Two newly adopted geckos *very sad pics*

[fallen_angel]

We met with a local boy today who gave these two geckos to us. They were given to him because they have apparently had problems for a very long time and he only had them for a few months. He doesn't really have the time to give them the care they require, and since he lived so close, I knew I wanted to take them in.

The first one is a female that (I'm guessing) must have gotten MBD and has been trying to walk despite of her issue, for obviously a very long time. I am pretty sure that's why her limbs are so enlarged and swollen. You can see that she doesn't stand on her left front leg very well, she pretty much walks on her knuckles.

I am giving her liquid calcium but I don't know how much it's going to help her.. has anyone else ever seen this before? Any suggestions on what else I could do for her?

Her name is Ophelia, which is Greek and means "help"! She's a Blizzard:

The second gecko is a male SHTCT. He looks pretty normal when you're just looking at him from up above, although his tail is very thin because he hasn't been able to eat very well..

and that is because the poor little guy is blind. I am not sure if I can really do anything for him, to me it looks like his eyes might have dried out completely. We named him Kenshi after the blind fighter in Mortal Kombat.

Any advise for these two? Once they settle in I am going to make sure they eat as much as they can. We've fallen in love with them already :heart:

 

[robin]

bless them both. first off get those eyes and legs looked at by a vet (i know you know this) give those little ones love and tlc. try and rinse the eyes with some sterile saline and use a damp q-tip to remove any of the crusties or mucus you can. i do not know if this will help but when i got my corneal transplants my doctor told me if i had crusties in my eyes use a warm wash cloth and for swollen eyes use cold. a really safe and thick eye lube you can buy at walmart it's in a tube and called genteal gel. this is a bit thicker than drops but it stays on for a bit longer to moisten up your eyes (i use it all the time). they do have a thicker one, same brand just the night time formula, i didn't like that one as much but it does work. maybe this will help *shrug*

good luck with those little sweethearts

 

[robin]

oh yeah the night time genteal gel is more "ointment-ish" but not a true ointment and has no medical properties other than moistening the eyes.

 

[lillith]

omigosh, Jess...those two look sooo sad.

I would try moisturizing eye drops on the second one, 2-4 times daily, or as many as he can tolerate. I know this sounds completely crazy but maybe a lukewarm compress from a teabag, just plain used green teabags, just before administering drops. Afterward, get a qtip and use a dab of vegetable oil like olive to try to help with the adhesions. I'd also take him for a checkup if you can swing it, it looks like he might have a cyst under his right eye.

The first one looks like it has a rheumatic disorder, almost. I have no idea if that's been heard of in reptiles, though. It almost looks like ganglion cysts, but it's encompassing so many little gecko joints. It might not hurt to give them slurry part-time, just for the b-vitamins and milk thistle, to clean out their little systems...the vet might recommend a non-steroidal painkiller, I'm sure those joints hurt. How does she move around on her own?

If anyone can help those little ones, you sure can! I will send the best wishes their way.
Poor kids. That makes me sad and mad to see them in that shape.

p.s. Are you sure Ophelia isn't a patternless?
p.p.s. thanks for posting about genteal gel, Robin. I've never heard of it, but it sounds like just the thing!

 

[robin]

i thought ophelia looked like a LVPA . regardless they are amazing little ones and i have complete faith in them and in you. they are fighters i can tell it

 

[robin]

lillith it's great stuff. a bit pricey but WELL worth it

 

[JordanAng420]

The first gecko has Gout. I'm cooking dinner, i'll post pictures for comparison in a bit. I'm positive that's what it is.

 

[lillith]

Can you give colchicine to geckos? or allopurinol?

 

[gothra]

I was going to suggest the swollen joints of the first one could be gout...I think its incredibly painful for the girl to move around. I hope both of them will get better soon.

 

[JordanAng420]

Here are pictures of a leopard gecko with gout. Note the whitish nodules around and over the carpal joints.

 

[lillith]

owie. just looking at that makes my knuckles hurt.
thanks for posting the photos, though! we can always count on you for a wealth of herp vet goodies.

 

[fallen_angel]

Thanks for the advice everyone, I'll definitely check out the stuff for his eyes, poor little guy I'll see if olive oil will help him too.. I thought the girl might look Patternless, but I don't really see any carrot-tail and it's hard to tell since she has a regen.

That's interesting, Gout? Looking forward to learning more about that..

 

[lillith]

Gout in humans comes from rich fatty foods high in purines...maybe the previous owner was feeding waxies only? Also it can be caused by poor diet/starvation.

I might hold off on the liquid calcium until you find out if it's really gout or pseudogout. Her kidneys and liver are probably in bad shape, too.
Whatever's going on, her electrolyte balance is out of whack.

 

[fallen_angel]

Yeah it does look like she has Gout.. can it be cured?

 

[lillith]

Well it can get asymptomatic again, but from what I understand, once you've had it, you always need to watch for a recurrence.

 

[gitrdone0420]

That is so sad! Im really glad that you took these guys in Jess, I know that you can help them!
I am really hoping for the best with these guys!

 

[fallen_angel]

Thanks

The male has been resting in his moist hide and it looks like he had one eye completely opened and the crusty stuff was gone. The entire eye is completely white. I put some oil on there..

 

[JordanAng420]

In humans, the treatment for Gout is threefold: lower the serum uric acid level with antihyperuricemic drugs such as allopurinol, promote urate excretion with uricosuric drugs such as probenecid, and manage acute gounty arthritis attacks with antiinflammatory drugs such as colchicine and corticosteroids. In humans, the goal of therapy is to keep the serum uric acid low. Doing so is believed to prevent future attacks and to dissolve existing tophi.

In theory, the treatment goals for reptiles with gout are similar to those in humans. However, little research has been done surrounding the treatment of gout in reptiles. Recent reports suggest that allopurinol therapy is effective in reptiles with results consistant with goals in human medicine.

Many different dosages have been reporte in the recent herp literature. Most dosages used however, are based on extrapolations from the human dosages. These drugs are not without side effects and the you should be warned if they are to be used in your reptiles.

If the patient has severe gouty arthritis, which it seems this one might, surgically entering the affected joint and physically removing the uric acid crystals is possible. However, by the time the crystals have formed, severe joint damage is usually present. Between this damage and the surgical damage done to the joint, even by the best of surgeons, the joint is usually permanently affected. In these cases, treatment may be best attempted with long term allopurinol therapy

(Mader DVM, Doug Reptile Medicine And Surgery Second Ed. pp. 797-798)

 

[lillith]

Thanks for answering the drug questions... I was wondering. You are awesomely resourceful.:main_thumbsup:

 

[fallen_angel]

Thanks Maia. All right then, she'll be going to the vet as soon as possible, I'll call them tomorrow.