My new leo is being such a tease

indyana

indyana

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Phantom240 said:
lol. I hear they grow pretty slow. In any case, I don't think she's 100% out of the woods as far as a possible parasite or eating disorder, but it's good to see that when it's put in her face, she will accept SOME food. I'm going to pay the vet a visit as soon as I can afford and have the time to do so. They told me it would be $42 for an exam, but getting the time off to do so is going to be the killer for me. The nearest reptile vet is about an hour away.
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There were about 8 days when they were appropriate size for my gecko, starting when they were about the size of mealworms up through when they started getting long and fat enough to make me nervous about feeding them to him. He's also a little undersized though. The caterpillars went through their entire life cycle from hatching to spinning in about 26 days. I was feeding them once or twice a day. I heard you can slow them down a bit if you feed them less, but that will also make them dehydrated and more susceptible to disease.

Good luck with the vet visit! Hopefully you can get time off, as knowing she has no parasites would be worth it for the peace of mind.
 
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Phantom240

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Oh wow, that's a lot faster than I thought.

Another bit of decent news, she made a poop last night. If I didn't know she was stressed out, I'd just say she wasn't hungry cause she was full of s***, LMAO. That's one massive turd. Being solid and having proper color is definitely a bit of a relief. It's about 3/4" -1" long.
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Phantom240

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I did get her to eat between 7 and 9 giant mealworms today (I lost count in the excitement of seeing her finally start to eat a bit more). Unfortunately, she's not very good at hunting for them, and easily gets frustrated and gives up. She struck at one of them three times before giving up and walking away. I picked up the worms one by one and got her to eat them. I stopped trying to feed her when she turned her nose up at them and retired to her warm hide and plopped her fat belly onto the tile with her tail still hanging out of the cave lol.
 
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Phantom240

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Yesterday was kinda an odd day for her, from a behavior standpoint. Every night prior, she would walk out of her hide around 5:30 - 6:00pm, move about for a bit, hide, then come back out around 10:00 and be a rambunctious little bugger, climbing everything, staring at me, getting into places she shouldn't and me shooing her off so I can remedy the situation. Well yesterday, she came out right on schedule around 6:00pm, and of course I offered her giant mealies by hand because she still doesn't seem interested in hunting (they're probably 1" - 1.5"... big fatties). After she ate, she retired to her moist hide (which she's been occupying quite a lot since I introduced it back into her terrarium), then her warm hide, and didn't really spend much time exploring and being active like she usually does. I'm wondering if maybe she was just being fat and lazy from eating what I assume is a pretty large meal. I should be feeding her every day, right?

Also, here's an example of one of her shenanigans that I had to prevent from happening again, LMAO
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indyana

indyana

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Most people feed adults every other day or twice a week to keep them from getting picky or gaining too much weight. Usually, only hatchlings get fed every day because they are still growing.

And WOW, is she adventurous or what? How did she even get up there? lol
 
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Phantom240

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She climbed straight up the foam wall, lol. On another note, I'm worried about her fluid intake. I've NEVER seen her drink, and only once have I seen her lick water from her humid hide's wall. It looked like she was trying to make a BM earlier this evening, but never got around to it, and she has licked her.. "Vent" at least twice this evening that I've been observing her. Could this be a sign of constipation due to dehydration?
 
indyana

indyana

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Leopard geckos are creatures from an arid environment, and they get most of their moisture from their food. Every so often you'll get to see one drink but don't expect to catch them at it all the time. I've only seen mine do it once. If you're worried about hydration, make sure your feeders are well hydrated. You can also give the gecko a soak in warm water once in a while (no more than once a week).

As a general rule, I feed my gecko every other day if he has pooped. If there is no poop, I hold off on feeding. I don't like the idea of my gecko shoveling in lots of food without the last batch having passed through his system. I've also had stretches where he hasn't pooped for 4-5 days; this is usually right before he sheds.
 
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Phantom240

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I can rule a shed out because she shed last weekend, actually within a couple hours of putting her in her new home, in fact. I'm gonna hold off on feeding her again until she, uh, makes room for new food. Last night, she was trying to climb the glass that faces my desk, and with the red light on, I could see through her body. It was pretty cool. Seemed like she's got some poop building up, but she probably wasn't ready yet.
 
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Phantom240

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She made a stark white poop today. That's really odd. She's been eating a LOT, like a fatty, lol. Any ideas what causes that? It's a pretty big poop as well. She hasn't been gobbling down her calcium powder.
 
B&B Geckos

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Usually, the younger they are the sooner they will feed, but you must let it acclimate. Stubborn cases make take weeks. Here's a quote from my website explaining how:
Acclimating:
Prepare the enclosure before your gecko's arrival. Make sure the temperature is within the recommended range, provide water to last 2-3 days and place a wet paper towel rolled up into a ball in the warm hide, in case it sheds. If your gecko arrives colder than room temperature leave it in the deli cup as needed to allow them to warm up gradually. Upon receiving your gecko examine it closely, while avoiding making abrupt movements and loud sounds. This should be the only time you handle it until it has acclimated. The key to their acclimation is to leave them completely alone for at least 3-5 days for juveniles, and 7-10 days for adults, until they feel safe in the new enclosure. Resist the temptation to hold them, this will only add to their stress and prolong this process. Don't offer food initially. In particular don't offer crickets or dubia or superworms, as they will climb on them or nip at them, thus adding to the stress. Ignore them completely. People often lose geckos for months and are surprised to find them alive. When the recommended time has elapsed, place the mealworms in dish, add water and leave the gecko alone for a few hours. If you have a stubborn case, offer one cricket at a time. Sometimes its difficult to tell whether they are eating or not, unless you're counting worms. If they are excreting they are eating.

Here's a link to an article on the topic.
Answering "Why won't my gecko eat?" | Gecko Time
 
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Phantom240

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Unfortunately, I had to handle her a couple times prior to the completion of her acclimation period, because she was climbing up to places she couldn't get down from, like hanging from the wire on the cage lid. She's hunting crickets on her own now, so I guess she feels safe enough. She still shows no interest in mealworms though. Drop a cricket in front of her, and her eyes shoot wide open as she takes the hunting stance, haha
 
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