Concerned about breeder...

[ForTozs]

I have a female leopard gecko that's laid two clutches this year. She hasn't laid a clutch for about two months. Here's my concern...she has been eating some but not all of her mealworms the last month. She has lost a lot of weight. I would guess more weight than you would expect for a gecko to lose in a month (even that eats little), but I don't know. She was a quite large, healthy gecko with a fat tail just a couple months ago. My only guess is maybe since she's at the top of my rack there is some temp difference from the rest of my geckos (doubtful given heat rises) or she has a disease. The rest of my geckos are doing fine. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[ForTozs]

Btw, she does look like she has more eggs in her, but the rest of her is skinny

 

[acpart]

It could be something as simple as her still reducing her eating because of ovulation and not bulking up after laying the eggs. I've had a couple of mine do that as well. I've also had geckos lay a few clutches and then lay off (so to speak) for 6 weeks. You probably have good instincts about your geckos, so if you're really worried, consider a vet visit.

ALiza

 

[ForTozs]

Thanks for the reply. It makes me feel a little better. I'll look around, but I don't think there are many small animal vets around here. I just checked, and surprisingly, the tub this gecko is in only has a warm spot of 86 while the rest of the cages have warm spots around 90. Surely, 86 wouldn't be so cold to cause this, huh?

 

[ForTozs]

Should I repair her with a male? Could that help?

 

[fl_orchidslave]

Thanks for the reply. It makes me feel a little better. I'll look around, but I don't think there are many small animal vets around here. I just checked, and surprisingly, the tub this gecko is in only has a warm spot of 86 while the rest of the cages have warm spots around 90. Surely, 86 wouldn't be so cold to cause this, huh?

You might try moving her to see if she does better at a higher temp. 86 is a little low. Sometimes the girls just behave differently during breeding season. Males too. It's normal for them to lose some weight. By the time some of mine are finished they will really need to bulk back up, others will have gotten just a little thinner. I know all my geckos were plump and healthy prior to breeding in anticipation of these changes.

If you don't have a vet, it would be a good idea to locate a qualified reptile vet before it becomes necessary to find one fast. This way you will have an opportunity to ask of their leopard gecko experience, and if they don't really any, perhaps they would be decent enough to refer you to someone else. Or you can ask here on the forum for a possible referral in you area. Some folks have posted recently about positive experiences with their vets.

 

[roger]

I have a female leopard gecko that's laid two clutches this year. She hasn't laid a clutch for about two months. Here's my concern...she has been eating some but not all of her mealworms the last month. She has lost a lot of weight. I would guess more weight than you would expect for a gecko to lose in a month (even that eats little), but I don't know. She was a quite large, healthy gecko with a fat tail just a couple months ago. My only guess is maybe since she's at the top of my rack there is some temp difference from the rest of my geckos (doubtful given heat rises) or she has a disease. The rest of my geckos are doing fine. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Ahh You said she hasnt laid in 2 months but she still has eggs in her.What about your girl being egg bound?.It is too cool for the warm end though.Try bumping it up to 88-95 deg

 

[ForTozs]

Thanks. It appears there is one vet in my area with reptile experience. I doubt he'll have much leo experience, but he seems to be well respected for dealing with a variety of animals. I will switch her tub with a non-breeding animal and see if that helps first. I'll see if her feeding increases and decide what to do from there. If she's ovulating, should I try reintroducing a male to her? I had her with one for a couple months earlier this year. I moved him to stud another female I have. This might be silly, but she couldn't be protesting the departure of her mate?

<edit> You speak about her being egg bound...are you saying this is normal?

<reedit> OK. I see what you mean now. I will have to call a vet. That does seem like what could be going on.

 

[roger]

Thanks. It appears there is one vet in my area with reptile experience. I doubt he'll have much leo experience, but he seems to be well respected for dealing with a variety of animals. I will switch her tub with a non-breeding animal and see if that helps first. I'll see if her feeding increases and decide what to do from there. If she's ovulating, should I try reintroducing a male to her? I had her with one for a couple months earlier this year. I moved him to stud another female I have. This might be silly, but she couldn't be protesting the departure of her mate?

<edit> You speak about her being egg bound...are you saying this is normal?

<reedit> OK. I see what you mean now. I will have to call a vet. That does seem like what could be going on.

Can you post pics.Is she eating at all?Egg bound is not normal but it does happen.Your telling us that she laid 2 months ago and she appears to be carrying 2 eggs now.I know my females drop their eggs every 2-3 weeks.Ask the vet about being egg bound.Some females re-absorb the eggs and some females get bound.If she has a large or bloated abdomen and a thin tail tail like you described she possible could be hanging on to them.Try giving her some warm soaks for 15 minutes with some warm water up to her belly.I would not attempt anymore breeding until u figure out whats wrong.Also seperate her.

 

[ForTozs]

OK. I finally got the poor girl to the vet. He did x-rays and did indeed find she was egg bound. Strangely, it was just one, very large egg. He drained the egg of yolk and also found infection. He gave her Pitocin and antibiotics. If she doesn't pass the egg in two days he wants to operate. She is getting real skinny. I'm very worried. Has anybody else had this experience, and what were the outcomes? At what point might I need to consider euthanasia? She looks so miserable, she can't be happy...

 

[fl_orchidslave]

I've never had one egg-bound, but many have absorbed eggs. Good that you got her to the vet. Any chance you might post the x-ray pic? As far as euthanasia, only you can make that decision, based on your vet's advice. Good luck

 

[ForTozs]

Sorry. I didn't get a copy of the x-rays... Now to figure out how to force feed her 1 mL of medicine a day... (Baytril, Cal, Phos, and Dextrose).

 

[fl_orchidslave]

I find that mixing oral meds in something the gecko will take, such as the pet food you are using (good stuff) or the slurry (sticky at top of this forum section). Even to thin it a tiny bit with water may help. Dotting anything on the little lizard lips will cause it to begin licking, thus consuming. It takes a lot of patience and gentleness to do this successfully, without stressing the gecko too much.