Blue-ish belly, Possible impaction?

[beezlebub666]

Hey there. I just got my first leopard gecko from an online breeder this last Tuesday. Her name is Beezlebub and shes about 2 1/2 months old. This is my first time caring for a leopard gecko.

The evening I got her I tried feeding her some small crickets and a couple mealworms. She ate a few and seemed very active and healthy. My concern is that when I dusted the crickets, a large cricket made its way in. After a while I noticed her zero in on the big one and I thought to myself "oh f**k, thats a big cricket" but she seemed to eat it with little struggle and continued on her way. Much later that night, I noticed a blue-ish spot develop on her belly and I'm a bit concerned as I have read that this is a sign of impaction. She has however, been acting fine otherwise. She pooped last night (tho it was little so I doubt it was the big cricket yet), and has been generally resting under her warm hide during the day, and getting up in the evening. She has been drinking water, and all in all acting in a way that I presume is pretty normal.

Maybe I'm being a bit precarious, but I am still concerned about the blue spot. I soaked her for about 10 minutes in lukewarm water this morning and evening. I even got her to lick up a few drops of olive oil to help any blockage pass. I'm wondering is it normal so see food pass thru their track like this? She's still a juvenile so her belly skin at times appears to be mildly translucent. Not sure if its relevant here, but she's a hypomelanistic high yellow morph.

About Beezy's enclosure:
-20gal glass terrarium
-tile substrate
-coconut moist hide with paper towels, half log on the cool side, cleaned cow bones (homemade hide/structure held together with epoxy) on the warm side
-a couple small live plants for decor
-shallow water dish
-calcium (with d3) dish
-mealworm dish

Am I just being an overbearing mother or do I have some reason to be concerned??

 

[Neon Aurora]

Normally a large prey item can be passed with no problem. What are your temperatures? If your temperatures are correct, she should be fine. Just keep an eye out and make sure she's pooping and eating and behaving normally, but chances are it's fine. Young geckos often have transparent bellies and you can see internal organs and what not.

 

[Kiara1125]

Mealworms are a bigger concern with impaction then what crickets are. As long as she poops then she's fine. If she doesn't poop then go ahead and give her a bath like you've been doing. That should help her pass anything that's stuck in her.

Also, to further back up what Neon Aurora said, I learned (I was afraid of impaction as well) that young geckos are transparent and you can easily see their organs. I created a thread "Do black stomachs mean impaction", but you can see how my leos are blue aeound their chest in the pictures. Your girl seems nice and healthy. Good luck with her!

 

[Dinosaur!]

Out of curiosity, does this look like the blue spot you see? If it does that is their food in their stomach Thats how I can tell when my babies are eating good!

 

[beezlebub666]

The temperature gauge says its around 86 degrees but I presume its actually a bit warmer than that on the spot over the heat mat as it feels warmer to touch that where the gauge is. She seems to like to sleep on that spot under her "bone hides" during the day, but she will often go to a cooler spot in her moist hide too. I'm a bit relieved to know that its probably just her organs. Thanks for the feedback!

 

[beezlebub666]

I wouldnt say its quite that visible but my gecko looks a bit older than the one pictured as well. I've posted a photo below for anyone interested.

 

[Neon Aurora]

Yup, that blue spot is totally normal. No worries. =) Your gecko looks fat and healthy. Although I do want to mention, it is generally recommended that you have a digital thermometer with a probe to measure the temperatures. The gauges can't really measure the ground where your leo is sitting to get warmth. You can get a zoo-med brand one for about $10. They're decent, and everyone seems to use them. I test them when I get them by putting the probe in my mouth and they've never measured more than 3 degrees off.

 

[sausage]

in that pic the geckos front leg looks really deformed. is it?

 

[Dinosaur!]

In the picture of my baby? If so, he broke his leg when he was three days old, and he was too tiny for the vet to set it properly, so we just let it heal. But it set funny and his foot faces sideways. Unfortunately I have culled the baby due the fact that he refused food (the blue spot was just his shed this time) and had become lethargic and wouldn't open his eyes. He was withering away and I wasn't gonna make him suffer... As for the OP I agree that your little guy looks completely normal Nd healthy!