Possible stick tail + other problems, I need some tips

[fnaticolofmeister]

I'll try to keep this as short as possible, since I've already tried typing this like twice now. I've had my leopard gecko for 9 years and this is the first time anything serious has come up. I believe my gecko has stick tail disease, because his tail is way skinnier than it was just yesterday, he refuses to eat anything I give him, isolates himself, and his feces look like half-digested crickets. His feces have looked highly unusual for the past week but he wasn't acting differently, so I didn't do anything about it. Now just about 30 minutes ago, he was opening his mouth really wide and he shook his body around the whole cage very violently. I don't know if that even has anything to do with stick tail, but that was another concern because I've never seen him do that before. One more thing is that I think he may have completely lost his eyesight over the course of 24 hours because all day he has not been giving me eye contact at all or looking at the food I try to give him, which is something he would have always done.

(Spoiler alert, I'm an idiot) I switched over from calcium sand to reptile carpet about a month ago. He has been living in calcium sand for his whole life. Ever since then I have been coating his crickets in Repti Calcium with D3. It seemed to be going okay for the first few weeks and now all this happened. The only problem I noticed right away is that his feces were a lot smaller than they usually were, but I really didn't think it was anything serious because he looked and acted completely healthy. If that had anything to do with it, please let me know. I think part of the problem was switching from sand to carpet, and I'm going to buy sand tomorrow and switch it back (let me know if I should or should not do that). Yes, I know I'm stupid for switching it, I feel really bad about it.

So this is my question. What exactly can I do for him until I can find a vet? He is refusing all the food I give him so I don't even know how he will eat. I don't know how long until I can take him to a vet so I want to know if there is anything I can do that can make him live at least a few more days until I can. Another question I have is, can stick tail disease even be cured? I was looking into this all day today and for the most part I've been told it cannot be treated and the best thing to do is put it down. Thanks for reading and please try to help if you can.

 

[indyana]

What is traditionally called "stick tail disease" is a parasite called Cryptosporidium. It can't be cured, although animals can sometimes live with it, but it's unlikely your gecko just suddenly picked it up without being exposed to another infected animal or their feces. I'd look at some other things first.
Basic environment check:
* Do you have an under tank heater keeping one side of the tank floor heated? (Heat lamps / lights are not recommended)
* Is the floor surface on the warm side kept 88 - 90 F? (best measured with a temp gun or a digital thermometer with a probe, not a dial)
* Does he have a warm hide so he can feel secure while digesting food?
* Do you have a humid hide for him so he can stay hydrated?

Carpet is typically much better than sand for a variety of reasons, so I doubt that taking sand away has caused your gecko's issues. Dusting food with calcium + D3 is a good idea as well, as geckos typically do not get enough nutrition from pet store insects alone.

 

[equinelove93]

I had an unfortunate case of crypto earlier this year with my very young leo. We tried to treat it but it got worse and he was humanely euthanized.

If you have the proper set up as mentioned above here are some things I've learned while trying to fight crypto.

Crypto is very hard to kill. Bleach won't kill it. Typically your best bet is keeping the habitat as clean as possible. My leo had uncontrollable dirreaha with crypto.

I would remove the reptile carpet and switch to paper towel for the time being. I would promptly remove soiled bedding each day. And disinfect the tank and water dish frequently using hydrogen peroxide as it does appear to kill some crypto. But the peroxide needs atleast 10-30 minutes to disinfect. I had purchased zilla high caloric supplement and appetite stimulant formula. I would mix it with some water and with a small.dropper i would let my gecko lick it off his nose. I really like.this supplement as it has vitamins and is high in fats. When added with water it also helps hydrate the gecko aswell.

Luke warm baths are also useful to keep a gecko hydrated if they are not drinking or receiving anything from the insects they eat.

But only a vet can diagnose crypto. In a severe case it can be a loosing battle. However I've heard of cases where it has been managed to a point where eventhough the gecko has it, it can live a relatively normal life with proper care and husbandry to keep it at bay.



Sent from my SGH-M919 using Tapatalk

 

[acpart]

I would find it unusual for a gecko that's been kept for 9-10 years by the same person without other geckos in the home (I'm assuming that; if there's been a new reptile addition to the household recently than all bets are off) to have developed crypto.

Aliza