A huge thank you to Marcia & Laura (leaftail) and everyone else

[g&mgeckos]

that help me this season with my problem child.

This was my first season breeding Leopard Geckos and all in all it was fairly decent. I did have one hatchling though that just seem like it wanted to give me hell!

It all started with her not wanting to eat. Well after a couple of weeks of Marcia's slurry she started eating again. Then she started having problems shedding. I had to start using a Q-tip to remove all of her shed for about 2 months everytime she went into shed. Then we had another round of not eating. This was followed by her starting to walk funny. I mentioned that to Marcia and Laura one night in the chat and Marcia quickly said MBD. Told me what to do. And Laura agreed. Well back to vet we went the next morning. At this point my vet said he didn't think it was MBD but gave me the liquid calcium after I pledded with him. After a couple of weeks of the calcium twice a day she started walking good again. And the swelling started to reverse. Then we went through another round of not eating. Well I was really about to give up. she was going on 4 months old and only weight 10 grams her clutchmate Cinco was already 24 grams. I seriously started thinking of just putting her down. But then she started eating again with a vengence! It has been a month now with no more problems (knock on wood) she has quickly been catching up to Cinco and now is only 10 grams behind her at 23 grams. If it wouldn't been all of the GREAT advice and sharing of knowledge she would most likely have died. Thank you all very much! Here is a picture of her from today. I am still not sure if I am ever going to breed her but she is turning into a very nice looking gecko.

 

[ByRandom]

Glenn,

I'm glad that everything turned out good for you! I have experienced the same thing before and I know how annoying it can get. Good luck. And, as to breeding her.. wait and see next year how she is.

 

[saltwaterreptiles]

WOW... that is one nice looking gecko... and a great story with a good ending!

As for breeding her. Well... while you may be tempted cause she is SMOKING, I would hold off on her for a while, give her a year or so and see how she fairs. The issue is, was her problems due to some external issue ( ie: incubation, food, etc. ) or is she just a geneticallty weak leo. If it was physical, and she has a great year, packing on weight and is otherwise healthy, then I MIGHT consider it, however, if its a genetic thing, I would not at any point bred her and would keep her as an AWESOME display animal....

Either way, she's a looker, a fighter and a survivor, and they ALWAYS hold special places in us!

 

[g&mgeckos]

As for breeding her. Well... while you may be tempted cause she is SMOKING, I would hold off on her for a while, give her a year or so and see how she fairs. The issue is, was her problems due to some external issue ( ie: incubation, food, etc. ) or is she just a geneticallty weak leo. If it was physical, and she has a great year, packing on weight and is otherwise healthy, then I MIGHT consider it, however, if its a genetic thing, I would not at any point bred her and would keep her as an AWESOME display animal....

Either way, she's a looker, a fighter and a survivor, and they ALWAYS hold special places in us!

Thats the problem Cory I am not sure if it was external or geneticallty. She is the only one that gave me any problems from the pair that I got her from. When it was getting bad we decided to just let one our boys keep her as a pet. But now with the way she as started responding and bouncing back I was just wondering what everyone thought. She is definately one of my favorites now we have kind of bonded now. For now I think I will just keep in the non-breeder statis till we see how it all plays out with her.Thanks for the comments guys!

 

[dragonflyreptiles]

The main thing that would concern me would be if she went off food during breeding and laying, that would be really hard on her.

I agree though, just wait and see how she fairs until she is big and old enough to breed and if she continues to eat well with no more problems Id consider it.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

GREAT NEWS!!! I'm so glad to hear that another little gecko is alive and well after being on the GGG slurry! She is an awesome little gecko, but you may want wait before deciding on whether to breed her or not. She may have just gotten off to a bad start, or she could have some chronic problems that can reoccur in the next year or so. If she is going strong by the time she is 1-1/2 years old and over 50 grams, you may want to re-evaluate it at that time.

 

[leaftail]

I'm so glad she's doing well! She is beautiful. She sure did have a hard time getting started, poor thing. I didnt vote because like Marcia, I think you should hold off on deciding whether to breed her or not. Wait and see if she grows out of her problems.

(oh and congrats on being smart/caring enough to actually try the slurry. I've recommended it to countless people with leo problems and usually they just shrug it off as dumb or too much work and dont even try it. Their leos do not do well. It is sad. so, thank YOU TOO!)

 

[g&mgeckos]

Laura I would have never thought of it without you & Marcia's help. The ironic thing to me is. After 4 vet vists and all the meds she is the most exspensive gecko I have and I hatched her out myself. I am just going to wait and she how she does over the next year. I really have my doubts that she will ever be breed at this time but you never know.

 

[cbusdave]

I'm so glad she's doing well! She is beautiful. She sure did have a hard time getting started, poor thing. I didnt vote because like Marcia, I think you should hold off on deciding whether to breed her or not. Wait and see if she grows out of her problems.

(oh and congrats on being smart/caring enough to actually try the slurry. I've recommended it to countless people with leo problems and usually they just shrug it off as dumb or too much work and dont even try it. Their leos do not do well. It is sad. so, thank YOU TOO!)

OK, I will bite, what is the GGG slurry?

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

Several years ago, I used to take in a LOT of rescued leopard geckos, and created a formula to dropper-feed the sick/anorexic ones. It has saved so many gecko lives, and even UC Davis Veterinary School, Texas A&M, and the University of Ontario in Guelph are now using it.

Here is my recipe for the mixture:

In a blender, combine:
1 small can Hill's A/D pet food (available at most vets)
1/4-1/3 cup Ensure (not chocolate)
1 jar baby food squash
1/4-1/3 cup Pedialite
2 tablets or contents of 2 capsules milk thistle (herbal supplement, liver purifier, found at most drug stores.)
1/2 tsp. each calcium powder and herp vitamin powder
1 large handful of mealworms, added slowly while mixture is blending

Puree all ingredients until completely smooth, and pour into ice cube tray(s) and freeze. Store cubes in zip-lock bag in the freezer until ready to use, then thaw out 1 cube at a time and store in fridge for 2-3 days. I use the empty baby food jar for this purpose, washing it thoroughly after each batch.

*Lately, I have been adding about 1 tsp. T-Rex Gargoyle MRP to each new thawed out cube to add nutrients and thicken up the slurry.

Using this mixture, draw a full dropper (eye dropper type) and place a drop on the gecko's nose. It will lick it off, and as it does, slowly squeeze out a little at a time. Most geckos love this food, and will lap it up.