Recurring Lumps under Eyes?

[aspen_matthews]

Hi there, new to the forum. I have had leos for about 12-14 years. One of my leos has a recurring lump under his left eye. I've taken him to the vet probably 5-8 times for it. They've removed it (it's a hard lump, solid) and let it heal, then once they had us give him small shots of antibiotics hoping that would knock it out once and for all. It did not. I don't intend to put him on it again as it was very stressful for him (and me) to get injections every other day for almost a month and I don't think it's fair to put him through that. My gecko didn't have them for quite a while but it came back under the usual eye and I noticed tonight he also has it under the other eye for the very first time. The vet(s) have never figured out what causes it. So I'm looking to the gecko community for any help. I do have one idea. He's had sand substrate his entire life and I'm considering moving him over to paper towels (one of my others is on paper towels past couple years since she had an injury so I just left her on it, the other one is on sand...they are all in different terrariums as they don't get along well) thinking maybe the sand is irritating and builds up bacteria. Agreement on this or other ideas? Thanks!

 

[DrCarrotTail]

Pictures and a thorough description of his habitat and feeding would help. If you could fill out the form in the sticky on this forum it would be great: http://geckoforums.net/f130-health-medications/70912.htm

I would definitely recommend taking him off sand. I know it looks nice but its not a great substrate for leopard geckos to be kept on. Without some additional information its hard to even guess at what's going on.

 

[aspen_matthews]

About your leo:
- Sex - Pretty sure he's male
- Age & Weight - weight currently unknown, age is approx 12-13 yrs
- How long have you owned your leo - see below
- Where was he/she obtained (ex. Pet store, breeder, wild caught, friend) - I found him in the parking lot outside +++++ and they told me they couldn't take him back so I kept him. My college roommate was going to school to study reptiles so he told me how to take care of him. He was a tiny baby, maybe 2-3 inches long?

A) Health/History
- How often do you handle your leo - rarely, maybe 1x a month, he doesn't like it much
- Is your leo acting any different today? If so how does he/she normally act which differs from now. - not too much, he seems maybe less interested in food right now with his bumpy face
- Has he/she had any problems in the past, if so please describe. - recurring problem, no other issues
B) Fecals
- Describe (look any different than normal) - normal
- When was the last time he/she went - not completely sure, I think last week after eating
C) Problem
- Please briefly describe the problem and how long it has been going on - please see first post

Housing:
A) Enclosure (see photos attached)
- Size 10 gallon tank
- Type (ex. glass tank) glass with mesh top
- Type of substrate - currently sand, plan to switch to paper towels
- Hides, how many, what kind - two, one coconut one "stone" on opposite sides of enclosure
B) Heating
- Heat source - UTH on left side
- Cage temps (hot side, cool side) - no temps taken, room is kept approx 75 degrees
- Method of regulating heat source
- What are you using to measure your temps
- Do you have any lights (describe) - no, last vet told me leos don't need them so I stopped using them
C) Cage mates
- How many (males, females) - none. Used to house all 3 together (2 fem 1 male) but after several years they stopped getting along. One of the females is a bully. He does much better alone.
- Describe health, or previous problems - generally good except for this recurrent issue

Describe Diet:
A) Typical diet
- What you're feeding (how often, how much) - medium crickets or large mealworms 1x/wk (usually 10-12 crickets or 15-20 mealworms), waxworms are an occasional treat
- How are you feeding (hand fed, left in dish, ect) - left in dish, he rarely likes to eat by hand
B) Supplements (describe how often) - vitamin powder every other feeding
- What vitamin/minerals are you using (list brands) - Reptivite with D3
- What are you gut loading food with - preloaded from pet store

 

[DrCarrotTail]

Your setup looks pretty good. I would provide a moist hide - a tupperware or something with a bit of damp cocofiber in it and get rid of the sand. The bumps could easily be small abscesses resulting from improper shedding or debris getting inside your geckos eye socket or hanging out inside his mouth. Since they are on both sides and fairly uniform and I see a bit of crustiness on the corners of his mouth my thought is its something that's getting stuck or rubbing his mouth raw and causing infection and swelling - it could be the sand. They issue also may be totally unrelated to the sand but removing it would at least eliminate one possible cause of the issue. If the lumps are more swellings behind his eyes than small bumps underneath them I would assume they're abscesses and the only way to cure them is to have them lanced and drained by a vet paired with injectible antibiotics as you described using last time. If that treatment seemed to get rid of the issue in the past, abscesses either inside the mouth or eyes would be where I would put my money. I am, of course, not a veterinarian myself and have not seen your gecko in person so i would recommend you go back to your vet to get him treated.

Best of luck and I hope you get to the bottom of it!