Juvie not eating

[Dog Shrink]

Personally I would use something a lil larger. Would you have a jar lid? Like a jelly jar or a peanutbutter jar cap? Both would be larger and the ridges in the lid should help keep feeders in the bowl.

 

[bowsertime]

I'll try to forage something up. The good news is that Binti's been showing some interest in the dish during her nightly travels. She'll look in, but I'm not entirely sure if she's been eating or not. What kind of lighting can I get to watch her with if a 15W moonlight doesn't give off much light and a 40W red bulb stresses her out?

 

[bowsertime]

Found a marmalade jar lid, with a ridge and everything, and... looks like the mealies are still trying to escape. I found one hanging over the lid's edge just a few minutes ago. I put one superworm in there with them too, to see if maybe that'd interest Binti.

She was lounging about the middle of her tank today, by her log. Didn't seem to care too much if I made noise or motion around her, but finally decided she'd had enough and went over to her warm hide afterward. I snapped a pic of her first to show what weight she's still got on her.

 

[bowsertime]

She's spending a lot more time investigating her tank and even showed some interest in the worms today, but just didn't eat them, particularly since they stopped moving right as she started to look at them. I changed them out again to ones that were less I'm-about-to-pupate and more wriggly-wriggly-wriggly. I also tried to offer her one by hand. She went 'eeeegh' at me... I think it was a little roar? Didn't run from me, though.

 

[sausage]

that was a "DONT EAT ME IM BIG AND HARD"
it sounds like its just not quite settled in yet. some take hours to days others take days to weeks.

 

[bowsertime]

Yeah... I'm leaning toward relocation stress. She was eating and fine within two days of being with me, but I guess I was moving stuff around and fussing over her (like a new parent) too much and stressed her right back out. Hopefully she gets over it soon before she starts losing weight... would it be advisable to try eye-dropping some chicken baby food on her lips if she doesn't eat in another week or so? I heard something about using baby food as an appetite restarter in a gecko that won't eat. Or maybe, is there something liquid-y I can put in her water dish? She loves that dish and will drink out of it readily, so maybe if I could sneak something liquid in there, she'd drink it and get nourishment?

 

[bowsertime]

Not much change. Re-dusted her worms because I thought she finally ate some last night, but it turned out they just escaped again. I've fashioned up a new dish for her - a peanut butter jar lid, with a ramp of repti-carpet fastened around it. It'll be installed tomorrow morning while she sleeps and we'll see how that works.

Any thoughts on the baby food idea?

 

[bowsertime]

Food dish v3.0 has been installed and has been a success - at least, insofar as Binti's fun factor goes. Beneath the carpet ramp that leads up to it is a small little cubby hole that she's taken great pleasures in hiding beneath for a lot of the night. She didn't spend all her time there however, eventually squeezing herself between the ramp and the glass, then climbing atop her coconut, wedging herself behind her log, and finally returning to her warm hide. She stuck her head right in the mealie dish as soon as the ramp was installed, but didn't take anything.

 

[Dog Shrink]

Just remember the more changes you make the longer it's going to take her to settle in so I'd leave the changes to a minimum right now and make sure you count the mealies. That way you know for sure if she is eating.

 

[bowsertime]

I know. It's just that this was a necessary change - her worms were constantly escaping the dish. But she really seems to love the new addition to her digs. She's been sleeping under the ramp all day now as opposed to her warm hide and looks very comfortable doing it to boot, not even moving out when the sun started coming into her enclosure.

I've picked up some beef & broth baby food for her in case she doesn't eat within another week or so. Is there a better viewing light I can get for her at night since, even with the spot lamp I bought a couple days ago, the 15W moonlight still barely shows me anything? I still have that 40W red viewing light, but it seemed to bother her before.

 

[bowsertime]

SHE ATE.

Yaaaay she ate.

I'll have to count tomorrow to see just how much she ate, but I saw her butt sticking out of the dish at first, upper body darting back and forth, and then she withdrew with a big wriggling worm in her mouth that she gleefully sucked down.

 

[Dog Shrink]

YAY... see just had to be patient and cater to her every need now don't freak out if she doesn't eat for another day or 2.

 

[bowsertime]

I'll try not to.

I've caught her staring a lot at me through the glass lately. Her ramp and food are right beside where I sit at night to play games and whatnot. I tried to see if giving her a worm from her dish might make her friendly enough to eat from my hand the way she used to... nope. I hope she gets friendlier some time. I really want to be able to handle her when she's more comfortable with everything, but she's just never been okay with touching at all.

 

[Dog Shrink]

They're vey sensitive to being touched on the back. Those tubercles are very touchy (the bumps on their back). They generally mght be a little more receptive if you try to stroke low on their sides or under their belly area. I know Eros boogies if I stroke him down his spine but he'll hang for a lil bit and walk slowly away if I touch his sides or belly areas.

 

[bowsertime]

Yeah, I've tried petting her before along the sides and she sorta' just flinches away. No worries though - I work on her time, not mine.

She only ate the one worm that night and hasn't eaten since. Haven't seen any nice poops lately either. She's been roaming around her worms and still drinking water as much as ever. She's also keeping a very close eye on me lately... head goes everywhere to follow me when I move around outside her tank.

Two questions, though... I tried feeding her by hand again, but still no luck. She still turns her head away and closes her eyes. Why does she close her eyes like that all the time? And what sort of night light would be best for viewing her without bothering her?

 

[Dog Shrink]

Not seeing a poo yet doesn't surprise me if she only ate 1 worm. She's using everything she's eaten and there is no waste yet. Maye tomorrow there will be. Being curious of your activity is a good thing imo. She's learning you. You're kinda not listening again tho... you're trying to hand feed her again isted of just letting her take from her dish. Another change in her environment even if she use to do it before she's not doing it now so don't push it honestly. I can't say why she's closing her eyes when she turns away. All I can say is what I know is what it means when a dog does that. With a leo and in the applications she's using it in it almost sounds to me like "No.... no thanks". In dogs when they turn their head away and slowly blink it's a calming signal (shows the other guy their calm and mean no ill intent plus it helps to calm the other guy in the scene if they're excited or elevated stress wise)... can't say for leos tho.

As far as night time viewing... you could try a 50 watt moonlight blue bulb if your leo is in a 20 long (I can't recall what you said off hand) but again you're not going to get much "quality viewing" regardless of what you use prob. aside of red and we know the red bothered her. Only other thing I could think to see if it provieds any better viewing capabilities is a black light. I've never used one so I can't say how well it could work.

 

[bowsertime]

Okay, I'll pick one of those bulbs up tomorrow. Thanks again.

I've always just been paranoid about whether her shedding has damaged her eyes somehow, like maybe there's some shed in there that's just so tiny it can't be seen or something... she only ever started doing that after the shedding/regurgitating. I'll leave her be from now on, though, until she's more comfortable again.

 

[bowsertime]

Looks like she's about to shed soon again. She's getting quite pale and whitish again... hope all goes well, and that if she decides to eat it like last time, it might kickstart her appetite.

 

[bowsertime]

She's been coming out a bit less lately. Not at all during the day, only sometimes at night. Is she just too fond of her new hiding spot? When I wake up in the mornings to open her window and put the light into her tank, she's almost always out, and I noticed her tail starting to get just a bit thinner, but her body weight is still pretty good. When should I start getting worried and trying some of the baby food?

 

[bowsertime]

No Binti appearances at all tonight... she just stayed under her hide and slept the whole time, it looks like. Is this just shedding-related lethargy or should I be getting (more) worried now?