How long does shed take?

[RoninSTi]

Hey everyone!

I'm a new leo owner as of yesterday and I woke up to him making alot of noise inside his hide. I checked on him and he's shedding! The noise was him dragging along the tile to scrape off some skin. He has a humid hide and plenty of rough stuff to rub on.

My main question is, how long should I let the process go on before I intervene? For instance if by tomorrow morning there is still shed left should I use the warm water bath/Qtip method everyone describes?

I want to let nature take its course, but I also don't want to have any stuck shed problems so If anyone can guide me I'd appreciate it.

Thanks!

 

[leogecko88]

I would say that shedding takes a couple hours. If it is not complete after 24 hours, then you can help him.

 

[RoninSTi]

Great! Thanks so much for the response.

 

[T-ReXx]

I'd give it 24/-48 hours, leos are pretty good about removing shed as long as they have a humid hide. Just make sure to check his toes and the tip of the tail, thats the most common place for bits to get stuck.

 

[Holly12]

Well I give it until tomorrow and if he is still got some shed left on him they yeah I would use warm water and use Qtip to try to help him get the rest of it off but do it nice and easy don't do it hard you can hurt him doing that and also I would check your humid hide and just make sure that it is got enough humid in thier so the next time he sheds he will have no problums geting all of it off.

 

[RoninSTi]

He has a humid hide, but I havent seen him use it. Granted I've owned him less than 24hrs so I'm not too concerned about that. I did see him take a few dips in his water bowl so I know he's getting some moisture.

 

[Holly12]

Oh yeah it does take like 24 hours to be fully done but my girls I have seen them turn white and the next hour or so they start removing thier shed it all depends on your gecko.

 

[RoninSTi]

Thanks so much everyone! It's awesome to be part of such a friendly helpful community. Looks like he's got the majority of it off now. I'll check him tonight and any loose bits and help him out.

 

[Taquiq]

If it is not off in 48 hours give them a warm bath and try to remove skin with a cue tip.

 

[RoninSTi]

Quick update. He's fully shed, and he's in his humid hide. Seems like he's pretty wiped out from all that tugging and tearing. Poor little guy. I'm going to let him rest and inspect him tomorrow for any remaining skin.

On a second note, should his appetite return tomorrow?

Thanks

 

[Schuttsr1]

Yeah the hunger tends to come back the day after the shed. Good to hear your gecko got his first shed off.

 

[leogecko88]

Great! He should start eating again within the next few days.

 

[RoninSTi]

Good!! I'm glad to hear it's normal not to eat after the shed. He's a tired critter right now. I'm going to try and not disturb him at all until he's active again and then feed him. I left some mealies in a dish for him just in case though.

thanks again for the help, this is a big learning curve but I'm loving caring for him so far.

 

[roger]

Leos don't always use their humid hide to help shedding.Watcth him closely.I wouldnt wait 48 hrs to remove toe shed.

 

[gothra]

I only give my geckos 2-3 hours for the whole shedding process (if I know they are shedding), they can usually get it done within 2 hours. Then I check for retained shed as soon as they're done; some of mine often have little bits of skin on the toes and on the groin/lower belly area.

 

[RoninSTi]

I just had him out for a little bit and inspected him as well as I could while he was in his feeding tub. I didn't want to handle him too much. I inspected his toes well, and it looks like a clean shed.

I'm going to check his underside tomorrow for any loose bits. I haven't seen him eat yet, but mealies are missing from dish so there's only one place they could be!:main_yes:

He also had a nice healthy poop in his calcium dish which I got a pretty good chuckle out of.:main_laugh: I since moved his dish and put some TP down where the dish was.

Happy holidays.