Horrible Egg Bound

[beachqueen]

okay - i'm at a lost here. i really don't want to lose my gecko!!! this morning i gave her medicine and mineral oil. nothing! this is driving me crazy! if i gave her mineral oil this morning - when is the next time i can give her more?
she is still straining, losing weight, sleepy, her belly is getting dark and it's moving upward. i even have been giving her warm soaks. UGH!!!!

 

[Arconna]

Does she have a place to lay the eggs? That's one thing you need, but it sounds to me like this is getting beyond that point now. She probably needs whatever a vet can provide for her to get rid of those eggs. I don't know if they can surgically remove them, but if that is what needs to be done, so be it.

 

[GeckoAZ]

Typically a vet can do a few things. If it is near the time that she should be laying her eggs, then the vet can give xocytocin (sp?) which causes her to contract and expell the egg. If that doesn't work then they can try a little anesthesia to relax the gecko to manipulate the egg out (depends on location of egg and a whole list of conditions) and thirdly then can surgically remove the egg. If they need to surgically remove the egg.....get out your wallet. Runs about $250, that has been my experience. Again, these are things they could do but it all depends on each case. I asked my vet about the intervention where they use a needle and withdraw all the contents of the egg so that the gecko will just pass the shell - he said he didn't do that becuase your never quite sure what the needle could pass through or nick.

 

[beachqueen]

I asked my vet about surgery and he said 9 out of 10 times it doesn't work - the gecko usually dies. interesting that he didn't suggest xocytocin!
Yes - i do have a place for her to lay eggs. however angel is 7 years old and went for 7 years without a place to lay eggs. not sure if she knows what to do with the place.
i'm taking her to the vet today. i called last night. i'll ask him about xocytocin.

 

[Arconna]

Unlike us humans most everything geckos do is by instinct. She knows what to do she just won't do it if she doesn't have the conditions she wants. It might just be at the point where she can't even lay them if the conditions are right though since you said it looks like she is straining.

 

[GeckoAZ]

My vet didn't suggest the 9 out of 10 don't respond to the surgery. I was concerned becuase aside from the money one would hope the surgery to be effective. I lost my gecko and she was my first one. Not a shiing start. My others are quite healthy and it is quite frustrating when things happen out of your control despite your best efforts to "heal them". Hope all turns out well for you.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

In my experience, geckos survive the surgery required to remove eggs just fine.

 

[GeckoAZ]

Marcia, is there a way to see it coming to try and preclude the egg bind from becoming a problem?

 

[beachqueen]

I took Angel to the vet. He said that it would be better if we just put her down b/c she was too far gone. by the time i got her there - she had no energy and made little crackeling noises. i didn't want her to suffer anymore. i feel awful. I just wish that I knew the signs before it got to this point. Last saturday she was fine and eating but monday not eating, tuesday acting strange by crawling all over the place and then you know the rest. Thank you everyone for helping me answer questions and to give me advice for Angel. I like GeckoAZ question . . . how to preclude the egg bind from beginning a problem.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

I'm so very sorry you had to make the decision to euthanize your poor little gravid girl, Angel. What a tragedy... but you made the most loving decision you could have to end her suffering.

Egg binding can be caused by several factors, the most common being:

- the female is too young and/or small to lay eggs
- the eggs are too big (usually infertiles)
- because she doesn't have an appropriate place to lay the eggs
- low calcium levels, inadequate supplementation
- stress
- uterine inertia

In the 11 years I have been breeding leos, I have had 3 cases of egg-binding that required surgery, and the cause in two cases was uterine inertia... the females' uterus simply could not contract in order go into labor. In both cases, the females had laid over 10 clutches and were at the end of the season.

If everything else looks good, the key is to watch for signs of lethargy, inappetence, weight loss, and straining. Oxytocin may or may not work, as it is designed for warm-blooded animals... but seems to have better results if precluded by an injection of liquid calcium. (Calcium helps the smooth muscles contract). Veterinary intervention should be considered in these cases.

 

[brandy101010]

I'm so sorry for your loss!