thin tailed gecko

[smallville709]

guys i just bought a new gecko a week ago what worries me is my geckos tail is kinda thin. no shape at all just like the other bulgy tailed gecko. he weighs 23grams a week ago and now hes 25 grams.i think he might be a year old. im just worried because i see feces every other day not regular. aside from that all of my other geckos feces are formed and color black. hes feces is formed but kinda mushy with a greyish color. he length from head to tip of tail is around 6 inch. im really worried he might have parasite and might infect my other geckos. cause there tank are close together. what do you think guys? is that normal for a gecko? the feces and all? pls help?

 

[Crasher_Insane]

First off all new animals must be quarantined for about 3-6 months. This means that if you touch the new animals tank or furnishings you have to wash your hands before you touch anything to do with your existing reptiles.

As for the feces, get a fecal done by a vet, even non-herp vets should be able to examine a fecal for parasites. Was this a gecko you obtained through a breeder or large chain store?

 

[ElapidSVT]

make sure to clean your new gecko's cage last; that will minimize any possibility of transmitting any diseases between animals. runny stool is not normal and it's important to clean it immediately upon defecation or asap upon noticing it. clean the water dish daily and make sure there's always fresh, clean water in it. make sure there's a 90-92F hot spot so the animal can properly thermoregulate. with a skinny tail on a year-old animal, you're going to have a tough time, imo. feed the animal daily with as many different foods as you can and make certain to dust the food with both vitamin powder and a calcium supplement *every* feeding.

good luck!!

 

[smallville709]

ill post pics tom. but do you think guys its parasites or crypto? is a grey colored stool normal?

 

[sleepyjones]

Stool with a kinda grey (gray) sheen can sometimes occur after the animal has shed (and eaten the shed).
Do you know if he's shed recently?
It can sometimes appear to have a greyish / silver shimmer when it's fresh, leave it to dr somewhere and see if it looks more normal dried out.
You can also get discoloration of the stool if the gecko has been housed on sand, the accidental consumption of the sand passing through her intestines can 'cause a discoloration. Im not sure if that's a possibility with your guy? ... he may not be housed on sand at the moment, but maybe he was at some point in his life and it's taken a while for the eaten sand to pass.
Also, if you over supplement him, you may get a discoloration of the stool. Again, may not be you, it may be the previous owner.

If you've only had him for a week it could be that he's just not eating much after the stress of being moved, and therefor not pooping much, but if he is putting on weight then that's a good sign.
By the size and weight of him I wouldn't be surprised if his age was more like 3 - 6 months, as opposed to the year you suggested, he does sound a little small and underweight for a year old gecko.
At this stage I wouldn't worry too much about it. Check a couple more stool's, and see if the problem persists.
Parasites shouldn't really be a problem as far as your other geckos are concerned, you do just need to be careful about how you handle your other guys (as already suggested). They wont travel from tank to tank without your help.

Keep us updated

 

[Bellalee]

Fecal... fecal.... fecal... there could be so many different reasons.. and your really shouldn't start to diagnose something without ruling out anything else..

Please take this little guy/girl to the vets.

 

[sleepyjones]

As Bellalee suggested, it really could be one of any number of things, or even a combination of things ranging from something as simple as the wrong temps, or eaten shed, to something serious like Crypto' (im not sure crypto is that likely though).

A lot of people on these forums will always suggest going to the vet straight away (and that's not meant as a criticism), I can see the logic in that, especially if it's a new animal to you. I suppose when you get a new animal you should get it checked out by a vet right away just to make sure everything is ok.

It's not always viable though, vet bills can be expensive, and to be honest, a lot of the time a vet can't tell you much (Adinar's post on this page is a perfect example, and he has a real problem with his geckos (although in his case I would agree that a vet visit was necessary)).

For piece of mind, and if it's a viable option to you as far as cost and travel etc are concerned you should go to the vets. However, I do think, at this stage a vet trip is probably unnecessary. The guys eating, he's gaining weight, you've only had him for a week. I would suggest leaving it a week and see how it goes, if there's no noticeable improvement, then take him to the vet.

 

[smallville709]

i bougth crickets and dubias a while ago he ate to crickets and 2 dubia nymphs. i noticed somthing with him a while ago. he just lay on top of his hide with one eyes closed or slightly closed the other wide open. is this normal?

 

[smallville709]

thanks by the way guys for the reply^^ another thing guys whats the chances of my geckos having crypto? with the symptoms i just told?

 

[sleepyjones]

I honestly don't think it's Crypto'.
One of the main symptoms of Crypto is loss of appetite, and your guy is eating and gaining weight. Im by no means an expert, so im not saying it's not crypto' ... I just don't think it's likely.

The eye thing could be anything, if you have a light in your tank he may have just been closing that eye as it was directed at the light and it was a bit bright, or it could have been a bit of left over shed. It could even be that he was half asleep!

These kinda things are hard to diagnose because there are so many possibilities.

 

[smallville709]

thanks man you enlightened me!

 

[sleepyjones]

It's good that your worried about him, it shows you care about his well being.
It's a bit of a different comparison and I don't know if you have kids, a dog or a cat but if you compare it to a dog, cat etc having diarrhea or strange colored poop, or one of your kids had a high temperature or something, you wouldn't automatically take them to the doctors right away, you'd leave it for a few days to a week and assume it'd clear itself up.

It's the same with Leos in my opinion, leave him be for a week or so, if it doesn't clear up take him to the vet and get an expert opinion.

I honestly don't think you should worry too much about this, im sure it'll clear itself up after a few feeds and a few more poops.
Again, I must insist that im no expert, so don't take what I say as an expert opinion, it's just my personal opinion.

If you notice it again, or any strange behavior, try and get a picture of it.

Also, get a picture of the wee guy up on here, and tell us what his name is

 

[Spots]

my girl does the eye thing all the time. It's like she's trying to sleep but she knows I'm watching so she watches with one eye and half sleeps with the other eye shut lol

 

[smallville709]

here's the picture:

 

[RampantReptiles]

my girl does the eye thing all the time. It's like she's trying to sleep but she knows I'm watching so she watches with one eye and half sleeps with the other eye shut lol

Birds do this all the time. Since they are prey items they need to keep an eye out at all times.

Your gecko doesnt look that bad off at all. Looks like a young gecko that is still growing but it could be possible at some point that the gecko wasnt eating much and got behind on growth.
Need to give your guy more time to make sure he is well adjusted before you rush him over to the vet. Id say give it a week or two.
btw very nice little Super Snow you have there

 

[smallville709]

do you think byt the picture doesnt look like he has crypto or ssome disease?

 

[mainelygeckos]

he's a very pretty Super Snow and doesn't look too bad..Could gain a little weight but he's not emaciated so just keep feeding him..no he doesn't look like he has a disease but most diseases u cannot see anyhow...long as he is eating he will gain weight I am sure good luck with him he's a looker *sigh* I want a SS

 

[sleepyjones]

He looks great.
I don't think you have anything at all to worry about.