Need some advice dealing with an emaciated leo

[Chestersmom]

I took in 2 leos last night that were tank mates. The guy that had them thought they were male and female. Well turns out they're both boys. One of them was obviously eating all the food. I have seperated them. I gave "Toothpick" a soak this morning to help get rid of some shed he's got stuck on him. I did get him to eat one roach last night. I weighed him this morning and he's 27 grams. How do I go abut getting him healthy again? He hasn't eaten anything today(I tried small crix, roaches and mealies). No interest, he's just sleeping in his cave. Any way to make him wanna eat? Just leave him alone and keep offering?

This is Toothpick

And this is the bully "Tubby"

 

[Khrysty]

The fact that he ate is a great sign. I would guess he's just starved as a result of bullying. With an animal that thin, you have to slowly wean them back on food. The one roach was a great start. Give him a few days to digest. When you see a fresh poop in the cage, offer him another roach. Again, wait for another poop, and repeat.

Make sure he has plenty of access to water, enough hides (he is likely feeling very insecure after being bullied for so long), and give him some peace to get used to his new home. He'll likely come around pretty soon here.

 

[Jordan]

wow thats one skinny leo.
I think it just takes time for them to be weened back into normal eating. They'll eat in small amounts then they'll start eating more then eventually they'll get back up to a normal diet.
Thats if there arent any other underlying problems.

As mentioned above, but Khrysty got there first lol

 

[fl_orchidslave]

Even if he wants more food, it's best to go slow in adding more. Otherwise they will pig out and regurgitate, then not want to eat for several days. It's good that he is accepting food, often times they are so traumatized from being bullied that they become difficult feeders. Keep up the good work

 

[LZRDGRL]

The name is very fitting He'll be a beautiful Mack Snow once he's back to normal weight. He has a nice long tail :main_thumbsup: You can probably be sure that he doesn't have parasites, since his bully looks very nice. Just get him slowly used to eating again. If he doesn't fatten up in the next few weeks, you could run a fecal sample by the vet, just in case. Since he's so emaciated, you might try a waxworm now and then. Just make sure he also accepts other food.

Good luck! It's great of you to have taken in those two. Toothpick is lucky the other male didn't mutilate or kill him. It could have been much worse. How could the former owner fail to sex them correctly? They're big enough. You're doing a good job :main_yes:

Chrissy

 

[Chestersmom]

Thanks! Well Toothpick pooped last night. It was very watery but I'm assuming that was because I soaked him to help get rid of that yucky shed thats stuck all over him. He did eat a mealworm this morning too. He was out and about checking out his new home too. He seems to be doing better. I'm concerned he might have mbd? He has big knots on his leg joints and by his feet. I put a calcium dish in with him and he has taken a few licks of it. Anything else I need to do as far as that goes? The guy that had them before didn't do anything with them at all. Just put them in a tank and left them there. They aren't used to being handled at all. Toothpick isn't to hard to handle but Tubby is. I'll post more updates as they come, thanks for all the advice!


Question about wax worms, I know for beardies they can be addicting, is it the same for geckos? Should I get him eating other bugs consistently before getting wax worms? I just don't want to create a bad habit lol.

 

[fl_orchidslave]

The poop may have been watery because he drank a lot during the soak. Often times an emaciated gecko is not just starving but dehydrated also. As his eating opportunities improve, his poop will change accordingly. If it continues to be watery then you will need to get a fecal test. If one has parasites, they both need to be treated since they lived together before.

As for MBD- it can be stopped from progressing with calcium drops from the vet. His joints could appear swollen because he is so thin and doesn't have any body mass for his age. If his limbs look curved he may have MBD, I couldn't tell by your photos. If he does have it, hopefully it's early enough for successful treatment.

 

[LZRDGRL]

Now I see what you mean by swollen joints on the picture. MBD makes bones soft, so what you would see are bent arms and the gecko walking on his elbows. But yours has big knots which look an awful lot like gout. Here's a thread about this.

Does it look like this? You can tell better in person than we from a picture. If yes, yours seems to have an early stage; the one on the thread looked much worse and had to be euthanized. There are different things to be done for MBD and gout; the former can be stopped (not really cured) by giving liquid calcium, but I don't know what exactly you need if the diagnosis is gout. Look up the corresponding thread (has a picture); you might find some suggestions. I would consult a vet at this point. Sorry I didn't see that first; I thought it was just reflection from the water bath. It seems to be mainly on the left front leg.

Good luck with your little guy! I wonder whether this is all due to malnutrition.

Chrissy

 

[Chestersmom]

He doesn't look as bad as the gecko in that thread. It may just look worse because he is so skinny. You can see every bone in in body. I'm going to try to put some meat back on his bones and see how he does over the next few weeks. He is eating and is becoming more active. He did eat 2 mealies yesterday morning now just waiting on a poo. He's a very sweet boy, he's already tolerating being picked up to take a bath. I'm hoping with some food and some time he'll pull through. I will keep an eye on him tho and set up a vet appointment in the near future. (money's kinda tight right now)

 

[Chestersmom]

Toothpick is doing great. He's now eating 5-6 roaches/mealies every other day. And he's pooing. Just about all the shed is gone now. I have a question tho, he's got some shed stuck in his eyeballs, how do i get rid of it without hurting his eyes? He's also got some stuck on his toes. I've been using a little bit of mineral oil to help soften it is this ok? Also been soaking him every 3 days or so. Here's a pic of him today in his bath

 

[GeckoGurl]

Wow! He is looking good! Can't wait to see him with some weight I bet he will be gorgeous... hopefully someone will come around with suggestions cause I have only had minor problems and the mineral oil and soaks worked for me... it may just take a little more time considering how bad off he was. But congrats you have been doing a great job!

 

[Chestersmom]

I'm very concerned about Toothpick. The past week he has refused food. He seems to be getting weaker. He can barely lift his head. I just don't know what to do. I don't want to give up on the little guy but I don't want him to suffer. His temps are good 95 hot side ranging down to about 80 on the cool side. He has a wet hide in the center of his tank. He did just go through a shed, could this be causing the appetite loss or has he given up?

 

[roger]

I'm very concerned about Toothpick. The past week he has refused food. He seems to be getting weaker. He can barely lift his head. I just don't know what to do. I don't want to give up on the little guy but I don't want him to suffer. His temps are good 95 hot side ranging down to about 80 on the cool side. He has a wet hide in the center of his tank. He did just go through a shed, could this be causing the appetite loss or has he given up?

Did u take him to the vet?

 

[fl_orchidslave]

Some geckos do go off food during the shed period, however his weakness is not good at all. He would likely eat by licking mashed up insects liquified with plain pedialyte, placed on his lips (do lizards have lips??) and nose tip. Since he was eating before he's probably too weak right now to make any more effort than that. It's a natural action for them to lick, and by feeding this way, force feeding can be avoided thus not causing additional stress to a leo in poor condition. Good luck with him

 

[fl_orchidslave]

Also, if he has not shown visible signs of putting on any body mass, and if you don't have a scale to monitor weight, a poop sample needs to be taken to the vet ASAP. They can most definitely die from a heavy parasite load. And fast!

 

[Chestersmom]

Very sad to say my poor little guy didn't make it.

 

[electrofelt]

I'm so sorry he didn't make it. I was rooting for you guys. At least he isn't struggling any longer. Best of luck.

 

[GeckoGurl]

I am so sorry to hear that he did not make it. At least the little guy knew some love and attention before he passed. You did the right thing and the best that you could. RIP Toothpick

 

[prettyinpink]

Wow he went fast, I'm so sorry

 

[sausage]

if there is a whole eye cap you can either w8 till his next shed and hope it comes off. my crested gcko had that or i have hurd of an ointment you can blob on the eyes but this takes several hours and might cause i little distress in lil toothpick.
you could also use organic olive oil on his toes, the toe skin rele needs to come off asap befor he starts putting a lot of weight on as they might drop off :S