Leo having trouble shedding toes, I've tried everything.

Leo

New Member
Messages
35
Location
United States
To preface, he has a moist hide which I make sure to put fresh towels in when he sheds. I've also tried spraying him with a bottle, which he seems to like in small doses. And I have also tried keeping him still while gently rubbing his toes with a wet q-tip, which he HATES.

I am worried that his little toes will rot off if he continues to neglect them. I don't feel comfortable stressing him out any more than I already do. What should I do?

P.S. His eating has become extremely rare, I'd say once every 2 weeks or longer. Is it just due to the time of year?







 

Neon Aurora

New Member
Messages
1,376
Location
New Mexico
Give him a soak in lukewarm water for about 10 minutes and then take some tweezers and carefully, gently pull the skin off. Don't worry about stressing him out, because he could lose his toes if you don't get the skin off. It's more important to get it off than to not stress him out.
 

acpart

Geck-cessories
Staff member
Messages
15,118
Location
Somerville, MA
They don't look as bad as I was anticipating. You can use tweezers as mentioned above or your fingernails. I like to hold the gecko on my lap and put my shirttail over its head. This seems to minimize stress.

Aliza
 

Leo

New Member
Messages
35
Location
United States
Give him a soak in lukewarm water for about 10 minutes and then take some tweezers and carefully, gently pull the skin off. Don't worry about stressing him out, because he could lose his toes if you don't get the skin off. It's more important to get it off than to not stress him out.

Success!!

Thank you. He was very unhappy with the whole thing and even did a crocodile death roll at one point! But as far as I can tell all his toesies are clean now. Hopefully he does a better job next shed, but this has been a consistent problem for some time now.
 

Neon Aurora

New Member
Messages
1,376
Location
New Mexico
You might try using coconut fiber (eco earth) in his humid hide instead of moist towels. I think it works a little better for holding moisture. It's also okay to mist down his tank when you see he is going to shed. Honestly my geckos kept in higher humidity conditions (in tubs vs. tanks) seem to do a lot better with shedding than the one gecko I keep in a tank. Sometimes they just need a little higher humidity to shed well.
 

indyana

Well-Known Member
Messages
2,336
Location
Massachusetts, United States
Make sure he's getting his vitamins and try gutloading feeders with fresh vegetables if you haven't already. Sometimes, general nutrition or dehydration can play a factor in bad sheds too, not just cage humidity.
 

DrCarrotTail

Moderator
Messages
3,590
Location
Ridgewood, NJ
I wouldn't worry about that guy not eating. The first pic makes him look a tad overweight. If he were in my collection he would be on a reduced feeding plan and I would offer him about 5 mealworms every 10-14 days until he loses a bit of the chunk - He's probably just self regulating. Glad you got the shed situation worked out!
 

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