good news, bad news

[acpart]

The good news is that my stripe hatched today after 9 weeks and 2 days. The bad news is that she has a deformity: her front feet are missing digits and some of the bones (I'll take a picture later; she just hatched). The left front foot is short and the right one is just a stub. Even so, she's a good size and seems to be able to move around. If she can eat and poop I see no reason to put her down and she'll be a special needs gecko (interested, anyone?). I don't know if the clutchmate is going to hatch; the other egg is pretty dented.

The last clutch from this pairing hatched and died right after hatching. One of those had malformed front legs. Interestingly, the male in this breeding trio is the only adult gecko I have that's eating exclusively mealworms. On the other hand, I have been breeding my own mealworms for quite awhile and there were some temp fluctuations at the time these clutches were incubating. I lost 4 of 5 geckos a few weeks ago who hatched and died. My stripe group has generally not done well with eggs being laid outside the lay box and other problems.

Aliza

 

[Troyschicken]

Aww that sucks. Im sorry.

 

[acpart]

I forgot to mention that this pairing yielded 3 normal babies last season. It was a late season pairing because the female was a young first timer.

Aliza

 

[shadowx362]

Wow that really isn't good Cant wait to see pics she sounds interesting, but hopefully not sad to look at. I have 4 eggs that are starting to dent really bad so i hope nothing is wrong they are like 5 days away from hatching....

Good luck with her and the clutch mate

 

[acpart]

It's too soon to tell yet since it's not time for her to shed and eat, but my little baby that looks like the thalidomide kids from the '50's is getting around the whole tank and still looks bright and healthy. I will probably have a special needs gecko for adoption soon if she keeps doing this well.

Aliza

 

[Sidork]

thats sad. I wish you luck. I really wana see the pic to. To bad you couldn't send the gecko to canada i would be intrested in it!

 

[cwazy]

keep us posted on how shes doing!!! best of luck... if nuttin else i am sure i can convince the wife to bring her into our home... maybe we can figure something out if needed for the maine show? we have a weak heart for any pet that has needs :main_thumbsup:

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

I'm sorry your little one hatched with deformities. I have hatched out at least 6 babies with front limb deformities this season, and all but one have been able to thrive without issue. I too, will be offering these 'not-so-perfect' babies for adoption. Someone is sure to want them and love them, Aliza!

 

[acpart]

Thanks, Marcia, she's in her first shed now and still looks great. I'll try to get a picture in the next few days. How old are your oldest, and are they having any issues like being able to get themselves into the mealworm and water bowls?

Aliza

 

[brad.a.c]

I'm sorry about that. I really would take her but I don't have enough money right now to get another.

 

[scintillatingstar]

out of curiousity...please dont think i'm aweful for thinking this if i'm wrong! lol

If these geckos have limb deformities but are thriving just like normal geckos how could breeding them be detremental. Could the deformities maybe pass on? i wouldnt think so-they'd need to be genetic right? And i understand to a degree that breeding can be stressful but if the gecko lives normal without a foot (or something like that) they see themselves as healthy and normal and still want to do what they would do in the wild- reproduce.

Im sure this sounds crazy but i look at it like people. I work with individuals with disabilities and the person comes firs not the disabilitiy so i always do my best to look past it and see them as people. I know geckos are not people- but if the deformity has NO negative effects why do they have to be solely pets?

Just curious

 

[acpart]

Thanks for your thoughtful question. Since the stock of different gecko bloodlines is relatively limited, with few new wild caught geckos reaching the US market, and since additional in-breeding occurs in order to achieve certain morphs, it has become a good idea to avoid breeding any gecko that might have a deformity that was caused for a genetic reason. I'm actually fairly sure that this deformity is not genetic but was caused either from what I was feeding the parents or from temp fluctuations in the incubator, but with so many geckos to choose to breed, it's easy for me to suggest that this one not be bred. So if the gecko can get along perfectly well, why not breed it? From my perspective, a deformity that reduces a gecko's ability to act "normally" is not a good one to take the chance of passing on. I do believe that this gecko will be able to carry out all it's life's functions, but I don't see it really being able to climb, to eat out of a deep food bowl or possibly even to be very effective at catching fast moving crickets (it's less than a week old; I may be wrong). What if this deformity is genetic and is dominant? Do I really want to bring another 20 geckos with truncated or missing front limbs into the world? What if continued breeding of this gecko results in geckos with further extensive truncations, say, of back legs or of the spine? While I feel strongly that a gecko like this that can live a reasonable life and should be allowed to do so, I also feel for the reasons I stated above that the risk of adding geckos with such a deformity is not worth it.

That said, I plan to keep her as a pet unless someone else (on the East coast --I really don't want to ship) wants to adopt her for free (yes, she will be coming to the show in Maine).

Aliza

 

[scintillatingstar]

i totally understand your points and think they are valid- i was just curious about your opinion on the matter.

 

[cwazy]

updates and or pics??? sorry im just curious how its all going... hoping the lil bugger is doing as well as they can be!!!

 

[acpart]

I'll take a picture this week. She's had her first shed and I hand-fed her the first mealworm. So far she spends all her time in the humid hide, but so do a lot of my other ones. SHe's just a week old today and the real question is whether she'll be able to get to the pretty shallow food bowls.

Aliza

 

[cwazy]

any luck on the self feeding??? ancious to hear!

 

[acpart]

I haven't seen her eat, but she's pooping regularly and is growing so I assume she's eating. She spends nearly all her time in her humid hide, but her poop corner is across the cage and she's getting there regularly. I will take a picture on Sunday and try to get it up by Sun. night.

Aliza

 

[fallen_angel]

Glad to hear that she is pooping normally, that's always a good sign

 

[yellermelon]

Just thought I would add in that I have had 3 geckos with front limb deformities this year. Kinda wierd, pretty sad, 2 of mine are doing great the 3rd doesnt want to thrive. Good luck with yours!

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

I honestly do not think these types of deformities are genetic... my deformed gecckos are all unrelated from different paretns, most of which are veteran breeders that have never produced anything like this in the past. I will still be adopting them out and recommend that they not be bred.

Aliza, I had to euthanize one little one that would not trive, but the others have shallower bowls. I do have one that is big and agile enough now to get in to normal-sized bowls.