Eye Problems

[Rhian]

Hi everyone,

Could someone give me some advice please? My gecko seems to be having a few problems with his eyes. I noticed about a week ago that he was squinting more than usual, I checked and couldn't see any shed stuck in his eye. However the inside of his eyes looks blacker than usual and he's been licking his eyes more than normal- I've posted a couple of pics does anyone have any idea what this could be please?

This is what he looks like at the moment:

And this is what his eyes usually look like:

 

[Tony C]

Here is a recent thread with a similar case.

 

[ajkry2]

so on the next shed it should clear up a bit?

hope so -- good luck!

 

[Saphira]

how is he now? We frequently deal with eye problems. Very frustrating.

 

[Rosalie Spot]

That happened to my first leo, and he died

Is your leo hydrated? Because thatt's how my leo got those.

 

[Saphira]

How is he now?

 

[Jen]

leopard gecko eye problems

Our leopard gecko had trouble with her eyes after her last shed. We kept them moist with a damp cotton ball a couple times a day and she started opening them but they were darker than normal and she didnt seem to be able to see well. After 4 days of this, with no improvement we asked out local pet store what we could do for her and they gave us zoo med repti shedding aid. We sprayed this onto her eyes as directed and now she wont open them at all and acts very scared. It has been almost 24 hours since we sprayed her and I'm getting very worried. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[Saphira]

I wouldn't use the spray again. soak her for about 15 mins every day and take a qtip wet and gently brush over her eyes. Stuck shed in the eyes seems to be a rather common issue. Most of the time they get better after the next shed. Keep her eyes clean. You can also use contact solution (sterile eye drops). drop that on her eyes.

 

[Jen]

Thanks so much for the advice. I'm going to get some pure saline this afternoon and give it a try, as far as soaking goes, I will go back to using moist cotton balls on her face and eyes. She loves to sit in her water dish, but refuses to use her moist hide. Could I just mist her face with water once a day, to help discourage this the next time she sheds?

 

[Saphira]

That will certainly help.

I have a tupperware dish that I put about 3/4" of water in that I set them in with the lid on for 15 mins to soak. I use warm water...but not hot..just not cold.

 

[fl_orchidslave]

The saline solution used for contact lens mentioned above is perfectly safe and commonly used for eye issues in animals. Available in any pharmacy and is also used by nurses as a sterile wound cleanser. Pet shops just want to sell their crap and *rarely* know the proper care of reptile issues.

 

[Rhian]

hi everyone, sorry for the delay in replying (computer problems :main_thumbsdown: ) thanks so much for all your replies.

his eyes are looking a little better than when i first posted but he's not completely back to normal

when he shed, his eyes looked alot more open for a couple of days (so I thought this must have fixed the problem!) but after about a week his eyes were more shut again.

I've been using a damp qtip around the eyes to try and keep them clean - and he's always liked sitting in his water bowl / moist hide so he gets a soaking every day... they don't look infected and he can definitely see fine but I'm not sure he's getting any better.

do you think a trip to the vets would be best, or just carry on what I'm doing? I don't want to stress him out by taking him to the vets if it's not necessary but I'd hate for him to get an infection or anything from this