No poop for 1 week - leopard gecko

[ChiTea]

Hi everyone,

So my little leo, Reggie, has always pooped on a regular basis - usually every 2 days. However, I haven't seen a new poop in about a week. He uses the same corner every time, but I've been checking the whole tank just in case he changed his spot, but he hasn't.

Everything has been normal - no sudden changes to his housing or over handling. I have a UTH hooked up to a thermostat that is on 24/7, and a heat lamp on top. I recently switched to a CHE, but it was too weak, so I'm back to the heat lamp while waiting for the stronger one to arrive. I use paper towels as a substrate, 20 gal long tank, he has 3 hides plus a hollow log, he's active at night, and has a healthy appetite. He eats 3-4 crickets every other day. I'm dusting with Repashy calcium every couple feedings. He's very healthy - fat tail, etc. He's almost 4 years old (approx.).

I read somewhere on this forum that if it's around shedding time, they may have trouble with poop? I've only caught him shedding once, ever, a few months ago. If he's been shedding every 4-5 weeks since the time I saw it, he shouldn't be due to shed for another 2 weeks or so.

The only thing I can think of that happened, was that the heat went out in my apartment the other night, and the air temp in his tank got kind of low for a bit (even with the heat lamp on) but that was still at least 4-5 days since his last poop.

Any ideas? He is perfectly happy and smiling, and nothing may be wrong, but I'd just like to get some opinions

 

[cricket4u]

The possibilities are too many.

Have you been feeding him the same amounts?
What insects do you feed? Any new insects?
Have you noticed him sort of "dancing" in the poop corner?
What do you gut load with and/or feed?
Do you provide a water source for the insects?
Repashy calcium every couple feedings which is about? the rest of the days undusted?
Do you monitor the humidity?
Last bowel movement appeared normal? white urates?
Has he continued spending most of the time in the humidity hide?
Do you allow a slight temp drop at night?
Do you keep plain calcium in the enclosure? Any rips on the paper towel? Pieces ever missing?

I will be here all night typing questions unfortunately. You did mention a temperature issue 4-5 days ago, perhaps it's just a delay. I wish it was that simple.

 

[ChiTea]

thanks for replying - I'm now starting to worry. I think it's been about 8 or 9 days now.

feeding same amounts - yes

insects - crickets only. Previous owner only fed crickets, so he's never had anything else. I've been trying to introduce variety with mealworms and superworms, but he won't touch them. I'm still working on that.

dancing - no, I haven't seen this. He tends to only poop late at night, so maybe I'll try to watch for that tonight. **10 minutes later... I just went in there to check the temp, and he was 'dancing' in the poop corner. He must have been doing it other nights, and I didn't notice. Poor little one. It looks like he wants to poop, but nothing's happening. I tried rubbing his belly as much as I could - I heard that's supposed to help?

gut load for crickets - potato

water for crickets - not usually, but sometimes. I had a few crickets drown in the water before, even though there was hardly that much water. Maybe they died of something else, but it seemed to be the water.

Repahsy - 2 times per week. The rest are undusted.

humidity - can't say for sure exactly what it is, but I mist once a day.

last bm - totally normal with white urates

spending time - he's actually now about half the time in the humidity hide, and the other half in the warm dry hide.

temp drop - yes. What do you consider 'slight'?

calcium - yes, plain calcium in a shallow lid

rips - no rips in the paper towel anywhere. Pieces have never been missing.

All of these practices are routine - nothing has changed in several months, and this is the first time he's not pooped on schedule...

Seeing him try to go but not, was very hard to watch. My sweet little Reggie... I hope I can fix this for him, and fast.

 

[ChiTea]

Omg he just pooped!! I put a little bit of extra virgin olive oil on his nose about an hour ago (I read a lot of threads on here recommending it) and I tried to rub his belly as much as I could without taking him out of his tank. I thought handling would stress him more.

Anyways, he just pooped out about twice as much as usual, and it's pretty wet. I hope this is it and he'll be ok now. It was so hard to watch him in pain... Maybe one of his crickets was too big? I get them at Petco.

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Omg he just pooped!! I put a little bit of extra virgin olive oil on his nose about an hour ago (I read a lot of threads on here recommending it) and I tried to rub his belly as much as I could without taking him out of his tank. I thought handling would stress him more.

Anyways, he just pooped out about twice as much as usual, and it's pretty wet. I hope this is it and he'll be ok now. It was so hard to watch him in pain... Maybe one of his crickets was too big? I get them at Petco.

Well, now he's relieved :biggrin:!

Here are some ideas for feeding crickets. I provide moisture for crickets by keeping a single layer of paper towels right over their egg crates. Spray the paper towel daily or every other day.

Collard greens and dandelion flowers/greens are excellent too!

http://www.geckosunlimited.com/comm...-feeding-issues/68574-cricket-guidelines.html

 

[cricket4u]

Omg he just pooped!! I put a little bit of extra virgin olive oil on his nose about an hour ago (I read a lot of threads on here recommending it) and I tried to rub his belly as much as I could without taking him out of his tank. I thought handling would stress him more.

Anyways, he just pooped out about twice as much as usual, and it's pretty wet. I hope this is it and he'll be ok now. It was so hard to watch him in pain... Maybe one of his crickets was too big? I get them at Petco.

I'm glad to hear he finally had a bowel movement. I do want to provide you a bit of advice. It is never a good idea to put oil on their nose. They have very short nostrils, therefore the oil can travel into their lungs. If under some circumstances the vet will recommend a dab of oil, it should be administered by coating an insect. This was not a situation which falls under that category. Depending on the cause the oil can do more harm than good by coating the GI blocking necessary nutrients and water. All that is needed is proper heating, diet and hydration. Prevention is the key.

No, the size of the crickets sold at Petsmart is not a concern for your size leo. Actually they sell the size below full adult size. It is important to feed and hydrate the insects properly. Without feeding them properly, you're pretty much feeding an empty shell. If it happens again, it's time to take a good look over husbandry. Diet is one of the most difficult aspects of keeping them, therefore it is always recommended to find an experienced reptile vet for guidance. Make sure to discuss leaving plain calcium carbonate in the enclosure as well. In humans, consuming calcium carbonate without food can lead to constipation and other problems. Can the same occur in reptiles? We can only assume it can.

You can purchase a variety of feeders from here:

http://mulberryfarms.com/

 

[ChiTea]

Thanks for the advice, guys! Definitely going to look into the cricket situation. I'll try the moist paper towel in the feeder.

About the olive oil... Cricket4u - I did see in another post that you're not too keen on this remedy. I was desperate, my little one looked like he was really hurting. I only put some between his nostrils, hoping he would lick it. It wasn't even a drop - I put some on the end of a Q-tip, and dabbed it twice between his nostrils. I thought that would be less than if I had used a dropper. I was going to put some on a cricket, but Reggie didn't want a regular cricket, and he tends not to eat things if he doesn't like the smell, so I thought he'd never eat oil on a cricket.

I'm going to keep a close eye on him today. I was going to feed him tonight - should I feed him the same amount as usual? Or a little less in case he's still sensitive?

 

[cricket4u]

If the temperatures are appropriate, I don't see why not. Hopefully it was just the air temp problem from a few days ago.

 

[ChiTea]

I just wanted to report that Reggie had a normal poop last night! He seems to be ok now.

There's actually not a Petsmart location near me, so I go to Petco. Are their crickets the same size?

Lastly, what do you consider to be a 'slight' temperature drop at night? 5 degrees? 10?

Thanks.

 

[cricket4u]

I just wanted to report that Reggie had a normal poop last night! He seems to be ok now.

There's actually not a Petsmart location near me, so I go to Petco. Are their crickets the same size?

Lastly, what do you consider to be a 'slight' temperature drop at night? 5 degrees? 10?

Thanks.

I thought you wrote Petsmart, sorry. Petco sells the adults and this is usually why they do no live long. You leo is an adult, therefore the crickets are not too large.

Just turn off the overhead heating at night and leave the UTH on 24/7. There's normally a drop in temperature at night in our homes as well. Unless your home is kept really cold and the air temp drops under 70f, a low watt heat bulb should be provided. Low 70's (air temp) would be ideal for night time.

 

[ChiTea]

Excellent. It's been about 71 to 72 on average in his tank at night. I was worried that was a little too cold, but sounds like it's just about right. Thanks!