Abandon Leo!! Need tips and advise, PLEASE!!

[paulnj]

be sure to give him calcium too. I find that crickets get a feeding response best due to the thrill of the hunt .

 

[T&KBrouse]

Thanks, Paul. I'm giving him mealies and a few waxies here and there. He actually spit out a freeze dried mealie. Apparently, if it ain't wigglin', he ain't eatin' it. :main_rolleyes:

He hasn't had any intrest in crickets, but I think that may be due to being weak. I'm hoping he'll be strong enough to chase down some crickets soon.

I'm dusting his food daily as of right now. I figured I'll cut back to more like twice a week once his weight is back up. Does that sound about right?

 

[paulnj]

sounds great.

 

[Tommy13b]

yep sounds good, if it doesnt like crickets try mealworms.

 

[dim&shell]

By the way, just an added comment, you can feed leopard geckos baby food if they're not eating at all. I rescued a gecko recently from a petshop and he's refusing to eat anything since (been about 2 weeks, although did eventually eat 1 wax worm at the weekend woop), but I'm having to feed him baby food mixed with calci powder, try chicken or veil (veil is impossible to find it would seem though), and just put a tiny bit on his nose and he licks it off (eventually) but if he's eating you don't need to do this

 

[dim&shell]

Oh and I have taken his stool sample to the vets to be tested for parasites and should hear back this week... Have a look at my original thread (if you find the time)... Picture on second page...

http://www.geckoforums.net/showthread.php?t=21694

 

[T&KBrouse]

Yeah, he's back to not eating again.
Thanks for the tip. I think I'm going to need to try that.

 

[dim&shell]

Marcia's slurry is apparently extremely good http://www.geckoforums.net/showthread.php?t=19356 but because I live in the UK it's quite difficult to find the ingredients but the baby food mixed with calci powder seems to be working really well, after a week of doing it every night he already has more energy I also use an eye dropper, so when I've finished feeding him, I give him a couple drops of water (which he hates) just to stop him getting dehydrated

 

[T&KBrouse]

I am definitely going to try this! Thank you so much!!:main_yes:

His tail has fattened up a little bit and he seems to be a bit dull, color wise. Do geckos tend to go off food when they are going to shed?

 

[Ccrashca069]

Yeah they don't eat before and after they shed. Sounds like it is doing really good K. Keep the good work up.

 

[T&KBrouse]

Now he's eating again. I can't figure this little guy out. :main_rolleyes:
Good thing he's so darned cute!

Heres a couple updated pictures we just took of him. He's kinda miffed at me for taking the lid off his make-shift humid hide.

 

[dim&shell]

Ahhh he's really cute and he doesn't look too skinny, just keep up the hard work - patience

 

[T&KBrouse]

Thanks.
I've been giving him a few wax worms every day with his mealies. Boy, you all were right! Those waxies are like cheesecake to geckos! He loves 'em and he's put on alot of weight since we got him.

 

[GeckoEcho]

HaHa cheescake that got a chuckle out of me. Great job you've done with him. He's got a ittle I'm the king smirk to him now.

 

[moosassah]

Lookin' good! I bet he'll be hunting down crickets in no time. If he still won't catch the cricket, try putting it in the mealie dish. If you add a small piece of carrot the cricket's more likely to hang out in the dish. You can also pull off a back leg or 2 to slow down the cricket. Gross, but it works.

 

[T&KBrouse]

Okay... I can handle Tarantulas and such, but for some reason I can't for the life of me, touch a cricket. (Or the mealies or waxies for that matter)
They just completely freak me out.
I know, I'm a total nut-job. :wacky:

So, to remedy the cricket dillema, hubby will be "voluntold" to feed the leo some cricks. Even the leg yanking part. (Especially the leg yanking part) 'Cause the only thing worse than a cricket is a disabled cricket with appendages scattered about. *shudder*

I'll get a few more pictures of him tomorrow. It looks like he's shed and he looks WONDERFUL!

I can't thank you all enough for all the help!

 

[JordanAng420]

hubby will be "voluntold" to feed the leo some cricks. Even the leg yanking part. (Especially the leg yanking part) 'Cause the only thing worse than a cricket is a disabled cricket with appendages scattered about. *shudder*

This is hysterical, i'm ROFL...I can't deal with crickets either. My geckos have never even seen what one looks like. And they seem to do fine...LOL Anyways, make sure you "gut-load" (feed) your insects for 24 hours before you feed them to your little dude. Just get a cricket keeper and some cricket feed and put them in there with potatoes or soaked cotten balls since crickets are stupid and will drown themselves in a body of water. This ensures your insects are plump and full with the proper nutrients. It will also help prevent Metabolic Bone Disease. By the way, he's really cute. He's gonna be really pretty when he fills out compleatly.

 

[T&KBrouse]

Crickets really help with MBD?
I have noticed with our other lizards that crickets are definitely...well... not very bright. I can always find the uneaten crickets as they are the lemmings that have thrown themselves into the waterdish. :main_rolleyes:
We're having a really tough time finding mealies that aren't the size of Buicks right now, so hopefully he'll take some crickets for me. Thanks for the tip!

So, I noticed since he's shed, he has some retained shed on one of his back toes. I should just gently wipe that off with a wet Q-tip, right?

 

[Ccrashca069]

Yeah with a wet Q-Tip or with moiste fingers.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

He look much better than many 'rescues' I have taken in, and the fact that he's eating at all is VERY good! Keep the waxworms at a minimum, because geckos get addicted to them and eventually will not touch anything else! Mealworms are difficult to find now, so since he's an adult he may like Superworms (King Mealworms), or even an occasional tiny, day-old pinky mouse with it's rump dipped in calcium powder.

If he si having trouble with stuck shed, make sure he has a separate moist hide. You can also soak him in about 1/2" of warm water to soften up the residual shed on his toes, and what won't pick off with your fingernails can be worked off with a we Q-Tip.

KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK!!!