Skinny tail on newly purchased juvi Leopard gecko

[doctorhitts]

Hey everybody.

I recently purchased my first leopard gecko, named DaVinci Killface (DaVinch for short) and I'm very concerned about his/her weight.

First the specifics:
Housed in a 29g long tank with reptile carpet (which I'm considering switching), 3 hides (cool, warm, humid), feeding a dozen crickets over two days (dusted with calcium and D3 powder). Temp during the day stays around 92 degrees, at night about 84 (living in South Florida it does not get much colder). Two water dishes (one low, made of a salsa top, and another one that I thought might be too high, but I see him/her drink from it from time to time). I've also got a plate of dried mealworms to see if DaVinci would eat them anyway, but they seem to only supply the crickets with a meal so they stay away from him/her.

Now my concern, I've had DaVinci for almost 2 weeks now, have yet to see it shed, and its tail has yet to begin to fatten. Are these concerns a little premature? I've heard many different things but I would like to hear some more opinions on this matter. I want to provide this little guy with the best life possible, and I'm worried that I could be doing something more. I've considered wax worms, but I also heard that I should wait until he/she gets older (the guy at the pet store said it was about a month old, its maybe three inches in length, tail and all).

Any response would help because I trusted you guys in preparing me for caring for it, now I'm not sure how my fathering skills are going.

I wish I could post pictures but I don't have a camera. Once I borrow someone's I'll be sure to get those up right away.

Thanks again, and any info will help DaVinci be the best he/she could be!

 

[GatorGirl286]

if your leo has a good appetite and is defacating normal looking feces, then i would just give it time. it took my leo a good month and a half to get his tail as fat as i wanted it to be. you could also try giving a wax worm once a day or every other day, they have a higher fat content. how old/big is your leo? one thing a lot of people mention is that a big tank like that can be intimidating to a baby leo and cause stress. post a pic so we can see him!

 

[bronko]

hey i just recently purchased a juvenile also. When you bought it at the pet store was the tank clean and what kind of substrate did they use. has your leo poop yet look at a fresh stool make sure its not to watery or green or any other odd color. Dont always believes the pet stores waxworms should be fine if you think he/she's too skinny they will help him/her gain weight faster then crickets or mealies. when feeding do you only feed 6 crickets at a time or do you just throw a bunch of crickets in the tank and let him/her eat for 10-15 minutes and remove any uneaten crickets because my juvenile will eat a dozen 1/4'' crickets a day

 

[doctorhitts]

I usually throw the whole dozen in and its gone within two days. The gecko came from a sand substrate, which worried me because I heard so many horror stories. His poop seems fine, brown with white in it, a little watery but not runny. Whenever he eats, his belly fattens up but then just goes back down afterwards.

I'm going to get some wax worms for him next time I go buy crickets , how many do you think I should get? And how should I keep them when he's not eating?

(Forgive my gendered text, not sure if it's a male or female yet)

I'm going to borrow a camera from someone tomorrow so hopefully I can get some pictures up.

And GatorGirl, I'm considering putting him in a smaller tank if it will help him become more healthy. Maybe with the large tank he gets too much exercise chasing all the cricks around. I'm not sure, but I love learning more and more about these fascinating creatures.

I'll keep you posted. Thanks for all the advice.

 

[bronko]

you shouldnt leave live prey in the tank for long periods of time it can stress out your juvenile and also when the crickets are in the tank with your leo and it gets hungry it will start to eat your leo's stools then your leo eats the cricket you could get a parasite problem thats why its very important to clean up stool daily and also make sure your crickets shelter is also clean

 

[doctorhitts]

Well, I originally tried to leave the crickets in for only 15-20 minutes but DaVinci would not come out to eat within that time period. Perhaps if I put DaVinci in a smaller enclosure, with only the appropriate hides and water dish, heat light, etc., s/he may be more inclined to eat the crickets, which would in-turn make it easier for me to get rid of any that s/he does not eat.

If anyone else believes this is an appropriate procedure please feel free to give me that support. If you appose it, please provide me with other options.

Once again, thank you and I'll keep you posted.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

I would not recommend throwing a dozen crickets in the enclosure and leaving them there for 2 days. It would be better if you only put in 3-4, and once they are gone add a few more.

 

[doctorhitts]

Just thought I'd give you guys an update on DaVinci's condition.

This past week, he was refusing to eat anything. So I quickly mixed up a batch of Marcia's slurry (with the two optional ingredients as well) and started feeding that to him. The first night, he ate a pretty good amount of it (about .05mL);however, the following nights he seemed to refuse the feeding, eating very little and wiping a lot of it off on his cage and on the paper towels (which I use for substrate).

Also, that night (Wednesday, I believe), I found a herp vet just outside of town, but she was booked until today (Monday). So I set the appointment, and kept on feeding the slurry.

Before the appointment, I noticed a HUGE difference in the activeness of DaVinci, he was able to keep his head high and drink from the water bowl with no problems. I continued to give him warm water baths twice a day, and he even ate half of a wax worm on Sunday.

So, I went to the vet today, and she explained to me that DaVinci is extremely underweight (only 3 grams), and when I told her the only thing he's been eating this past week is the slurry recipe, she was curious as to what was in the slurry, and how much he had been eating. I brought the ingredients of the slurry in with me, and she says it's perhaps the greatest slurry recipe she has ever seen, and she's going to start recommending it to all her clients. However, she insisted that having him lap it up on his own was not going to do the trick. So she provided me with a feeding syringe that has a tube that goes down his throat, and she recommended I feed him 1/2 a CC everyday for the next month.

The fecal sample I brought in was from Friday night (the only time he provided me one all weekend), and even though I kept it in a tupperware in the refrigerator, she claimed it was too dry to do any testing on. So, I still need to bring in a fecal as soon as I get one. So until then, we won't know if he has any other problems.

Ok, so now I know it's going to be an uphill climb from here on out, but I am so determined to turn this little guy around. Just thought I would keep you guys updated. As soon as I get the fecal in and get the results, I'll be sure to let you know. And boy do I wish I had a camera so you guys could see DaVinci.

Well, wish DaVinci the best, and feel free to comment on any of the advice the vet gave me. Any other questions are welcome, too.

Thanks again Marcia, your slurry is wonderful.

 

[MSMD]

The best of luck with your little one! I hope he makes a full recovery for you!

 

[Bennayboi]

If he does get back to eating live insects, make sure theyre well gutloaded.

 

[doctorhitts]

Thank you for your comments and well wishes.

To you Bennayboi (or anyone else that cares to comment), what do you suggest gutloading the crickets with? Previously, I had gutloaded them with potato, kale, and lettuce.

 

[Bennayboi]

For a homemade mix, it depends what you can get your hands on. A combo of oats, Wheat germ, Baby Rice cereal, Whole grain cereal(like cherios), Dry dog/cat food would be the common items. If youre near a health food store Bee Pollen, alfalfa meal, spirulina and other natural super-foods would be best.

If you think it would be a pain to make your own there are many commercially made gutloads. http://progeckos.com/supplies/pro_gutload.htm is one that many users here use. If you buy commerical ones just make sure they arent full of useless fillers(plant and animal bi-products). Generally fresh veggies like potatoes and lettuce are only good for moisture.

 

[THE WHISPERER]

Perhaps if I put DaVinci in a smaller enclosure, with only the appropriate hides and water dish, heat light, etc.,

.

do you have a under tank heater? Leos need belly heat to properly digest there food.

 

[doctorhitts]

Thank you for the quick reply, it seems the progeckos gutload feed is very well-made, and reasonably priced, too. I do believe I will go with that option, that is if he begins eating again. Only time will tell.

Well I do believe it is time for another warm water bath (which I've been giving DaVinci 2-3 times daily now).

Thank you again.

And as for the undertank heater, I was told the best option was to put it on the side of the tank (the warm side, obviously), but perhaps I was misinformed. Do you feel this is inadequate? Should it be strictly placed underneath the warm side, as opposed to the side?

Please, all comments and inquiries are encouraged; I want the best for my gecko, and I'm not giving up on him.

 

[Bennayboi]

Under the tank is best, hooked up to a thermostat to prevent over heating. Pet stores and item directions are normally wrong.

Dont worry... once their set-up is correct leopard geckos practically take care of themselves.

 

[doctorhitts]

Thank you, I don't know where I'd be without this forum.

 

[voretaq7]

And as for the undertank heater, I was told the best option was to put it on the side of the tank (the warm side, obviously), but perhaps I was misinformed. Do you feel this is inadequate? Should it be strictly placed underneath the warm side, as opposed to the side?

Sounds like you have the right idea but not quite the right positioning The UTH should be stuck to the floor of the warm side (preferably under a hide or a hide + some floor space) -- like others have said leos rely on belly heat to digest their food, so if the heater is on the side of the tank they're not really benefiting unless they're curled up in some funky position against the glass

The surface temperature over the UTH should be somewhere between 88-92 (F), and with most heaters you'll need either a thermostat or a rheostat(lamp dimmer) to keep it from getting too hot.

 

[doctorhitts]

So for the UTH, I found many expensive thermostats, but also this rheostat from ZooMed (who makes my UTH), which is considerably less; does anyone have experience with this product?

http://www.zoomed.com/db/products/EntryDetail.php?EntryID=123&DatabaseID=2&SearchID=1&SearchContext=YTo3OntzOjg6IlNlYXJjaElEIjtzOjE6IjEiO3M6MTA6IkRhdGFiYXNlSUQiO3M6MToiMiI7czo3OiJLZXl3b3JkIjtzOjI2OiJIZWF0aW5nL1RoZXJtb3N0YXRzL0dhdWdlcyI7czoxNToiUHJvZHVjdENhdGVnb3J5IjtzOjc6IkhlYXRpbmciO3M6NzoiSGVhZGluZyI7czo5OiJUZXJyYXJpdW0iO3M6ODoiU2VhcmNoX3giO3M6MToiMCI7czo4OiJTZWFyY2hfeSI7czoxOiIwIjt9

 

[Superior]

That is the rheostat I use. It works well but you have to experiment with the controls to get the temperatures right.

 

[acpart]

If you're going to use a rheostat, your best deal would be to go to Home Depot or Loews and get a lamp dimmer. It's the same thing and costs about $11. I use thermostats made by Alife or ESU which are under $30.

Aliza