Sexually maturing?

hmarie186

New member
Alright guys, so this is our first reptile as I've said many times before, and I'm noticing some changes that I think may be related to Edgar maturing. He will be 9 months old on the 28th.

First issue- he has decided he doesn't want to eat everyday anymore. Every other day he eats his normal amount. This has went on for about a week now. He refuses his favorite bugs- it seems like nothing can persuade him to eat on his "off" days. Temps are fine, nothing has changed in his cage, no additional stress.

Second issue- His weight is fluctuating between 93 and 95g for the past 5 days. I'm not sure if slight weight loss is something to worry about or only if he consistently starts to drop.

Third issue which makes me think that this has to do with him (possibly?) going into his sex crazed teenage boy phase. He scent marks EVERYTHING all the time! He's constantly rubbing his tail all over every nook and cranny in his cage. When he's out with us, he rubs his tail all over us, the couch, our laptops.. pretty much all items that are within reach. He seems to take his new found job pretty seriously.

I need to take in another fecal to make sure he's cleared of pinworms. He had his second dose of panacur either the 15th or 16th. I don't think pinworms would cause all this new behavior. Does this all sound normal for his age or should I take him in to the reptile specialist? I'm not sure when they start to eat every 2-3 days and if at first it will cause some fluctuating weight or if that small amount even matters.

Any insight is appreciated!!
 

Superleo98

New member
Not sure, but it does sound like a Leo's version of puberty :crackup:

Maybe he just doesn't want to eat for a bit? Monitor him for a few more days, see if he is defecating normally, or whether or not he wants to eat...

Keep us updated!
 

Conched

New member
Generally when a leo hits about 6 months ld you can drop the feeding back to every other day, so i would say the feeding response you are getting is normal.
 

hmarie186

New member
Thanks Matt. :) He has been steadily gaining 5 grams a week and eating every day so I kept feeding him thinking he knew when he needed the calories for growth spurts.

Today he ate 8 "large" phoenix worms (which are like medium sized reptiworms) and 5 mealworm pupae. He had a nice healthy poop this morning, right on schedule and then wanted breakfast.

I'm writing down his eating habits in a journal now so I can monitor his food intake for the next few mos and am also weighing him every week as usual.
 

Elizabeth Freer

Well-known member
hmarie186 said:
Third issue which makes me think that this has to do with him (possibly?) going into his sex crazed teenage boy phase. He scent marks EVERYTHING all the time! He's constantly rubbing his tail all over every nook and cranny in his cage. When he's out with us, he rubs his tail all over us, the couch, our laptops.. pretty much all items that are within reach. He seems to take his new found job pretty seriously.

I need to take in another fecal to make sure he's cleared of pinworms. He had his second dose of panacur either the 15th or 16th. I don't think pinworms would cause all this new behavior. Does this all sound normal for his age or should I take him in to the reptile specialist? I'm not sure when they start to eat every 2-3 days and if at first it will cause some fluctuating weight or if that small amount even matters.

:biggrin: on Edgar's "new job"!

Edgar's doing fine with his weight.

Let us know how the fecal turns out.
 

hmarie186

New member
He ate today- 30 Phoenix worms which I thought was alot. When I checked temps in his cage they were 89 and he was in his poop spot regurgitating everything. This was about 10 mins after he ate. The worms were room temp. And they were still moving. This is the first time he's done this. I think he way overate because yesterday was his off day. I even offered him food yesterday and he refused. He could've thought the temps were too cool because he normally likes it about 92-93. However when I bump the thermostat up to 93 it will sometimes get 94 on the warm side. If it's at 92 then it gets down to 88 on occasion. I'll give him one more chance and if anything else weird happens it's off to the reptile vet on Monday! He's gonna be the death of me!
 

Superleo98

New member
My leo Maiyer pooped 3 superworms whole smushed together with some feces. He didn't eat last night due to it.
Edgar may just have an upset stomach, and will eat soon.
Hopefully the same for my Leo. Could be because he ate too much.
 

hmarie186

New member
My leo Maiyer pooped 3 superworms whole smushed together with some feces. He didn't eat last night due to it.
Edgar may just have an upset stomach, and will eat soon.
Hopefully the same for my Leo. Could be because he ate too much.

Oh no poor Maiyer! I hope he feels better too.

I just got Edgar to eat 6 mealworm pupae but when I showed him a PW he turned away and went back in his hide! Taste aversion at it's best. I weighed him because I started to get panicky looking at his tail. I thought it looked smaller. He's still 93g. Didn't help that last night I had a terrible dream he died. :( I may take him in Monday anyway and have the vet run his fecal and crypto test, look him over and hear from a professional that he's actually ok. Now that I know the vet doesn't stress him out and he thinks it's social hour, I don't feel bad about taking him an hour to the actual herp vet instead of 15 mins down the road to the vet who can do fecals but that's about it.
 

Superleo98

New member
Oh no poor Maiyer! I hope he feels better too.

I just got Edgar to eat 6 mealworm pupae but when I showed him a PW he turned away and went back in his hide! Taste aversion at it's best. I weighed him because I started to get panicky looking at his tail. I thought it looked smaller. He's still 93g. Didn't help that last night I had a terrible dream he died. :( I may take him in Monday anyway and have the vet run his fecal and crypto test, look him over and hear from a professional that he's actually ok. Now that I know the vet doesn't stress him out and he thinks it's social hour, I don't feel bad about taking him an hour to the actual herp vet instead of 15 mins down the road to the vet who can do fecals but that's about it.

Thank you.

If he doesn't eat Saturday night I'll take him into the vet Monday as well. Maiyer doesn't turn away he just stares at it.
Worst part is that he doesn't like crickets or mealies, so superworms are my only option as of now.
 

hmarie186

New member
Edgar doesn't eat crickets either but I can get him to eat mealworms because he was raised on them from the breeder for 5 mos before I got him. They are always our old go-to when he refuses other things.

Crossing fingers for both our little guys!
 

hmarie186

New member
How is Maiyer doing?

Just an update on Edgar for anyone wondering how he's doing. He pooped and ate 15 mealworms yesterday, pooped today and ate a mealworm and a nice sized hornworm. He's kept everything down :yahoo:
 

Superleo98

New member
Not so well.

Last night he kept opening his mouth really wide and his head was slowly going back and forth like he waned to throw up, but he didn't (thank god) and just licked his lips like he accomplished whatever he was trying to do and went back to his hide.
Today I saw a brown/white puddle, well sort of like one, it was hard, and had superworm bits in it. It stunk soo bad!

Tommorow or Tuesday I'm taking him to the vet and getting him a fecal test. Luckily, I saw him defecate a healthy poop and urate :) but I still want to make sure he will be ok.

Glad to know Edgar is doing good :)
 

Superleo98

New member
I will, thank you.

He had a successful shed last night :)
Calling the vet today.

UPDATE: Made an appoinment for 10:00 wenesday, to do a fecal test/check up. If he is sick, I'll seperate Emma and Maiyer until he gets better.
He should be fine until wenesday.
 
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Superleo98

New member
So I'm about to leave the vet now.

Maiyer has a common parasite, although I forgot what it is called. He will be ok :)
It couldn't be prevented. He got dewormer, and have to do it in the next 2 weeks. When I bring in Emma, I'm also bringing in Emma for a fecal that day, because it is very contagious. I'm seperating them, until he is better, and are both treated.

The vet said, he is a happy healthy gecko, and is going to be alright. Also Maiyer could've gotten it from his feeders.
 

Superleo98

New member
Alright. How is Edgar doing btw? Healthy and eating I hope. And by healthy I mean active and a good weight :)

How does this look for Maiyer? There is a UDT under the log. I had to make do with what I had around the house. Since I didn't have a humid hide (mom wouldn't take me to the pet store) I put wet paper towel in the corner of the tank. Also put a water dish.

image.jpg
 
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