brumation questions

hi everyone

i'm new to fauna and i already have some questions for my leo, marlene.

the temps dropped this past week, and even though i got a thermostat and a higher wattaged bulb, the day temps were lower than normal... i think my leo started brumation because she's lazier than ever... she doesn't even want to eat - kinda just stares at the mealworms... and then she walks to the other side of the tank, lies down, and sleeps.

on sunday night, she ate 15 mealworms and 1 wax worm. on monday, she ate 6 mealworms... on tuesday she shed, but ate 2 mealworms and a pupated mealworm (alien). today, she avoided the food and just went back to sleep. this past week, she's been lazier and more tired than she usually is - so i'm thinking that she has started her brumation. i don't want her to get thin! is there anyway i can get her to stop brumation and eat more foods?

usual day temp: 88F average
usual night temp: 84F average

this past week's day temp: 82F - 84F
this past week's night temp: 80F

day bulb: i had a 75w bulb ---> yesterday, i bought a 100w bulb and today's test showed 86F.
night bulb: i had a 60w bulb ---> yesterday, i bought a 75w bulb in case we don't use our heaters.

UTH is always on. thermostat set at high.

any help is appreciated! thanks...

[aimEe]

I'm no expert by far, but the temps that you have her at seem a little high to induce hibernation.

I am just starting to transition mine into hibernation and they are at lower room temps, and I'll be moving them into my upper basement which is cooler than that in a week or two.

When you handle her is she very responsive? If she isn't I would be worried. It may be a vitamin deficency, do you dust her food at all?

It is possible that she might be too hot. Do you test the temp in the tank above the UTH? I stopped using UTH's because they get way to hot and are hard to control.

That's all that I got, anyone else with a little more expertise out there with advice???

yeah...the temps you have are fine. leopards around this time of year generally do eat less whether the temps go down or not. it's not a big deal, they won't lose much weight, given they are healthy in the first place. (tail should be at least 3/4 the thickness of their neck = healthy leo)

and where are you measuring your temps at??? usually, a UTH AND a heat lamp is WAY too much, and you're in cali too so i'd assume it should be no exception. when measuring temps, you should ALWAYS measure from the ground since this is where your gecko is hanging out most. (ie those sticky sticker ones dont work as well, and the round fluker's one work fine as long as they're not stuck to the glass)

-Karin

in reply to missymonkey

someone told me the temp change helped to induce hibernation especially because it's winter. he said that marlene is used to the warm temps and the few days of lower temps was enough to change her behavior .

i don't think she's too hot because she spends a lot more time lying down on top of the warm side (behind her humid hide) where the UTH is... before she'd hang on top of the humid hide. i'm assuming it's because of the belly heat from the UTH. the UTH's seem easier to control because of the thermostat that i use. the temps are from the thermometer that i have inside

yes, i do dust her food . she's on a staple diet of mealworms that are dusted 3 times a week with repitive and the days in between with calcium. she also has a readily available calcium dish next to her food dish.

since i got her, she's been very responsive to handling. she was always active until this week after the temps dropped 6 - 8 degress F during the day for a few days. she's been so LAZY! but, this morning, i caught her standing on all fours. i stuck my hand in and she climbed up and was walking all over me for about 15 minutes and on my bed for another 5 minutes. then i put her back in her tank and she just went to sleep

thanks for your help!

[aimEe]

in reply to herpspaz

yeah, she's been eating less her tail is a lot thicker than when i first got her. the widest part of her tail is almost the size of her neck - it's her first tail, she hasn't dropped it yet i hope she doesn't either!

i'm measuring my temps with the fluker's round temperature thingies.. i used to have a sticker thermometer things because it was on the tank when i got my leo - but people advised me against it the little temperature gauge is on the warm side of the tank. i heard that because i use a glass tank, the heat spreads and gets caught in the tank, which is one of the reasons why a screen cover is good! and san francisco isn't much of a hot place. the weather here fluctuates a lot and is always on the cooler end. the average temp is around the mid-50s and sometimes 60s- but lately it has dropped down to the mid-40s. it's been raining a lot and san francisco is never humid it kinda gives an opposite view of "sunny california" because it's always cloudy here u have to be really lucky to get a nice pose at the golden gate bridge - coz sometimes you can't even see it hehe~

do you think the temps are too warm? she's been on top of the humid side floor behind or in her humid hide a lot now. before she'd stay on top of the humid hide - unless it got a little cool at night thanks karin!

[aimEe]

well, i know you said you're using the flukers round thermometer, but are you laying it flat down on the floor? sticking it up on the glass mid way? propping it up against the hide??

(btw i HIGHLY recommend getting a digital thermometer..i got one for under $15 at Walmart, and it comes with an outdoor sensor, so i can get two readings at once, plus a humidity reading. MUCH more accurate than the little fluker's ones which i used to use as well...last i tested it, the fluker's one i had was reading almost 10 degrees higher than the real temps)

ANYWAY....i still don't think a slight drop in temps will cause her to go into brumation, perhaps the bahvioral changes, but definately not brumation. for that to occur, it's usually at LEAST a 10 degree drop or so. (but even if this were the case, what are your reasons for not wanting it to occur?? it's not detrimental to your leos health as long as she is as healthy as she should be)

Sorry if i missed any questions or comments, it's 1:30 AM, and i'm still just procrastinating on Studying for Exam tomorrow..hehehe

-Karin

the round thermometer is sticking up on the glass midway.. sorry about that.

i hope the temps aren't off! i'll be checking wal-mart this weekend to see if they have a good thermometer, i also need to buy a timer while i'm there anyway

thanks! also, i didn't want her to brumate because i read somewhere that captive geckos shouldn't be hibernating - i forgot the reasoning, but it was on a leopard gecko care sheet i read a few months back. i also didn't want her to lose weight, even though she seems pretty healthy.

thanks for the help & good luck on your exams!

[aimEe]

Ha! got a C on the Exam...see what happens when you decide coming online to check forum posts are more important than studying?!!?

anyhoo...yeah, i would highly recommend investing in a digital thermometer if you can, they're excellent, i don't know where i'd be if i didn't have mine! and if you can't find them at Wal-Mart, RadioShack has them as well, but i think they're slightly more expensive there. when you get the readings from that, let us know!

Also, i don't think it's a big deal at all for geckos in captivity to have a little time of low activity..i mean, it's only more natural if anything. (does anyone disagree with this???)

-Karin

thanx!

hey a C is passing right? lol~ i've been studying for my exams - it's this friday and next week on mon & tues. i was supposed to study since 8 this morning but went to PetSmart and have been lookin at stuff online - lol

i ended up holding off on getting it til after finals because i been busy with these freakin online orders...bestbuy.com messed up my order last week and fixed it this week... the paintball gun i ordered is diff. from the barrel it came with, so i had to work that out... ahh! stress!! and i need all this stuff b4 xmas! hehe~ but, before i leave for vacation, i am getting the digi-thermometer and a timer for the lights. i hope that's all i'll need...

and i guess you're right... it wasn't too much of a big deal to have a little time of low activity because she's back at it again. she's eating the normal amount of mealies she used to and is always walking around again and wants to be handled. i guess she was just having a lazy day i just got worried because 2 nights in a row, her urates were divided into two separate pieces and not one whole one and at the same time she stopped eating and kept sleeping... but last night she gave a normal poop + urates and was very active, alert, and hungry. i hope nothing is wrong! i attached a pic of her from the other night

thanks for your help!

[aimEe]