Gecko hasn't eaten in ~1+ months

[Dama682]

Hello,

This is a very strange case. My gecko hasn't eaten in around 1+ months. I say 1+ because I only started keeping careful track of his eating habits around last month.

My 1st guess is impaction. His staple food is superworms, which I know has almost zero, but not zero chance of causing impaction. The hot side of my tank is always set at 91 Fahrenheit, give or take a couple degrees. The substrate is reptile carpet.

My 2nd guess is anorexia. However, what stumps me is that his tail is far from skinny, and he's always active and roaming about the tank at night.

A couple days ago, when I offered superworms, he ate one. My happiness and surprise didn't last long, however - he promptly vomited out the superworm about a minute later.

I don't have a reptile vet near where I live (lots of dog and cat vets, however). I plan on offering crickets after school starts (my teacher has a good cricket colony going on) to offer my gecko a different choice in food.

Help would be very appreciated.

 

[Alex G]

Could it be "he" is a "she" who is ovulating?

 

[Dama682]

Could it be "he" is a "she" who is ovulating?

Definitely a he. Very noticeable hemipenal bulges and preanal pores.

 

[acpart]

I have been through this with several of my leopard geckos, usually in late winter/early spring. I have a supersnow that had a respiratory infection in Jan. and didn't eat for months, dropping 20 grams over that period of time. I just kept offering and eventually he just started up again and has now regained all his weight (yes, he was treated succesfully for the respiratory infection). I recommend you keep offering food. It is a little worrisome that he threw up the superworm, but maybe it was too much after the fast. Here are some things worth trying in order of how much work they involve:
--as you're suggesting, change feeders
--hold the gecko and push a feeder gently against the mouth. Hopefully he'll open his mouth and bite it
--get some baby food, chicken flavor, and put a few dabs on its nose so it can lick it off
--search for the recipe for the gecko "slurry", a nutritious puree that you can make yourself, make some and feed it the same way as the baby food.

Personally, I don't recommend purees for geckos that don't seem to be ill. I think it's a much better idea to keep them on solid food (but others may disagree).

One other thing: if he's not eating, unless you have calcium with D3 in the cage, he's either not getting calcium or not getting the D3 he needs to metabolize the calcium. You can always dip your finger in some water, then dip it in the calcium with D3 and rub it around his mouth so he can lick it off.

Aliza

 

[Dama682]

I have been through this with several of my leopard geckos, usually in late winter/early spring. I have a supersnow that had a respiratory infection in Jan. and didn't eat for months, dropping 20 grams over that period of time. I just kept offering and eventually he just started up again and has now regained all his weight (yes, he was treated succesfully for the respiratory infection). I recommend you keep offering food. It is a little worrisome that he threw up the superworm, but maybe it was too much after the fast. Here are some things worth trying in order of how much work they involve:
--as you're suggesting, change feeders
--hold the gecko and push a feeder gently against the mouth. Hopefully he'll open his mouth and bite it
--get some baby food, chicken flavor, and put a few dabs on its nose so it can lick it off
--search for the recipe for the gecko "slurry", a nutritious puree that you can make yourself, make some and feed it the same way as the baby food.

Personally, I don't recommend purees for geckos that don't seem to be ill. I think it's a much better idea to keep them on solid food (but others may disagree).

One other thing: if he's not eating, unless you have calcium with D3 in the cage, he's either not getting calcium or not getting the D3 he needs to metabolize the calcium. You can always dip your finger in some water, then dip it in the calcium with D3 and rub it around his mouth so he can lick it off.

Aliza

Thanks, I'll keep offering food.

I did try gently pushing the feeder against his mouth, but it seems like he keeps rejecting it. I hope this is just a case of a picky eater.

I'll look into the baby food.

I have a Gatorade cap of Rep-Cal in the cage, which I see my gecko licking out of occasionally. I'll try offering the Calcium+D3, though.

Thanks!

 

[OhioGecko]

1. How old is the gecko?
2. What is the geckos current weight?
3. How are you heating your habitat?
4. How are you measuring the temps of the habitat hot spot?

 

[Dama682]

1. How old is the gecko?
2. What is the geckos current weight?
3. How are you heating your habitat?
4. How are you measuring the temps of the habitat hot spot?

1. I have no clue, I got him as a juvenile almost a year ago. I don't think I should take guesses in this case, but I'd think just under a year or so.
2. I just checked right now, 35-40 grams. I don't own a digital scale, so I'm not sure about the accuracy of this number.
3. Undertank heater
4. Digital thermometer directly above the UTH, laying on the carpet. Temperature is controlled by a thermostat from a company whose name escapes me.

 

[OhioGecko]

Looks like your setup for heat is good and measured correctly. I would up your floor temp to 95.

Is the gecko deficating?

The gecko vomiting up the superworm shortly after eating is not a good sign, and does warrant a vet visit if it is a repeated issue. I know you don't have a reptile vet close but you can still get a fecal done at a regular vet.

 

[Dama682]

Looks like your setup for heat is good and measured correctly. I would up your floor temp to 95.

Is the gecko deficating?

The gecko vomiting up the superworm shortly after eating is not a good sign, and does warrant a vet visit if it is a repeated issue. I know you don't have a reptile vet close but you can still get a fecal done at a regular vet.

Alright, I'm bumping it up to 95.


As for defecation, no, definitely not, considering how he hasn't eaten in a while. The last batch I threw away a while ago.

 

[gothra]

I think its good that he attempted to eat the worm (eventhough he regurgitated it back out). If the gecko is really sick, he will not even look at the worm. Is he shedding and eating his shed alright? Did he poop after he'd eaten his shed?

I asked because one of my gecko wasn't eating much, and when I tricked him to eat a super, he also regurgitated it the next day. I took him to a vet; and during the one hour bumpy bus ride, he pooped 2 pellets of stools. Vet checked him and confirmed that he is completely healthy. On our way back, he pooped another pellet - now that's a lot of poop as he hasn't been eating for a while! He resumed eating after he'd "cleared" himself. Maybe the humidity level was too low in my home which caused him to be constipated.

**Please note I'm not saying your gecko is also constipated like mine; I'm just giving an example of one possibility.

 

[Dama682]

I think its good that he attempted to eat the worm (eventhough he regurgitated it back out). If the gecko is really sick, he will not even look at the worm. Is he shedding and eating his shed alright? Did he poop after he'd eaten his shed?

I asked because one of my gecko wasn't eating much, and when I tricked him to eat a super, he also regurgitated it the next day. I took him to a vet; and during the one hour bumpy bus ride, he pooped 2 pellets of stools. Vet checked him and confirmed that he is completely healthy. On our way back, he pooped another pellet - now that's a lot of poop as he hasn't been eating for a while! He resumed eating after he'd "cleared" himself. Maybe the humidity level was too low in my home which caused him to be constipated.

**Please note I'm not saying your gecko is also constipated like mine; I'm just giving an example of one possibility.

After he regurgitated the worm, he started to ignore superworms. Either that, or he just didn't have the appetite.

He definitely eats his shed skin, I witnessed him doing so. He left a few small pieces here and there, but he ate the majority of it. However, no droppings afterwards.

 

[gothra]

He should poop after he digested his shed. To encourage bowel movement, you can soak him in slightly warm water, and give him a little massage on the belly.