underweight female carrying eggs?

[myjoyoverflows]

We were given a female gecko that we were told has already laid eggs and were told that she is currently. I tried looking, and with only ever seeing images...I don't *think* she is...but I feel like I see something in there (could be that I'm just expecting it?). Either way, she's underweight...her tail is very thin...she's not eating.

What should we do? Should we try to force feed her to get a little bit of weight on her? She has a dish in her tank at all times with mealworms in it...has a water dish...calcium dish...but she's not eating anything......I know that she's just getting used to us...but if she IS in fact gravid, what should we do about her condition? She's far too young to have been housed with a male...she's smaller than most of our geckos that I know are too small to breed...

In your opinion, what would be best to do?

 

[MSMD]

What type(s) of food are you offering her?

 

[myjoyoverflows]

mealies, crickets, and super worms...

 

[MSMD]

A lot of people are swearing by roaches lately. I am going to try and start up a colony of these. But, if you're anything like me, then you have nothing like this available locally for you to try.

How long have you had her?

If it hasn't been very long, she may still be acclimating to her new home/environment. Sometimes my new arrivals don't want to eat for a week or so.

The only other thing I can tell you, as you are already offering a variety of foods, is what I am doing in a similar situation. I have a little girl that I recently acquired that was bred before I got her (she was 31 grams when I brought her home!). She didn't have much of an apetite and I was seriously worried for her life. I have been working closely with the vet to try and get some weight on this little girl as I can see that she is developing eggs again. Anyway, I was racking my brain at a local Mom n' Pop petshop and the owner, whom I have known for a while (she buys some of my baby Leos), offered me a couple of pinky mice on the house, just to try. I called the vet and the Hospital Director said, "hey, give it a try." So, I did and she gobbled them right up! She's eating her mealies like a good girl now, too, and has gained 2 grams so far. :yes: I know it's hard for some people to feed pinkies. I personally like mice very much and have them as pets. But this really seemed to work in Sway's situation. It seemed to stimulate her appetite. If you try this, just make sure to wriggle it around a bit with feeding tongs, as Leos generally don't like things that aren't moving/alive.

 

[myjoyoverflows]

We got her last Wednesday...

I've never seen anyone local that are carrying roaches...

So, even with not having much of a want for food, she should respond to pinky mice you think? We also have a mouse and for a while had a male and female together and were constantly having baby mice around....but anyway...if that doesn't work what would the next step be? She just turns away from the food...acts like it disgusts her...

Thanks for the advice...

 

[myjoyoverflows]

Also, we don't have a scale...but I'm quite sure that she's weighing in at less than 30 grams...her tail is very thin...we're told that she's over a year old...but is smaller than ones that we have that are 6 months old...

 

[MSMD]

The little girl that I have responded well to the pinkies. That doesn't mean that yours will, it's just another suggestion. You haven't had her for very long, either, and it's very possible that she is just still adjusting. I would give her another week as long as she isn't on-the-brink-of-death skinny and just keep trying to offer her food. If, after that, if it were me I would probably go to Marcia's slurry and make a vet appointment to rule anything else out (parasites, etc.).

Sorry I don't have any definitive answers, but I hope I might be able to help a little! I can only offer advice from my own experience and what I would do. Good luck with you little girl!

 

[rubym]

We got a small female rescue last year that was gravid. She wouldn't eat and I used Marcias slurry for about 3 weeks then she started to eat on her own. I got desperate and even fed her some calcium coated wax worms. She ended up laying 8 eggs and only one was fertile. Phaeton was our first little hatchling ever!!!! She was 26 grams when she laid that first egg.