Is there even anything else I can possibly do?

[Adinar]

Ok, so after numerous trips to the vet, a run of Panacur, and in the middle of a 2 week run of antibiotics... I just can't get Dante, Loki, or Odin to eat anything but slurry. Might get a cricket in there once in a great while, but that's about it. Loki and Odin used to have amazing appitites, and whatever the illness it, they refuse to eat and are dropping weight quickly. As for Dante, he's had eatting issues since the middle of April, has been hand fed since beginning of May, had an great appitite and was eatting on his own for a week...then went back to starving himself.

Vet tested Dante again for parasites, and they're cleared up. We're still stumped as to what is going on with them all. He keeps coming up with the whole "Will to live." bit, and has said in the round about way that we probably won't get answers until one dies and they do a necropsy on them.

Is there anything else anyone can possibly think of that might snap these guys out of it? I don't want to give up on them, but I really don't know of anything else I can possibly do for them but continuing handfeeding with slurry and await the probable end.

 

[acpart]

Is there any chance that they will eat handfed worms or crickets? I have been through this with several geckos who didn't have health problems, but just wouldn't eat on their own. I hold the gecko in one hand and gently press the feeder against the mouth. Most of the time the gecko will eventually open its mouth and bite it, especially since I put the "tickly" side of the feeder near the mouth. I have one geckol who isn't eating much, apparantly because she's ovulating, and most of the time she'll eventually grab the cricket and fling it away, but I try every day and about half the time she'll take 1 cricket. I have another fat tail who doesn't eat on her own and seems to have a swollen liver, but I've been feeding her this way since Feb. She takes 4-6 crickets every other day and on Sat. her first baby hatched. Eating whole feeders would be a step up from slurry.

Here's another thing that worked with my first gecko 6 years ago that had parasites and stopped eating:
every evening, I would put her in a container with about 5 crickets in low light and just leave her alone for 45 minutes. Eventually she did go back to eating.

I know it can be frustrating and I hope things will turn around.

Aliza

 

[Adinar]

I've tried that a little bit. Dante freaks out and spazzes, then tries his damnedest to get away. He refuses mealies, and occasionally strikes at a cricket or two... but that's about it. He was doing so good for a week, packed on a bit of weight, had way more energy. Not sure what could really be effecting him and what he passed on to the two others.

I brought up crypto with the vet, and he pretty much told me that it's not likely. More than likely he'd be dead by now. Honestly, I'm surprised he's still alive. Weighed him last night and he's down to 5 grams again. At his highest he was still only 9 grams.


Crappy thinking that we're basically just waiting to find him in the tank one morning.

 

[RocksMama77]

Have you tried roaches. I have one girl who will barely eat anything but roaches. There is something about roaches that bring out the appetite. They are on sale now too. It would be worth a try.

 

[Adinar]

I'll check around in my area... but I haven't found anything yet.

 

[gothra]

Perhaps try and put the individual gecko in a smaller container, cover all sides so he can't see out, then raise the general temperature (both floor temp and air temp) to 96-97. Leave him alone for at least a couple days, then throw in a small cricket (no jump legs so its easier for him to catch) see if that'll work?

Just one of the methods I'd tried when I have a non-eating gecko. Hope you can figure out and solve their eating problem.

 

[malt_geckos]

You know, it's breeding season and some males slow down on eating around now (a few of ours do this every year) and females are likely ovulating right now and most won't eat unless you raise the temps to about 97 degrees F.

Good luck!

 

[Adinar]

hm... even with breeding season being a possibily, I can see that in Odin and Loki. But Dante is still only about 6 months, but is the size of a 4 month old in length.

 

[laughing dog]

the hot soaks seem to be helping mine, and im gonna try chicken, turkey, peach, and mango, baby food. someone on my local forum suggested it saying theyll lap it right off the spoon and chase after you for it, while also allowing easy access to food left in the cage if its being shy from illness. they also said using pedilight warm to nurish and flush the system, so maybe thatll work. im wondering if its something affecting the stomach or throat, cause one of my new ones will cheww em up, and spit em out(from my hand and in the tank). i had a vet have me give iguanas minute doeses of warm dawn, im pretty sure, to cleanse the system(primarilly used on birds and livestock), when i had some they couldnt use meds on cause they were to far gone, but made it through fine with that and the extra heat, with a home made syrup(made with karo syrup for baby animals). mine arnt that bad now, but some cleansing might be the only thing after a while, also they may need more grit, as im finding out they use it like birds with there systems(im just mentioning cause i havent seen it on here).

 

[Saphira]

ugh I am sorry. I am still hand feeding our leo too.

 

[steve905]

I've had various leos go through this behavior over the years. Have you tried waxworms? Mine almost always respond to those. I know as a food they are not the greatist but its fat and moisture all rolled into one bug. Good luck

 

[Adinar]

I'll try again with waxies. It's kind of funny, but most of my guys don't like them. I guess it's the whole soft and squishy-ness of the worm and all.

 

[Saphira]

I haven't been able to get Scully to eat them either.

 

[Adinar]

Last ditch effort.

Well, I tried to get ahold of the vet today to talk to him about his professional opinion on everything that has been going on with our little one, but haven't gotten a call back yet. He looks terrible... skin and bones, walking around with his eye shut, and still not eatting on his own. He'll eat slurry alright, but I doubt that it's anything that could fully keep him healthy after such a long time. So I'm doing gatorade soaks again and going to attempt to mix appitite stimulant in with the slurry and see what happens.

I found it kind of funny, because my husband went into the store to purchase crickets. Now we get ours from different places, but this was the one Obi & Dante came from. A really nice sales associate whom we normally deal with on a somewhat regular basis (She was not there the day we picked those two out, I would like to think that she probably would've warned us.) was there and asked how the wee one is doing. Brad told her, and she mentioned to him that we shouldn't feel too badly about it, because the other albinos that were there when they were there had all died too. Go figure, they didn't have any tested. Would be nice to know what's going on.

Hate to say it, but I have a nagging feeling that this week it's going to happen. Man, I hope I'm wrong.

 

[Saphira]

(((HUGS))) I am sorry.

 

[Alusdra]

Wow, what a horrible thing to go through! I'm still handfeeding some of my severely neurologic enigmas and I know it's difficult and time consuming. But on top of that, you're not sure what's wrong. How frustrating that the pet store was not responsible about where they purchased from and the medical care of the animals they had. It makes it much harder for you to figure out what is wrong. If your guys end up passing, you might want to see if your state has a 'lemon law' that applies to geckos.

As for advice- it seems that you have been doing everything possible. Perhaps if you can get to a herp specialist? It sounds like maybe your vet is out of ideas. Try a veterinary school if you have one near you. Also- roaches work wonders! When I first got my enigmas they would not eat. Period. But with the described hand-feeding method (Aliza) they would start to take full grown (newly shed/white) B. dubia. For weeks all were eating 1 newly shed male/day. Which rather wiped my gigantic roach colony, but you could feed large nymphs, too.

No gecko really likes being force fed, but it's actually a good sign if they are still fighting you. Gentle them to being held and work up to it over a few days. I find if you hold the mealworm in a 'u' shape and put the blunt end to one side of the geckos mouth while pressing gently on the other, that works best. Also getting the bug to 'dig' into the gap between the gecko's lips (which is amusing as they are crawling literally to their death). Or if you are feeding slurry, as they are licking that off, sneak the head of a bug in there. Most times if you can get enough of the bug between their lips to crunch, reflex swallowing kicks in.

Good luck.

 

[Adinar]

There's actually a reptile show coming up next weekend, and I'm hoping he survives that long. If so, I'm going to try my best to make it down there and see about getting some of the roaches.

I've been checking on him as soon as I get up, before I leave for work, first thing when I come home, at feeding time, and just before bed. I just hope he can hold out.

 

[Adinar]

If anyone was actually following his progress.

http://www.geckoforums.net/showthread.php?t=45829

 

[Saphira]

((HUGS))

 

[Juniorbat]

Have u tried Fluker's Repta Aid which is a Insectivore/Carnivore Emergency AID; "Provides energy and fluid support for malnourished and dehydrated reptiles and amphibians" This helps also to boost them to eat food like meal worms/crickets or whatever you feed them. I gave my Female leo gecko which was so close to death this product(was recommended by a reptile specialist) and she is now eating more then my male.. lol.. I also bought Nature's Reptile Vita-Spray which provides vitamins,keeps geckos healthier for a longer life/ and moisture. Sorry if this was already posted to help you