Rescue - Emaciated Gecko with Swollen Eyes

[TheGeckoSanctuary]

To preface this post, I have a vet appointment already scheduled and have talked to my vet about this gecko's condition and my plan of treatment before our appointment.

Yesterday, I picked up a rescue that was acquired by a snake rescue in my state. All I knew prior to seeing her was that she was skinny with an eye infection. Once I finally saw her, I noticed the eye infection was extreme swelling of the eyes causing the leopard gecko to be unable to fully open them. According to the other rescue she was kept on paper towels so my original thought of sand having irritated her eyes is most likely out the window.

I am going to attempt to flush her eyes with saline to see if that provides relief but I am worried the eye swelling is an indicator of something worse beyond an infection of the eye. With her emaciated state (she's long and only weighed in at 26 grams) wouldn't be shocked if some of her organs are going into failure but hoping someone has seen this before.

Here are some pictures -

 

[Graham_s]

Looks like she might stand a chance and it sounds like you're doing the best you can for her.
Good luck and be sure to keep us all updated on her progress!

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Let us know what your vet says especially about her eyes.

Quite nice that you have this gecko rescue . Lucky lizards......

 

[TheGeckoSanctuary]

Thanks, both of you.

I rinsed her eyes with saline but they appear almost welded in their current bulged condition. Hoping the vet will have a course of action that might help.

 

[Aimless]

I've had a handful of fosters emaciated like this over the years, several Leos (one who came in at 13 g and lasted only 5 days) and a Pictus in similar condition.

are you certain the eyes are just infected? every gecko I took in who was severely underweight with significant stuck shed on the toes also had layers of shed over the eyes but beneath the eye lid. the built-up skin caused inflammation. in all cases, the first priority at the vet's office was removal of this buildup; the eyes beneath were generally sunken a bit but then came out into normal position over several days. flushes were done sometimes with saline and sometimes with a very weak solution of chlorhexidine.

I've also often (every case but 1) seen mouth rot in conjunction with poor body condition, as a reflection of the state of the gecko's immune system. how does her mouth look?

also, have you tried anything like a soak in lukewarm pedialyte? starvation is often accompanied by dehydration, and this might help; it would also have the added benefit of beginning to help soak all the shed on her poor little toes.

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

How is her gait? Just wondering whether her bones are strong?

 

[TheGeckoSanctuary]

I've had a handful of fosters emaciated like this over the years, several Leos (one who came in at 13 g and lasted only 5 days) and a Pictus in similar condition.

are you certain the eyes are just infected? every gecko I took in who was severely underweight with significant stuck shed on the toes also had layers of shed over the eyes but beneath the eye lid. the built-up skin caused inflammation. in all cases, the first priority at the vet's office was removal of this buildup; the eyes beneath were generally sunken a bit but then came out into normal position over several days. flushes were done sometimes with saline and sometimes with a very weak solution of chlorhexidine.

I've also often (every case but 1) seen mouth rot in conjunction with poor body condition, as a reflection of the state of the gecko's immune system. how does her mouth look?

also, have you tried anything like a soak in lukewarm pedialyte? starvation is often accompanied by dehydration, and this might help; it would also have the added benefit of beginning to help soak all the shed on her poor little toes.

I will mention the stuck shed issue to the vet regarding her eyes. It would make sense looking at her eyes so will see if that ends up being the cause of the inflammation.

She got a soak today and I worked off the majority of the stuck shed. I purchased pedialyte to add to her slurry so will try that versus water for the next soaking. In her state she must be dehydrated, she was essentially left to her own devices for weeks if not months.

I haven't looked inside of her mouth but she has been licking a lot when I've taken her out and what I've seen looks normal.

 

[TheGeckoSanctuary]

How is her gait? Just wondering whether her bones are strong?

She moves around surprisingly well given her general appearance. She's a little shaky, most likely due to her skinny state and calcium deficiency, but think it will correct itself with proper care.

 

[n.brydges]

Good luck! I rescued a little guy back in April and when I got him he weighed 25g and had severe bone deformities as a result of MBD. Today, he's happy, healthy and has more than doubled in weight! But will forever be deformed I used a liquid food called Emeraid (which I got from the vets) to force feed him for about 2 months which seemed to work very well.

 

[TheGeckoSanctuary]

Good luck! I rescued a little guy back in April and when I got him he weighed 25g and had severe bone deformities as a result of MBD. Today, he's happy, healthy and has more than doubled in weight! But will forever be deformed I used a liquid food called Emeraid (which I got from the vets) to force feed him for about 2 months which seemed to work very well.

I am using a home made slurry based off of Golden Gate Gecko's recipe which is composed of baby food squash (stage 1), Pedialyte, calcium powder w/D3, probiotics, and meal worms. She gets about .1 to .2 ml per evening depending how much she wants. I've also ordered Carnivore Care through beardeddragon.co and might try that as well.

Glad to hear of a success story though and kudos on you for nursing that gecko back to health!

 

[TheGeckoSanctuary]

Melody went to the vet Saturday morning and my vet believes her eyes issues are related to a severe Vitamin A deficiency. She got a vitamin injection and we are hoping normal supplementation will help reverse the effect to some degree.

The vet also believes Melody is impacted so prescribed a stool softener and hopefully that will result in a normal bowel movement soon.

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

View attachment 24292

Melody went to the vet Saturday morning and my vet believes her eyes issues are related to a severe Vitamin A deficiency. She got a vitamin injection and we are hoping normal supplementation will help reverse the effect to some degree.

The vet also believes Melody is impacted so prescribed a stool softener and hopefully that will result in a normal bowel movement soon.

Many thanks for updating about Melody.

I am hoping very much that her eyes improve. Do you think she has any vision right now?

How are you supplementing her with vitamin A?

 

[TheGeckoSanctuary]

Many thanks for updating about Melody.

I am hoping very much that her eyes improve. Do you think she has any vision right now?

How are you supplementing her with vitamin A?

It is difficult to say if she has vision. She gets around her enclosure fine and seems to sense when I am nearby but not sure if she is relying on her vision or other senses.

I have a multi-vitamin which contains Vitamin A and it is getting mixed into her slurry. Was actually going to talk to the vet to ensure this was enough. If needed, I can do the injections at home (not fun, let me tell you).

 

[XoVictoryXo]

sending good luck wishes for Melody!