Can she gain 7g in two months?

[LIZARDLOVER]

I have a 43.5 g Tremper albino female if like to pair with my murphys this year, but ideally want her to gain some weight first. It's been a while since I've researched it all; when does the season begin for breeding (or does it matter in captivity given controlled environmental stimuli)? And would it be possible on a normal diet to bulk her up to 50 in two months, or maybe one? She's three years old and has always been a somewhat slow grower. And lastly, would it be best to leave the male in for a few weeks then remove or to simply leave him in the entire season?
Thanks!

 

[tb144050]

I don't like giving an indefinite answer, but the possibility depends sole on the Leo....that are "temperamental" like spoiled children. I'm saying this part for future readers because I am sure you already know: They may have reduced appetites or may be "off feed" due to age, stress, ovulations, brumation (even though they are in captivity..they usually know it's winter), etc, etc.

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But yeah, 7g is extremely possible if your Leo is "cooperating." I have been monitoring (and keeping an Excel spreadsheet) of all our Leo's weights since January. Starting at 20g-30g, they have all grown to 38-59g.

Results vary depending on the Leo, and the 59g Leo is my gravid female, Ruby. Ruby gained 10g in the last 13days (since the first mating).

Each of my other Leo's gains an average of 1-3grams/week.

My most "stubborn/shy Raptor weight-gainer" is Bubble-Buddy (regenerated tail). She was hatched (by the previous breeder) on 7/11/13. I received her on 1/17/14 and she weighed 25.4g. She seems to eat very little because she is so skittish and just hides all day. She has gained 13.8g from 1/17/14 -> 3/14/14. (Maybe she is eating well inside the comfort of the hide, but doesn't show as much "gain" because of the regenerated tail not being able to store as much nutrition/weight??)

My smallest of any morphs is my pet blizzard, Smoke. I bought him as a Juvie in Nov, 2014. He has a "small build", but his weight has gone from 31.7g -> 39.5g (1/31/14 -> 3/11/14)....7.8g gain.

My Raptor male, Creeper is a FAST-gainer (like my wife's Leo, NinJa)...also has a firm "don't touch me" attitude: 26.3g -> 41.3g from 1/17/13 -> 3/14/14.....15g gain.

NinJa: Bought Nov, 2013. 15.8g -> 42.9g from 12/22/13 to 3/9/14.

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However, I feel like some of them are slowing their appetite and it is slowing their growth rate, as they get older. I can't provide any more direct input than this (yet).

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DrCarrotTail recommends a max goal of 2g/week weight-gain....but that will still give you the 7g you want within 1 month. You just have to hope that your girl has the appetite to eat.

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If she does not eat ATLEAST 7-9 feeders every other day, then I might suggest observing her to find out if she is in brumation, ovulation, hunger-strike, "off-feed", etc. (I am saying "7-9 feeders" because that is the average appetite of my average weight-gainers....6-7g/month.)

 

[DrCarrotTail]

50 is a relative weight. You need to base when your gecko is ready to breed on their overall weight and health. I have geckos that would be far too fat at 50g and some that would be far to skinny to breed at that weight. Personally, I wouldn't force food on your gecko to get her up to 50g I would just let her grow naturally. Females that are too fat don't breed well anyhow. I had several females I didn't breed until July of last year and they gave me 4 decent clutches before the end of September and are breeding again now.

 

[LIZARDLOVER]

She seems very healthy as is, I just keep hearing "50 is the benchmark". She's the Tremper:

 

[tb144050]

She seems very healthy as is, I just keep hearing "50 is the benchmark". She's the Tremper:

Some Leo's grow more slowly due to the reasons I mentioned above. If you want to try accelerating her weight, you can try giving (no more than) 1 waxworm/week. If you don't already use mealworms, you can try adding mealworms to her diet in a dish that is kept full 24/7. If she ovulating, you can try moving her to a separate room away from males (stress). Of course, that might hinder your breeding plan, so I don't know if stopping ovulations is what you want to do.. :O

How much/what does she eat and how often?

 

[LIZARDLOVER]

As of now she eats about 18 mealies every 5 days, or more accurately I feed 18 every 5 and she eats about 9 one day and 9 the day after. The mealies are loaded on potatoes, apples, and various cereal that has been crushed for a bedding. I pm'd the doc and she said it should be fine to pair her at her size, so I'll give her a few weeks and then introduce her and see what happens

 

[tb144050]

Especially if you mate her, I would recommend increasing the feeding (atleast temporarily) to see if it helps her put on a little more weight.

Here is what I am thinking:

-9 mealies is the limit of her stomach.
-Her digestion processes them within a day, suggesting a very youthful metabolism??
and then she eats another 9 mealies (full stomach) the very next day).


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I would probably try feeding 9mealies/day to see if she has the appetite to eat every day.

Alternately, you could try 10 mealies every 2 days. This is a slight increase. It provides 50mealies in 10days instead of 36mealies at your current rate of (18mealies every 5 days).

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Good luck with her!! I bet she will eat a little more.

 

[LIZARDLOVER]

I think I mistyped, she eats 9 and then another 9 2 days after (one set Monday, the next Wednesday).

 

[tb144050]

I think I mistyped, she eats 9 and then another 9 2 days after (one set Monday, the next Wednesday).

If those are the only 2 "feed-days" of the week, I think she can defintely eat more between Wednesday and Monday. At your rate of 9mealies x 2 days.week, that is 18mealies/week.

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If you increase to feeding 10mealies "every other day", that is 7feedings in 14days. This will average to 35mealies/week. I think she will be interested in eating some of this extra food.

 

[LIZARDLOVER]

I've tried before and she just leaves em in her dish, it's odd. On the bright side they're pretty massive mealies, so that helps!

 

[tb144050]

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If she does not eat ATLEAST 7-9 feeders every other day, then I might suggest observing her to find out if she is in brumation, ovulation, hunger-strike, "off-feed", etc. (I am saying "7-9 feeders" because that is the average appetite of my average weight-gainers....6-7g/month.)

This is a common feeding schedule for young adult (over 1yr old), and some of my 8-10month old Leo's are weening back away from a daily-fed schedule.

 

[tb144050]

I've tried before and she just leaves em in her dish, it's odd. On the bright side they're pretty massive mealies, so that helps!

Ok..hmmm.... I am out of suggestions. I am stubborn though sometimes, so I would probably still try to increase feeding occations a little bit.

Maybe try:

Week 1 - Monday & Wednesday (normal), 9 mealies
Week 2 - Sunday & Tuesday, 9 mealies
Week 3 - Saturday & Monday, 9 mealies
Week 4 - Friday & Sunday
etc etc etc
Week 5 - Thursday & Saturday
Week 6 - Wednesday & Friday
Week 7 - Tuesday & Thursday
Week 8 - Monday & Wednesday

This increased frequency will provide atleast 1 extra 'feeding of 9mealies' per 8-week cycle (if my math isn't a little fuzzy...I would have see it on a calendar to calculate the new "weekly average").

This feeding style would still fit her eating habit of: Eat, no-eat, Eat, long-no-eat....but it sneaks in a little more food.

Also, as I mentioned far above ("Especially if you mate her"), her appetite might increase after mating, so I would still recommend giving her opportunity to eat more even though she may not take advantage of the extra food. Just like Leo's that are "off-food", I would put food in to offer.....remove if not eaten. (or in this case, mealies can be left in for a day...just replace them with freshly gutloaded mealies at the next attempted feeding).

 

[LIZARDLOVER]

I'll give it a shot! Especially after a mating!

 

[DrCarrotTail]

If my females mate they always have mealworms in their bowls. They should have be provided with more than they can eat while laying eggs. They should also have a dish of pure calcium in their cage 24/7. Good luck.

 

[tb144050]

If my females mate they always have mealworms in their bowls. They should have be provided with more than they can eat while laying eggs. They should also have a dish of pure calcium in their cage 24/7. Good luck.

"pure" = WITHOUT d3. (clearing this up for future readers. Because a gravid female will eat straight from a calcium dish, you don't want to put a dish of "calcium + d3 mixed" or they can overdose on d3 while going for the much-needed calcium).