Word of Caution

[B.appel13]

To everyone planning on getting a leo....If you think you have researched everything KEEP going before you purchase yours. I thought I had done my research and found a gecko I really wanted...I purchased it and couldnt wait to show it off.

To my surprise it has a VERY bad case of MBD (check in the pics section my post "My Leo")

Now I am trying to get her to recover but I can try breeding her or anything. My son loves her already so I cant get rid of her because I cant afford a new one since my wife got me her for my birthday (dec 31st) And we spent all our "extra" money on the enclosure and the gecko itself.

SO please please please make sure you know what you are buying because i never want anyone to have to go through this unwillingly.

 

[ElapidSVT]

sorry to hear about your purchase not being healthy.
great advice tho!

 

[rawson5084]

So sorry

 

[lisa s]

thats to bad :-/ did you buy in petshop or private or did you purchase if from a picture and recieved the leo "by mail" ?

 

[B.appel13]

private from "hobby" breeder.....lesson learned....the hard way

 

[MiamiLeos]

hmm. ok so you've decided to keep her. but when shes healthy she can have a female cage mate. one you get from a goooood breeder lol. if the enclosure you have her in is a 20 gallon tank or larger you dont need to buy anything extra except your new leo. theres lots of good breeders on here and everyone takes impecible care of their animals. you could probably find a nice female in the classifieds section for a good price

 

[B.appel13]

unless the nice price is 25 bucks im outta luck for now...Im not looking for pity though.

Just trying to teach people

 

[Angel]

have you conacted this ''breeder'', I would at the least call them up and ream them out try to get some of the money back. Very sorry Idid see the pic of her before , if you need any help or advice we are all here to help.

 

[LizMarie]

hmm. ok so you've decided to keep her. but when shes healthy she can have a female cage mate. one you get from a goooood breeder lol. if the enclosure you have her in is a 20 gallon tank or larger you dont need to buy anything extra except your new leo. theres lots of good breeders on here and everyone takes impecible care of their animals. you could probably find a nice female in the classifieds section for a good price

While it might sound great he WILL need a new enclosure for the quarantine period that should be anywhere from 30-90 days and no guarantee that they'll get alone. I also wouldn't place his gecko with any other gecko, I just don't think it would be fair.

Just My Opinion.

 

[B.appel13]

ya she is alone and will remain that way. She loves her worms she has some there 24/7 and calcium as well.

We will see what happens.

 

[latshki]

sorry to hear
on a brighter note we have the same birthday! lol

 

[B.appel13]

well happy belated

 

[got spots?]

Personally I have not seen where mbd is deadly.. If you give calcium in 2-3ish months it seems to reverse itself.
correct me if I am wrong.

 

[B.appel13]

^ I hope your right. Id love to see her recover.

 

[latshki]

and to you too

 

[Angel]

it can get better but never fully recover, atleast this is how it is with beardys my girl is doing great now BUT some of the deformities in the bones will remain she still looks awkward but moves around alot better than before, HOWEVER it took alot of time to get her to this point, extra food, calcium, vitamins, liquid drops, shots at the vet {which is why i said she neeeeds to see a vet they can give calcium in shots and they help alot, as well you can see how bad it is any serious problems withthe bones and joints} which is why it is also expensive. Im happy she finally has someone who cares but if money is tight it may be best to find someone to adopt her who can spare the money to get her these treatments, and start over with a healthy one. Makes me so mad when so called breeders treat there animals worse than petshops and then refuse to take responsibility. The only other option is taking her to the vet getting the vet to put it in writting this condition obvioulsy existed before you owned her and taking that to the breeder and get your money back plus what it cost you for the vet visit.
MBD can be fatal if not treated it can cause brittle bones, broken bones, can cause them there mobility thus causeing them not to be able to get up to catch food, move from heat source to cool side n vice versa. in serious cases it can cause issues with eating, digesting ect.
MBD has a high recovery rate the earlier you catch it, however she looks quite serious, And it will keep progressing unless treated properly. Im sorry I dont mean to be harsh but I would hate for you to not know how serious this is and have your 3 year old lose his pal. I have been dealing with MBD for 3 years with my beardy and like I said she is comming along great but its alot of work. Please talk with your vet , research it online.
I would personally put a uva/b light above her tank a few hours a day dusk and dawn , some people say it isnt needed with leos but i do it with mine. it is mandatory with beardys and helps with mbd in them so what can it hurt with the leos , and in your case it may help alot.

 

[T-ReXx]

Personally I have not seen where mbd is deadly.. If you give calcium in 2-3ish months it seems to reverse itself.
correct me if I am wrong.

This is pretty much accurate. As long as the gecko is given calcium, except in extreme cases they usually recover very well. Sometime they have sort of a "crippled look" to them if the skeletal structure is way out of shape, but usually they go on to live healthy, happy lives.

I'm sorry that someone would sell you an animal like that. Don't get too discouraged, there are plenty of reputable breeders out there and we don't take kindly to people who do things like that to their animals.