Hey! Got gecko food issues...

[Geek]

First off, I'd like to say hello, being new to the forum and all.

Ok, back to business. My leopard gecko, Dexter, was very underweight when I got him...knowing waxworms were fatty, I fed almost exclusively waxworms to help him gain weight (don't worry, I dusted the crap out of them with calcium dust).

It took a long time, but it definitely worked, he's got a nice fat reserve in his tail now. Took him to the vet and all, no parasites, everything's great except he likes to purposely dehydrate himself. I offer water in the cage, but he will let himself dehydrate to the point of laying in his cage listlessly (when a water dish is inches away from him). Took him to the vet, got a fecal sample, everything. He just does that. So, now I give him water through an eyedropper once and awhile (he doesn't like it!). Instant improvement. No dehydration, no staring at me pathetically. He's happy and active. The only problem is, I need to force him to drink. Any thoughts on this?

So, back to the food issue. I've started him back on crickets. He seems to like crickets better than waxworms, he likes to chase them. I also feel better knowing I'm not giving him the equivalent of gecko potato chips all the time.
But...I hate crickets. I have a cornsnake and I feed her f/t mice, never had a problem with that. But a tiny cricket scurrying across the floor (I've had escapes from time to time) sends me across the room (unless there's a cricket there too, lol).

Basically, I wanted to know if I can use mealworms instead? I've heard that they can chew through a gecko. That doesn't make sense to me, don't geckos have stomach acid like us?:main_huh: But I wanted to be safe.

By the way...Here's a few pics of Dexter. Does anyone have any ideas about his age? I'm clueless...

And what about his color? I think he's hypo...but is there anything else special? anything that might make him a good breeder? I'd like to breed someday...of course that's a long way off.

 

[acpart]

Dexter, as far as I can tell from the pictures, is a superhypo (no body spots) nearly baldy (few head spots). Many of us feed our geckos exclusively mealworms, although there have been some issues of late with mealworms (read forum threads about mealworm shortage). If you can tolerate it, a good compromise may be superworms which will give your leo a good chase and may not be so bad for you. The mealworms chewing through the stomach story is in a class with the guy that wakes up in a tub full of ice without his kidney.

ALiza

 

[rcobourn]

With regards to the hydration issue... some leos just won't drink from a dish of standing water. Try misting the side of the tank a bit and see if he'll lap that up. They are more likely to drink moving water, drops on a plant, that sort of thing. You could try one of those waterfalls with the filter in it. I'm considering that for my male, he also is a bit of a problem drinker.

 

[GeckoGathering]

Dexter

Dexter, as far as I can tell from the pictures, is a superhypo (no body spots) nearly baldy (few head spots). Many of us feed our geckos exclusively mealworms, although there have been some issues of late with mealworms (read forum threads about mealworm shortage). If you can tolerate it, a good compromise may be superworms which will give your leo a good chase and may not be so bad for you. The mealworms chewing through the stomach story is in a class with the guy that wakes up in a tub full of ice without his kidney.

ALiza

With regards to the hydration issue... some leos just won't drink from a dish of standing water. Try misting the side of the tank a bit and see if he'll lap that up. They are more likely to drink moving water, drops on a plant, that sort of thing. You could try one of those waterfalls with the filter in it. I'm considering that for my male, he also is a bit of a problem drinker.

By the way...Here's a few pics of Dexter. Does anyone have any ideas about his age? I'm clueless...

It appears you have gotten excellent advice from two of the forums most knowledgeable gecko attics, so I'll tackle that last question.
According to my lengthy experience with development of the new electronic Photo to Age Match Chart, for a SHT he matches pretty chose to one that is listed as 13 to 15 months old. If you need I can chart out his weight too..........
(this has been a humoristic forum moment) take care . HJ

 

[hondawingsfly]

he's really cool, glad you could help him out

 

[Geek]

Dexter, as far as I can tell from the pictures, is a superhypo (no body spots) nearly baldy (few head spots).

Cool! I gots me a really special gecko, lol! *happydance*

The mealworms chewing through the stomach story is in a class with the guy that wakes up in a tub full of ice without his kidney.

I thought so.

With regards to the hydration issue... some leos just won't drink from a dish of standing water. Try misting the side of the tank a bit and see if he'll lap that up. They are more likely to drink moving water, drops on a plant, that sort of thing. You could try one of those waterfalls with the filter in it. I'm considering that for my male, he also is a bit of a problem drinker.

Thanks I'll give that a try.

he matches pretty chose to one that is listed as 13 to 15 months old.

yeah.. that would sound about right.


Thanks to all for the replies!