Gecko shake

This may be normal but im really not sure and i would like to know if anyone else notices this either.... I have a male gecko about a year and a half old and i just recently noticed when he gets up adn walks around most of the time he kind of shakes his legs, maybe its just stretching or from laying down too long and his little legs fell asleep, maybe its not warm enough for him and his bloods not circulating properly, i dont know, My question is should i worry about this? is it normal?or does anyone know why he does this?

Allison, I have seen some of mine shaking very slightly on occasion, but if it is a constant problem for your gecko it could be an indication of a calcium deficiency with can lead to Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD). You should be providing calcium for you gecko by leaving a small bowl of powder in his enclosure for him to lick, as well as 'dusting' his food a few times a week.

Well i use the caci-sand for the bottom of the tank and he eats that sometimes, is that not enough?

He doesnt do it all the time, and i noticed its more with his back legs than the front.

Is it sorta like the way cats sorta pick up their front paw and sort shake it when they step into water? My gecko does that some times, especially when he's walking very cautiously, he sorta gingerly puts his front feet down (sort testing/shaking).

And get your gecko off of that calci-sand, I've heard nothing but bad things about that stuff.

-Dave

No... CalciSand is not enough. You must provide calcium and vitamin supplements for your gecko. The shaking you are referring to is most likely due to calcium deficiency, which is the first stage of Metabolic Bone Disease. If this is not corrected now, it can develop into permanent bone deformity, organ damage, rubbery bones which can prevent movement and eating, and eventual death.

Please go and get some calcium powder and reptile vitamin powder ASAP from PetCo or PetSmart, and begin 'dusting' your gecko's food every feeding for the time being, and put some of the calcium powder in a small, shallow bowl in his enclosure for him to lick. Do not delay!

I personally do not recommend calci-sand at all because of it's potential for intestinal impaction, which can also lead to death. If your gecko is an adult, and you want to use sand as a substrate, use ultra-fine grade play sand. If your gecko is not an adult, he should be put on paper towels right away.

There are many good websites that deal with leopard gecko health, and many good caresheets available. There are several links on my site that can direct you to some great websites that are loaded with a wealth of information on caring for leopard geckos. I even have a care sheet that can help. Just click on the link below, and go to the "Care" and "Links" pages.

Yea the whole cat idea is what hes basically doing. but its more with his back legs. Whats so bad about the calci-sand? just askin cause the people at our local pet shop say its better to use than the other substrate because the sand is alot finer?

Thanks for the info, im going to get some calcium for him today. He is an adult. When i got him he was a baby and the pet store told me to use this gravel like stuff that i thought was kinda big grains, and when he would try to catch crickets and miss which was quite often he would end up getting a mouth full of that stuff and almost choking so i canged to the calci sand because it was alot finer and it didnt bother him as much and i didnt have all the little parasites or bugs crawlin around in the tank from the cricket food stuff i was using. I guess our local pet store doesnt really knwo much about them. What substrate should i use for him if the calci sand really isnt good for him?

Allison, the topic of which substrate is best is, and always will be, a subject of heated debate. Personally, I have never used calci-sand because there are studies that show it does not dissolve completely in the short digestive systems of leopard geckos. This is not to say it isn't OK for other reptiles, though.

I have a few friends that are vets, and another couple of people I know are professors at UC Davis Veterinary School's Exotics Dept. Teaching Hospital. ALL of them have told me some absolute horror stories about some of the necropsies they have performed on leos who's entire GI systems were completely clogged with undissolved Calci-Sand that has stuck together in clumps.

Their studies have shown that not only does calci-sand not dissolve completely, but since it is made of calcium carbonate (an antacid like Tums), a constant supply of it throughout the GI system actually reduces the stomach acids to the point that food does not get broken down for digestion, further adding to the posiibility of intestinal impaction.

Calcium carbonate is also the same substance in the powder that is used to 'dust' food items, but it is so fine and given in small amounts that it is absorbed into the bloodstream very quickly.

Here is a link to an article on calcium carbonate sand:
http://www.pythons.com/calcium.html

He is robably strectching because he is getting biggeror either he is strtching

Hey Allison,
I just noticed something with my male. He does this sort of hindleg "pat" "pat" as he's walking on my blankets, especially when there are soft spots that sink when he crawls onto them. He also seems to place his hindfeet directly underneath the front feet when he walks around.

The interesting thing is, though I thought I was underfeeding him (one superworm every other day for a ~40 gram gecko), I just noticed that he's developing fat pockets underneath his armpits. Maybe his round stomach is "getting in the way"?

If that's the case Jsplitz's explanation might actually be what's happening. The gecko's belly is getting in the way, and they have to sort of stretch a little farther than usual to get their hindlegs up to where their front feet are.

-Dave