My Gecko - Lea

[mihurcina]

So this is my female gecko Lea... Think she's a nice High yellow girl ... Dunno...

... and before, when she was w8ing 4 her setup ...

And Her new setup... I think it's cool ...
Hot side - 29-30°C

Mid-temps

Cold Side 24-26°C

 

[Grinning Geckos]

The one thing that looks like is missing is a calcium dish. You should be dusting her food and have a small dish in the tank at all times. The front limbs on your girl look like the beginnings of MBD. Paying close attention to her calcium will ensure it doesn't get any worse.

 

[moosassah]

The front limbs on your girl look like the beginnings of MBD. Paying close attention...

Can you explain this more? What are you basing it on & what should she be watching out for? Thanks for helping clear it up for any of us who are on the newer end of gecko ownership.

 

[paulnj]

Sand is a very bad substrate, though it looks nice. It can cause impaction in you gecko, which could lead to death or a vet visit at minimum.

Might I suggest tile substrate if looks are important to you.

The rest of your setup looks great!

 

[Grinning Geckos]

Can you explain this more? What are you basing it on & what should she be watching out for? Thanks for helping clear it up for any of us who are on the newer end of gecko ownership.

A lot of times, the first noticable sign of MBD is the front legs. If you look at the forearm area, it looks slightly bowed. Sometimes, camera angles can make them look funny, but when you look at multiple shots you can see the same curve. At this point, I would guess it's in it's early stages. If you were to compress the jaw, my guess is that it would feel spongy (careful, you don't want to hurt them!). I would also guess that it rolls on it's feet when walking...it doesn't look right when you see it. Administering liquid calcium from the vets is best, but increasing calcium in the diet is a start.

Caught at this point, you can easily save this gecko from a lot of pain and disfigurement. If allowed to continue, the limbs will continue to curl until it can no longer walk on it's feet.

Here's a baby that developed MBD from a congenital metabolic problem. Because it was caught early, I was able to fully rehabilitate it, and it has no problems with it's legs now. You can sorta see the rolling on the foot that I was talking about.

 

[leopardgecko95]

You need to get the gecko off sand. Paper towels make a safe substrate and are really easy to clean.