauge) AcuRite Thermometer with Humidity: Patio & Outdoor Decor : Walmart.com I am still looking for a better humidity gauge


List other animals that are kept in the same cage: NONE
Recent acquisitions (new pets within the past 6 months) snake
Are any of your other pets ill? not anymore - snake had mites
List recent changes in the environment, if any: 2 uth''s burned out and light bulbs have went out- electrical problems.

Diet:

Insects, list type? Crickets, Phoenix, Mealies, butters, occasional silks
Are they “gut loaded”? If so with? crix and mealies yes - Zilla cricket and insect food along with the orange cube an let them munch 24 hours
*Will be purchasing better gutload ASAP*
How often do you feed your reptile? Every other day
Please list any supplements used. How are they given and how often?
Plain Calcium without d3, (ZooMedRepti Calcium without D3) and Reptivite ( with d3). Plain calcium dusts every cricket feeding except once a week I dust with reptivite. I do not dust phoenix/butters/silks
What calcium brand are you using? (will answer tonight after work ill check)
Is the calcium in the tank with D3 or without? WITHOUT (D3 poisoning is scary)
Multivitamins? reptivite

Please list any recent additions/changes in the diet:
Monday I used larger crickets, they were out of the small at my store.

If your reptile is sick, please describe the signs and how long your reptile has been showing these signs: 24 hours of a puffy eye.
Is your reptile’s general activity level normal, decreased, or increased? normal
Is your reptile’s appetite normal, decreased, or increased? normal
Have you noticed any of the following?
Weight loss, Weight gain: no
Discharge from the eyes or nose: no
Increased breathing rate or effort: no
Change in the droppings: no
urates white or yellowish: white
Abnormal skin color or shedding:NO. in process of shedding today
Parasites on the skin or in the feces: no
Weakness: no

Past health conditions:
Suffered prolapse last year, when I joined this place. went thru 2 surgeries to correct. Had severe weight loss after surgeries. Had a history of bad shedding, which slowly corrected itself thru slowly bettering his husbandry & diet and he now sheds problem free.
I obtained him with severe stuck shed on head and feet; missing toes. I thought he was extremely docile when I got him, but he was actually fatigued and underheated and has since became more and more robust and alert.

 

[cricket4u]

I'll spare you the lecture XO since you already know all the corrections that need to be made. In regards to his eye, I hope it does not return, but it can especially if it's due to deficiencies. You stated 4 types of insects and occasional silks, however how many different type do you offer a week is the question?

Yes, it's possible one can show signs and not the other. He is also older than her I believe?

Exo-Terra Night-glo Moonlight Bulbs 75 watt - on rheostat dimmed.

Very bad in a 10 gallon. The dimmer will not control temps from fluctuating greatly. I suggest a CHE on a thermostat. First switch them to a 20 gallon ASAP. Did I mention his skin looks dull and dry in most pictures?

Let's say 2 types of insects (only in a week) fed this Zilla cricket and insect food along with the orange cube an let them munch 24 hours and only 1 day of supplements will not provide adequate nutrition.

 

[XoVictoryXo]

It is about time I fine tuned my own issues, i spend a lot of time helping everyone else and not enough time helping myself.
Feeding Routine:
I have this written on my daily planner which really helps me remember.
I give a dozen dusted gutloaded crickets on mondays; and fridays.
On fridays I dust crickets with Reptivite.
I like to have a few (2 or 3) stragglers in their enclosure as apposed to not to - because in my reasoning mind I feel they should always have access to food/hunting. I couldn't see them harming my geckos because I have watched them for extended periods of time and when a straggler comes up they immediately pounce/devour. but now with 24 hours of swollen eye from possible cricket annoyance-- I have changed my mind!

Wednesday is Worm day. quantity all depending on worm size: they normally get 8 worms.
so, 3 - 5 mealies, PLUS one or two butterworms depending on size- or if no butterworms- or they get 4 or 5 phoenix worms. I always have mealworms due to easy access. Once a month I order phoenix worms or butterworms when they run out. I prefer phoenix worms as I get a big quantity for a good price and they KEEP long!
Either Saturday or Sunday they get 2 or 3 random worms.

I have ordered silkies 3 times in the past 11 months so I do not consider them active in their variety- all 3 times they died within a week or they were WAY too large despite ordering medium size!




When I upgrade these tanks, I plan to use the 10g to start harvesting my own crickets and the other one as a feeding cage.

 

[cricket4u]

XO you left hungry crickets in the enclsoure?:evil: Even if you left this Zilla cricket and insect food along with the orange cube an let them munch 24hours it = poor nutrition in cricket. Mealworms fed this and the regular bran= fats,(poor) and less nutrition than the cricket. If you would provide more silkworms, they'll do much better nutrition wise.

 

[XoVictoryXo]

They dont normally last in the cage longer then 24 hrs. Either dying off or getting eaten. I place an orange cube in their tank when crickets are present. I have on my list of things to buy is: TREX gutload. I admit to being lazy/too busy and continue to use the same gutloads that have been proven faulty but have been researching best gutloads- so to the novice eye when reading Gutload information: it is VERY overwhelming and I cannot picture myself finding time to chef food for insects. I really like ready made gutload!
Sometimes I try to track down the 1 or 2 stragglers and handfeed them with prongs but the lil buggers are sometimes quick and I lose patience and think to myself - "well, in their natural environment they are a few roamers". I need to change that change of thought, as some parts of mimicking their natural environment is NOT THE RIGHT THING TO DO. Captive bred Leos live 10-20 years.

 

[XoVictoryXo]

also Silkworms: they are some finicky bugs to keep alive.
Do they hate my house or something?
My gosh!! Too hot? dead in a day, too cold dead in a week. Too hot to keep at room temps, too cold to keep in fridge. I tried in winter, spring, summer weather.
Then the web they spin around each other like cocoons is impossible to remove.- as I try to use a prong to remove a worm from their WEB I turn them to mush. Xena ate a medium/large one and choked it down and then refused any for the remainder of the short period time I could keep them alive.
The cost of the few usable small ones I get in the batch is $25: Yes Rex has enjoyed them- When they are actually available at Mulberry farms - I consider these worms seasonal treats.
Welcome to advice keeping these turdknockers alive! I have found nothing of use- which sucks because I have a lovely mulberry tree outside that would be a great supply of gutloading for them.

Here was my thread I started for them
http://www.geckosunlimited.com/community/feeders-food-nutrition/64039-silkworms.html
You should hold a bootcamp LOL

 

[Corwin's Keeper]

also Silkworms: they are some finicky bugs to keep alive.

Darnit!! Just ordered some the other day, haha I will be sure to feed those fast!

 

[XoVictoryXo]

Darnit!! Just ordered some the other day, haha I will be sure to feed those fast!

You're in a totally different climate it will be a different experience for you! Florida is nice and humid and warm and in summer time I bet you have a good AC system rocking.
Im in NJ. its 20 degrees today. I have Radiators for heat. it is so dry that I have been waking up with nose bleeds! in the summer it can be 95 degrees in my house with a lousy AC unit pumping
ISSUES!

 

[cricket4u]

You're in a totally different climate it will be a different experience for you! Florida is nice and humid and warm and in summer time I bet you have a good AC system rocking.
Im in NJ. its 20 degrees today. I have Radiators for heat. it is so dry that I have been waking up with nose bleeds! in the summer it can be 95 degrees in my house with a lousy AC unit pumping
ISSUES!

XO I don't think the humidity gauge you are using works. You wrote that the RH in the enclosure was

Yes 50%

its 20 degrees today. I have Radiators for heat. it is so dry that I have been waking up with nose bleeds!

That makes that impossible. Their enclosures must be super dry. Sorry I'm a little too vigilant at times.:biggrin:

 

[Amuna1225]

XO I don't think the humidity gauge you are using works. You wrote that the RH in the enclosure was

Yes 50%

its 20 degrees today. I have Radiators for heat. it is so dry that I have been waking up with nose bleeds!

That makes that impossible. Their enclosures must be super dry. Sorry I'm a little too vigilant at times.:biggrin:

I live in a very dry house as well, pretty cold up here. However I keep a moist/wet towel covering half of the screen top to keep the humidity up in his cage. It works!

 

[cricket4u]

I live in a very dry house as well, pretty cold up here. However I keep a moist/wet towel covering half of the screen top to keep the humidity up in his cage. It works!

I suggested that to some people, but they told me it only increased about 5%. Obviously it depends how dry your house is. Without humidifiers in my home, I would scratch myself do death.

 

[Amuna1225]

I suggested that to some people, but they told me it only increased about 5%. Obviously it depends how dry your house is. Without humidifiers in my home, I would scratch myself do death.

It keeps mine around 30-40% depending on how wet I get the towel. It works for me and keeps sparty happy :yahoo:

 

[XoVictoryXo]

I'm a mister. It rains in the desert.... I make it rain in the morning... and at night. I do not spray THEM... that's stressful... I spray when they are in hides. I'll do wet towel thing... I'm worried about respiratory issues however.
So.. Rex has a 20g tank right now. I am done setting up bare minimum for him and will do some MORE tweaking. Took a video of him exploring. He has 4 hides now.
Xena is still in 10g. My $300 electric bill is due tmrw and I am $150 short. I hope the agent I call to make a payment plan tommorow has sympathy for our 4 legged delicate as a flower creature LOL. I laugh so I don't cry sometimes lol