leopard gecko swollen anus and licking but passed hard stool.

[Alexia&rango]

Hey guys so, my leo is about 1.5 years old. i just recently moved to a new place so he has been stressed and scared. He was constipated last week but i gave him a warm bath and some olive oil and he went twice. This week it has been 8 days and finally he went last night… but it was really big hard and dry poop. I noticed today his anus is swollen, and he keeps licking it. there is no blood it just looks swollen and a little pink. I sprayed the inside of his tank and placed a towel to create more humidity. He still has an appetite, I am planning on feeding him some wax worms tomorrow. Should i take him to the vet immediately or wait a couple days ?

Thank you!!!! Please help im really worried

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Hey guys so, my leo is about 1.5 years old. i just recently moved to a new place so he has been stressed and scared. He was constipated last week but i gave him a warm bath and some olive oil and he went twice. This week it has been 8 days and finally he went last night… but it was really big hard and dry poop. I noticed today his anus is swollen, and he keeps licking it. there is no blood it just looks swollen and a little pink. I sprayed the inside of his tank and placed a towel to create more humidity. He still has an appetite, I am planning on feeding him some wax worms tomorrow. Should i take him to the vet immediately or wait a couple days ?

Thank you!!!! Please help im really worried

Welcome to Geckos Unlimited!

I recommend waiting several days before seeking vet assistance. Maybe his irritated pink skin will subside naturally. Meanwhile how about trying your successful warm bath/olive oil treatment again for his recent constipation?

Why waxworms tomorrow?

(click to enlarge)​

Is your leo's moist hide located on the enclosure's warm end or on the cool end? Does your leo have water in a dish 24/7?

Please confirm that you live in Canada. Reason why is that hornworms would be an ideal treament. However, hornworms aren't available in Canada.

 

[Hilde]

Welcome to Geckos Unlimited!

Please confirm that you live in Canada. Reason why is that hornworms would be an ideal treament. However, hornworms aren't available in Canada.

Yes, they are sold here, but not every pet store carries them. They're seasonal in some regions, usually hard to find in the winter, but still possible.

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Pease check your local pet stores for small packs of hornworms. Hornworms = 85% moisture and are an excellent calcium source. Hornworms are ideal for treating constipation! In the USA we can buy hornworms in 4-packs.

Since hornworms mushroom in size overnight when kept at room temperature, here's how to keep them small longer.

Approximate nutritional content of HORNWORMS (source = Mulberry Farms):

• Protein = 9%
• Fat = 3%
• Calcium = 46.4mg/100mg
• Calcium-to-phosphorus ratio = 1:3. That ratio is quite low compared to other worms! [Phosphorus impairs calcium absorption. Serve plain or lightly dust hornworms with pure precipitated calcium carbonate (withOUT vitamin D3) to rebalance the calcium and phosphorus even further.]
• Moisture = 85%

A separate group's member added this caution on 18 September 2019:
“Make sure NOT to feed hornworms while your gecko is on reptile carpet. The hornworm was able to grab hold and cause our gecko to gag it back up, because he couldn’t swallow it. That hornworm was strangling him. I rushed and got the worm out. He wouldn’t eat anymore after that, poor fellow. He may now. I got rid of the reptile carpet too. But felt so sorry for him. He loved them hornworms.”

Hornworm Tips:

Keep hornworms just like this:
View attachment 35143
(please click to open)
[Photo credit goes to GU's lbanta]​

When kept by the following method, it's easy to keep hornworms alive (and of edible size for many leopard geckos) for 4+ weeks. Make sure the company includes enough food. Keep extra food in the cooler with the hornworms, NOT in the refrigerator. IF you keep hornworm food in the refrigerator, the food will get too hard for hornworms to eat.

1. Hornworms grow rapidly when kept at normal room temperatures!
2. When hornworms nearly reach a good size for feeding, transfer them (in container) to a picnic cooler or wine cooler to lessen rapid growth.
3. Keep hornworms in a "medium" Playmate Igloo cooler. That cooler has dimensions: 12.25 x 7.5 x 14 inches tall for the base and height.
4. Add 1 solid ice pack replaced 2x daily . . . . . . every 12 hours.
5. Keep the temperature inside the cooler ~55*F (12.8*C).
6. Turn the hornworm container upside down so that their food is on the top and the lid is the new "base".
7. Elevate the hornworm container off the ground with egg flats or a couple pencils to give your hornworms AIR.
8. Don't let the hornworm container touch the ice pack.
9. Empty hornworm poop once a day.
10. Serve the hornworms plain at first. Then try lightly dusting them with pure precipitated calcium carbonate (withOUT vitamin D3) to further balance their calcium-to-phosphorus ratio.
11. Should a hornworm get mangled, clean up its green juice right away. The green "juice" is difficult to remove when dry.

For link 33 click: Hornworm Care Guidelines

 

[SpottedDragon]

If the tissue is really red and swollen or protruding you can honey pack it. Just take a small Q-tip and dab the area with plain old honey three to four times a day. **Don't stick the q-tip inside the cloaca**

White granulated sugar mixed with water to make a gritty paste can work too. This helps decrease inflammation, prevents bacterial growth, and isn't harmful if licked off. I find that honey works best.

Also, remove any loose substrate at this can be irritating / get stuck to the exposed tissues