Recent rescue refuses to use humid hides

[Duster]

Hey everybody,

First time poster to the forums. I've recently rescued an enigma from a local pet store (hardly noticeable symptoms). He was in pretty sad condition when I got him, skinny tail, shed on his head and toes, no humid hide in sight. The first picture is a couple of days after I got him. I had a chance to remove all the shed and let him acclimate to his new tank. He did end up losing a toe on his front and back left feet however.

The second picture is of him about a week ago. As you can see he is doing a lot better and has bulked up quite a bit. The one problem I'm having is he absolutely refuses to use his humid hide. I've tried everything I could think of. I've used paper towels, sphagnum (sp?) moss, and now coco fiber. I've moved it from the warm side to the middle (not the cold side though) of his tank. I've tried to make it darker by covering the sides. I've switched out humid hides. Things just aren't working. He's shed twice since I've gotten him and both times he's refused to use his humid hide. In the end I've had to give him a 15 minute soak in warm water and manually remove the shed from his toes.

Anybody have any other suggestions? I'm running out of options. Don't get me wrong, if he doesn't use the humid hides I will still manually remove his shed. I would just feel more comfortable if he could do it on his own.

And to answer everybody's question, yes I've had a leopard gecko before. It's been about a year, but I had my first gecko for 8 years before he passed last year. It's taken me this long to get over it and bring myself to get another.

 

[Embrace Calamity]

It's possible he has a vitamin A deficiency if he was in bad shape before. He might not be using the humid hide because he doesn't need it, but rather the lack of vitamin A is what's causing the poor sheds. If you could fill this out, it would help: http://geckoforums.net/f130-health-medications/70912.htm

It's my understanding that Engimas often have problems shedding anyway, so even if everything is right, it might always be an issue.

~Maggot

 

[Duster]

About your leo:
- Sex Unsexed, however it's looking to be male
- Age & Weight I'm thinking somewhere around 4 - 6 months 38g at the time of the second picture
- How long have you owned your leo Month and a half
- Where was he/she obtained (ex. Pet store, breeder, wild caught, friend) A local pet store that doesn't know how to care for leopard geckos

A) Health/History
- How often do you handle your leo Couple of minutes every other day, but gradually increasing. More time spent handling when I'm removing his shed.
- Is your leo acting any different today? If so how does he/she normally act which differs from now. No.
- Has he/she had any problems in the past, if so please describe. Too early to tell.
B) Fecals
- Describe (look any different than normal) Normal
- When was the last time he/she went Daily to every other day
C) Problem
- Please briefly describe the problem and how long it has been going on See first post

Housing:
A) Enclosure
- Size 20g Long
- Type (ex. glass tank) Glass tank
- Type of substrate Repticarpet
- Hides, how many, what kind 2 dry hides (one cool which is wood, one hot which is a typical pet store hide), 1 moist hide (warm side deli container)
B) Heating
- Heat source UTH
- Cage temps (hot side, cool side) 90 in the warm hide, 73 on the cool side
- Method of regulating heat source Proportional Thermostat
- What are you using to measure your temps IR Temp Gun
- Do you have any lights (describe) No.
C) Cage mates
- How many (males, females) None
- Describe health, or previous problems

Describe Diet:
A) Typical diet
- What you're feeding (how often, how much) Staple is mealworms at the moment. Crickets once or twice a week. Right now I feed him daily, and as many as he wants. He's a good eater.
- How are you feeding (hand fed, left in dish, ect) By hand for the mealworms, seperate feeding cage for the crickets.
B) Supplements (describe how often)
- What vitamin/minerals are you using (list brands) Herptivite 1-2 times a week. ReptoCal with D3 (also includes Vitamin A 1-2 times a week. Rep-Cal Calcium without D3 2-3 times a week.
- What are you gut loading food with Mealworms - oatmeal, local cricket/mealworm gutload (really great stuff), random fruits/veggies
Crickets - water, Fluker's Orange Cubes, Flukers High Cal Diet, local cricket/mealworm gutload

 

[Duster]

I also understand that Enigmas do have problems, but typically the ones that have shedding problems are the ones that display severe symptoms. However, the only symptom I have ever seen with him is walking in circles. This was literally the day we got him home. Otherwise I haven't seen him display any of the other neurological anomalies since then, unless you consider missing a cricket or two a neurological anomaly...

 

[Embrace Calamity]

Hmmm. Has there been any improvements in the sheds at all?

~Maggot

 

[Duster]

The last time he shed he only had a bit of shed left on his toes. I didn't even remove that stuff manually. I just put him in his humid hide and blocked the entrance for half an hour. He came out clean as a whistle.

What worries me is the fact that I live in a cold and very dry environment. I suspect if he doesn't use his humid hide at some point shedding will become a bigger problem in the coming years.

 

[Embrace Calamity]

Well it's possible that now that he's getting vitamin A, his sheds will continue to improve. Again, humidity isn't the sole factor in proper sheds. I can remember one person on here specifically who got a leo who wasn't being supplemented correctly; first shed was horrible, and she was concerned. But after making sure he was getting proper vitamin A, the sheds kept getting better and better until it was no longer an issue. Obviously can't guarantee that'll happen with yours, but we can at least hope, as I'm sure it does have a vitamin deficiency based on the condition it was in when you got it. Hopefully someone else can maybe give you some other ideas, but it sounds like you're gonna have to just wait it out and see how it goes.

EDIT: What kind of water do you use? Filtered or straight from the tap? If the latter, is it possible your gecko smells something in the water it doesn't like? Most (if not all) tap water is pretty nasty.

~Maggot

 

[B&B Geckos]

Many keepers house their leos without a wet hide with few, if any, shedding problems. In the winter when the humidity in the home drops simply keep an eye out for when they're get cloudy, either make a ball out of a wet paper towel and place it in the warm hide, or spray their paper towel (if keep on the paper towel). Downside is that this requires more diligence.

 

[Ozy]

My leo won't use her humid hide unless it's misted with Spring Water. I use Eco-Earth substrate in it. I tried tap water with Repti-safe in it and she wouldn't use it AT ALL. Normally she sleeps in her humid hide during the day, then goes to her cool hide for a bit when she wakes up, then goes into her dry warm hide. But when I tried the tap water she wouldn't go anywhere NEAR her humid hide. Soon as I replaced the Eco-earth and misted with spring water a couple days later she went right back to using it.

 

[Duster]

I'm using spring water and Eco-earth right now as well. He's been a bit skittish lately, as he only comes out to feed and then darts right back to his warm hide after he's full. I'm hoping he's just taking a bit longer to acclimate to his surroundings. I have only had him for a month and a half...

 

[Kylerbassman]

My male I obtained when he was 2. He was never given a humid hide, in fact, he was used to only 1 hide. He will still not use the humid hide much. He has toe shed issues (he was missing quite a few when i got him but none since i have been helping) but they have been getting better with proper supplementation. I think as long as you are providing one and helping your Leo with stuck shed, your doing all you can. I have changed bedding materials in the humid hide and have even changed locations, and nothing has worked. I really think some just don't like the humid hide. He tends to like it warmer then my female also. Just make sure your supplementing correctly, keep the humid hide in there, make sure there is always clean water (I have noticed my male dipping his toes in the water before) and help with shedding issues and you should be ok. You may see changes in behavior once your Leo has settled in. It took my male close to a month before I really saw him be active and feel comfortable. They all seem to have different attitudes and corks about them. Good luck

 

[hollyswamp]

I don't use a humid hide for my geckos. But in the event of a bad shed (it has happened before), i will place a moist piece of paper towel (made of several layers, so it's thick) on the ground of his shelter. He will then remove the remaining dead skin by himself, without any interventions from me.

 

[Designer Geckos]

Many keepers house their leos without a wet hide with few, if any, shedding problems. In the winter when the humidity in the home drops simply keep an eye out for when they're get cloudy, either make a ball out of a wet paper towel and place it in the warm hide, or spray their paper towel (if keep on the paper towel). Downside is that this requires more diligence.

Perfect! Agree 100%. We do not use humid hides, ever. We've researched into this for years. We do check each gecko at least once a day, and as soon as they start to get cloudy we placed a wet crumpled paper towel in each hide to form a sauna. Works great. Humid hides are very problematic. They don't stay warm enough which affects leos' appetites, color, growth rate, and overall health. They can also create skin and respiratory infections.
We are in Colorado where the air is very dry, and we have zero problems with our method. You must be a very diligent gecko keeper though, and I know most here are. Of course, at the end of the shed carefully check its toes, eyes and jawlines, vent area, and belly....remove shed remnants prompty.
If you need specific care info per our instructions email us and we'll be glad to send that out via email. Good luck.

 

[Embrace Calamity]

Perfect! Agree 100%. We do not use humid hides, ever. We've researched into this for years. We do check each gecko at least once a day, and as soon as they start to get cloudy we placed a wet crumpled paper towel in each hide to form a sauna. Works great. Humid hides are very problematic. They don't stay warm enough which affects leos' appetites, color, growth rate, and overall health. They can also create skin and respiratory infections.
We are in Colorado where the air is very dry, and we have zero problems with our method. You must be a very diligent gecko keeper though, and I know most here are. Of course, at the end of the shed carefully check its toes, eyes and jawlines, vent area, and belly....remove shed remnants prompty.
If you need specific care info per our instructions email us and we'll be glad to send that out via email. Good luck.

I'm curious if you have any good documentation of the issues that humid hides present? I would think if your geckos aren't shedding properly, that would mean it's not working "great." =/

~Maggot

 

[Ozy]

You know, in the wild, leopard geckos sleep in humid burrows during the day right? I know my gecko has herself a little burrow dug out in her humid hide. She sleeps in it, then usually comes out around sunset, goes into her cool hide for a bit, climbs around and what not, then goes into her dry warm hide to digest her food.