New Gecko owner with a concern

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MissDoom1985

Guest
Hi I'm new to the forum, referred here by a close friend and owner/breeder. I've now had my Leo for close to 2 months, he started acting strangely a little less than a week ago right after I gave him his first waxworm meal to start fattening him up. I have always fed him on crickets and mealies and he loved them but hasn't willingly eaten since the waxworms. He also has been somewhat fighting with himself in his glass which I know is a common phase but I was wondering if it could be what is affecting his feeding. He also just shed last night too, but he has already shed 3 previous times and never stopped eating before or after those sheds.

What I am getting at is that I'm worried about him because he has been sleeping more out in the open and has stopped eating and I can't seem to put it with any one cause. His tank temp varies between 84-88 during the day also, so I'm not keeping him to hot or cold I believe.

Can anyone help with some clues? I may just be a new owner overreacting. =[

Thank you
 
M

MissDoom1985

Guest
I should probably add also, I don't actually know if mine is male or female yet, I just prefer to call it a he for some reason.
 
fallen_angel

fallen_angel

Fallen Angel's Geckos
Messages
7,937
Location
Stockton, CA
How many wax worms did he eat? Sometimes if you feed them too many or just wax worms alone for too long, they stop eating everything else because they become addicted to them.

What do you mean by him fighting with himself? Sorry if this is dumb, but I don't understand.

What is the rest of your setup like? Moist hides, dry hides, substrate, etc?

Welcome to GeckoForums btw :)
 
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MissDoom1985

Guest
SORRY I WAS A BIT VAGUE SINCE i'M AT WORK posting this. He only ate 5 worms that night which was about the same as his 8-9 smaller mealies and it was only that one night I gave to him because I know only twice a week is more than enough.
He fights his reflection in his tanks glass, usually at night, of course. He looks cool doing it but it worries me.

One side of tank has the undertank heater and his enclosed moist hide the other side has his dry hide and cooler temp and the heat lamp is above shining more to the heated side and middle. His substrate is paper towel for the time being since he is fairly young. I researched a lot before owning him so I could care for him properly so I hope this is just a stubborn hunger strike.

Thank you for the welcome. this looks like a good forum =]
 
acpart

acpart

Geck-cessories
Staff member
Messages
15,485
Location
Somerville, MA
This will not take care of all your concerns, but here are 2 things to consider: some geckos love waxworms so much that they won't eat anything else. You may have to just persist with the "healthy" food until s/he caves in. The scrabbling around at the side of the cage is pretty normal. The heat on the hot side should really be about 92 degrees on the floor. I hope this is helpful.

Aliza
 
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MissDoom1985

Guest
acpart said:
This will not take care of all your concerns, but here are 2 things to consider: some geckos love waxworms so much that they won't eat anything else. You may have to just persist with the "healthy" food until s/he caves in. The scrabbling around at the side of the cage is pretty normal. The heat on the hot side should really be about 92 degrees on the floor. I hope this is helpful.

Aliza
Click to expand...

Thank you. I was hoping he didnt get spoiled after just one feeding because he needs to fatten up a bit. And I need to get a themometer for his floor. I currently have a side strip that reads the temp in exact mid of tank and i just calculate by touch for now, his hot side would seem around 90's and cool side is probably 80 or so. That's one thing that has stayed constant so I would have thought if i were wrong about temp he would have shown his loss of appetite much sooner.
 
M

MissDoom1985

Guest
**UPDATE**
After work today I went and bought him some organic baby food and stuck some drops on his nose, he actually started licking it from the eye dropper =] Next thing I know he snapped 10 mealies out of my fingers. Either the baby food worked, he was finally hungry, or he decided to end his waxworm strike once the nose poking began =] Thank you for all the help
 
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