Angela Gatt
New Member
- Messages
- 8
- Location
- Canada
Hi there! I purchased a leopard gecko from a lady at the end of April. She seemed interested in the money, and left quickly, so I don't know anything about how she cared for him. The ad did say he was approx. 4 years old.
When I got him, he was getting heat from above with 2 exo-terra night heat lights, and was on sand. His terrarium is the exo-terra 18x18x18. He had only 1 hide in the center of the cage.
At first, he ate a little bit (2-3 meal worms on the first day, and 2 mealworms and a cricket a few days later). Since then, he has eaten sporadically and never more than one thing at a time. Time passed, and he had gone approx 3 weeks with out eating, and 2 weeks without pooping. I ended up taking him to the vet. She gave me some lactulose to get him pooping. Once he had, she did a fecal test and we found out he had pinworms. I've been given 3 doses of medication (I'm not sure what it is, but it's 0.03 ml of a white paste) to give every 14 days. He received his first treatment exactly one week ago.
His current situation:
- Still in exo-terra 18x18x18
- UTH (I think it's the exo-terra small)
- 2 hides (one on top of UTH, one midway, a magnaturals wall hide on order)
- ceramic tile substrate
- digital probe in cool end reads fairly steady at 72 F, with a humidity around 20%
- laser thermometer reads anywhere from 86 - 94 F in hot end
- weight: 58 grams
Since we've discovered he has pinworms, I've cleaned the tank out daily. Every day I offer food, but he's not eating (I leave one or two crickets/mealworms in the tank, and on occasion one disappears, but no hunting interest). I have offered mealworms, crickets, butterworms and waxworms. He has not pooped since the day I gave the medication (which he did before I gave it). He does thermoregulate, moving from hide to hide. He does drink water from his dish. His colour is bright (last shed 3 weeks ago) and his tail seems to be staying the same size. It had gotten a bit smaller before seeing the vet, but hasn't gotten any smaller since.
My question (after all this long winded intro....) is how long do you think it will take for him to perk up again? Why is he not pooping? I know he must feel full because his belly is full of pinworms, but shouldn't the medication get that moving? Do you think the pinworms have impacted him? Should I try a bit more lactulose? Anyone else who has had this situation have any advice to offer? This is my first venture into reptiles, so I am open to any advice anyone may have. Thank you!
When I got him, he was getting heat from above with 2 exo-terra night heat lights, and was on sand. His terrarium is the exo-terra 18x18x18. He had only 1 hide in the center of the cage.
At first, he ate a little bit (2-3 meal worms on the first day, and 2 mealworms and a cricket a few days later). Since then, he has eaten sporadically and never more than one thing at a time. Time passed, and he had gone approx 3 weeks with out eating, and 2 weeks without pooping. I ended up taking him to the vet. She gave me some lactulose to get him pooping. Once he had, she did a fecal test and we found out he had pinworms. I've been given 3 doses of medication (I'm not sure what it is, but it's 0.03 ml of a white paste) to give every 14 days. He received his first treatment exactly one week ago.
His current situation:
- Still in exo-terra 18x18x18
- UTH (I think it's the exo-terra small)
- 2 hides (one on top of UTH, one midway, a magnaturals wall hide on order)
- ceramic tile substrate
- digital probe in cool end reads fairly steady at 72 F, with a humidity around 20%
- laser thermometer reads anywhere from 86 - 94 F in hot end
- weight: 58 grams
Since we've discovered he has pinworms, I've cleaned the tank out daily. Every day I offer food, but he's not eating (I leave one or two crickets/mealworms in the tank, and on occasion one disappears, but no hunting interest). I have offered mealworms, crickets, butterworms and waxworms. He has not pooped since the day I gave the medication (which he did before I gave it). He does thermoregulate, moving from hide to hide. He does drink water from his dish. His colour is bright (last shed 3 weeks ago) and his tail seems to be staying the same size. It had gotten a bit smaller before seeing the vet, but hasn't gotten any smaller since.
My question (after all this long winded intro....) is how long do you think it will take for him to perk up again? Why is he not pooping? I know he must feel full because his belly is full of pinworms, but shouldn't the medication get that moving? Do you think the pinworms have impacted him? Should I try a bit more lactulose? Anyone else who has had this situation have any advice to offer? This is my first venture into reptiles, so I am open to any advice anyone may have. Thank you!
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