Got her to eat one small mealworm! I tried another approach by kind of squeezing the worm (which was actually a pupate which she loves) and letting her smell it while kind of annoying her by rubbing it against her mouth. She finally just grabbed and ate it so I'm somewhat happy that I triggered a feeding response. I then decide to make a separate "feeding pen" for her lining a plastic storage container with reptile carpet and putting a rock in there for comfort. I then dropped in a cricket and she half heartedly pursued it and struck at it. I thought "this is it" ! but she missed it then lost interest. But anyway, I'm encouraged as this is the first sign of any interest in food in over a month. I'll keep trying daily for sure.
Yet another "leo not eating post" but have questions
- Thread starter RBJersey
- Start date
Elizabeth Freer
Well-known member
To me it seems like she's "full". I would be concerned about laying the potential eggs or reabsorbing them and her weight.
Feeding within the vivarium is less stressful than in a different container.
cricket4u
New member
I don't see anything, but it doesn't mean it's not there. She is quite a chunky one. I would try to feed her insects lower in fat. Does she spend a least a few hours over the UTH daily? All of the time in the warm end(not leaving the warm end)? What are the air temperature in in the warm, center and cool side?
Just asking to make sure that under heating is not the cause. If there is only a warm spot and the rest of the enclosure is too cold, they will not move much and can easily become obese. You will have to observe and keep a log of her habits/behavior on a daily basis. Then, make adjustments as needed.
Also, make sure all her hides are large enough. Larger hides that allow them to move around comfortably is best, as long as the opening is small. Example: One of my leos has the large size and seems happier than ever with it. It allows him to move around which is helpful during shedding. Exo Terra : Reptile Cave / Natural Hiding Place
Just in case
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Shes spend approximately equal time in the warm hide (90-93 floor temp) the warm /humid zone (~80 degree air temp) and her cool area (~75). She's actually pretty active. The hides are in fact all ample size for her.. I use a large rock cave for the warm, a pretty large humid and I made a broken flower pot terracotta hide for the cool..
Well, my girl FINALLY ate today after almost 2.5 months!!! I'm so relieved. The fixer to get her to eat? Waxworms, which I know, can be a bad thing but I just needed her to eat. This was the first time she'd ever seen them as I've never fed them and she seemed to like their movement and it triggered her hunting response and she at 6 of them! What a relief! It had been very stressful even tho her weight was good. Shes still ~113g which by some standards I guess could be considered "chunky". Hopefully she wont get spoiled on the waxies as I'll try and reintroduce her normal diet of mealworms and supers but for now after 2 months, I say "eat up" !
JessJohnson87
New member
Do you live in an area where roaches are legal? You can try to get a small amount of them and try those out. Dubia roaches are slower and easier for a lousy hunter to eat. Mine is a lousy hunter but will hunt the roaches better than crickets.
amsdadtodd
New member
This is good news! I would suggest now waiting to see how her poop looks before feeding her again. At that weight, she's clearly not starving, so I wouldn't worry about her going off feed again. Also, I follow your logic on getting her to eat something, but I would really try to avoid any more waxworms now until she's eating nutritious food first. Hornworms and silkworms are an excellent alternative if you can find them.
Todd
Todd