Weird eating habits?

Yesterday, I caught my youngest leo, Squirt, eating dirt. I take my leos for a walk as much as possible, and I have never seen either of them eat dirt. I picked him up and wiped the dirt off of his mouth, and he put my finger in his mouth, but he didn't really bite or apply pressure. Later that night, he wasn't interested in food and only ate 1 worm, though he usually eats 4 or 5. Should I be worried? And is there something I should give him to help "pass" the dirt?

Update: Today, when I was cleaning my leos' room, I noticed Squirt looked weak and didn't want to open his eyes. I carefully picked him up and candled his tummy to see if there was a knot or anything unusual, but I didn't see anything, and then he started acting totally normal. Im not 100% sure of the gender on either of my leos, but I have been told they are both female. is it possible Squirt is female and the other leo is male, and this is just early pregnancy signs?
 
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Hilde

Administrator
Staff member
What kind of dirt did he eat? Was it dirt while outside?

Why do you take your leopards for walks? It's really not recommended, it's stressful and exposes them to all kinds of nasty cooties, besides giving them a chance to eat dirt. His immune system doesn't have what it needs to fight off anything he could pick up outside, you're really taking a big risk with his health.

I would suggest you keep a close eye on him in case he did swallow something, or picked up some parasites. You might have to take him to a vet if he keeps acting strangely, or shows signs of impaction, parasites, etc.
 
What kind of dirt did he eat? Was it dirt while outside?

Why do you take your leopards for walks? It's really not recommended, it's stressful and exposes them to all kinds of nasty cooties, besides giving them a chance to eat dirt. His immune system doesn't have what it needs to fight off anything he could pick up outside, you're really taking a big risk with his health.

I would suggest you keep a close eye on him in case he did swallow something, or picked up some parasites. You might have to take him to a vet if he keeps acting strangely, or shows signs of impaction, parasites, etc.

I've always taken my leos for walks to exercise them, and they seem to really enjoy it. I keep a close eye on them, so he wasn't eating dirt for long, and yes it was dirt outside. He was only acting strange for the first few minutes, so I may have woken him up while trying to clean his room. What are the early signs of pregnancy, on the off chance this is what has happened?
 

Tongue Flicker

New member
My worms do you give? Supers or mealies? Let her off the mealies for a while while waiting for her to pass the dirt out. You could try if she'll eat supers smeared with a little veggie oil to help her poop
 

Tongue Flicker

New member
Oh i see.. So yeah, keep her well rehydrated with pedialyte then. Mild impaction and diarrhea doesn't sound like a nice combo
 
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