How do I fix this?

[Xelas]

[/IMG]

Despite what some of you would no doubt love to think, I did NOT do this. Let’s get this out of the way early: I did NOT feed her fish, ever, nor to my knowledge has she ever been fed fish (if she has been fed anything at all). I recently bought this gecko and a Snow (who isn't as bad as she is) because she was with some others that I bought and got a good deal on, and I wanted to help bring her back to proper weight since her owner was selling most of his stock. The problem though, is that I know with some creatures/animals, when deprived and emaciated as she clearly is, feeding too much too fast can prove harmful and sometimes fatal.

What would be the best way to do this? I know it will most likely take a year or so before she even looks somewhat under-weight, but I am worried about her. The guy I bought her from told me that he had bought her in October and that she looked worse and weighed even less than she does now. He also told me the guy he bought her from said he didn’t understand how that happened to her. Frankly, I'm surprised she is still alive.

I've been gutloading and dusting my crickets and superworms exactly like I do with all my other lizards for her (alternating between vitamins and calcium), but that's always standard. How can I help her gain more weight? I've thought of pinkies, but they might be too much too fast. What do you think? I've also thought of roaches, but I just found out that the guy I usually get roaches from mixes in wild roaches he has caught from his house into his breeding colony (I’m cool with insects just as much as the next guy, but THAT'S disgusting) . I'm worried about feeding her those roaches because if there are any bugs or mites or parasites that leo's can pick up from them (thx for explaining that one too), I don't know if she would survive the infestation or treatment.

Does anyone have any ideas?

 

[droogievesch]

I don't know about making her gain weight, but I would definitely seperate her from your other leos. I would get her to a vet ASAP, they may be able to feed her some super high protein blend in liquid form of some sort.

Good luck!

 

[Xelas]

I don't know about making her gain weight, but I would definitely seperate her from your other leos. I would get her to a vet ASAP, they may be able to feed her some super high protein blend in liquid form of some sort.

Good luck!

What, you mean like an IV drip? Do they do that with lizards? This one doesnt exactly look full grown in length, but I can't really tell because of her size.

The other leos are all babies under 6 months old, are they still a threat?

 

[www.leogeckos.com]

Well, you need to make "slurry" which is a food that you can make to feed geckos that look that way. Youll need a syringe and feed it to her by mouth. This stuff is high in fat and protein which can help put weight on. I would bring her to a reptile vet, make sure the vet sees reptiles because if he doesnt then its likely he will be no help. The recipe is below, good luck.

G3 Slurry: Slurry to help stimulating the feeding response of Non-eating Geckos
By: Marcia McGuiness www.goldengategeckos.com

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 crushed 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 Tblsp. T-Rex Gargoyle MRP to each new thawed out cube.

Using this mixture, draw a full dropper (1 ml. eye dropper type) and place a drop on the gecko's nose. It will start to 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. Patience is the key here.

 

[Leighanne]

Try Marcia's Slurry Mix at usageckos.com

 

[BalloonzForU]

My first question is that pic yours or the guy you got her from?

Try the slurry, I would add extra calcium (no D3). You'll have to give her some every few hours. The best way to know for sure how much she is getting is to weigh her with a digital scale prior to feeding then again right after feeding, so you know she has eaten some. I'd also give her some warm soaks, she may be dehydrated.

 

[garweft]

Skip the slurry for now and take it to a vet to get it tested for cryptosporidia. It should be nowhere near another Leo until this is ruled out. It would suck to try nursing it back to health just to have it die, plus infect all your other Leos.

 

[SoulSmilen]

It still needs to eat.

Feed the slurry and get to the vet as soon as possible.

First task at hand is to seperate it from the others - for its sake and theirs. Yes, the young cagemates could do damage, age is of no consideration. It wouldn't take much to kill it at this point.

On the other hand, their health could be at risk, as well.

 

[Seamus Haley]

Fix it by freezing it. It's done one way or the other- don't prolong it.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

First of all, get your geckos off that walnut shell substrate! Put the sick on paper towel by itself, feed it some of my slurry so it will produce a stool, and get the gecko and the poop to a vet ASAP. Poor little thing... I hope the other geckos in that enclosure don't contract whatever it has.

 

[Xelas]

Well, you need to make "slurry" which is a food that you can make to feed geckos that look that way. Youll need a syringe and feed it to her by mouth. This stuff is high in fat and protein which can help put weight on. I would bring her to a reptile vet, make sure the vet sees reptiles because if he doesnt then its likely he will be no help. The recipe is below, good luck.

G3 Slurry: Slurry to help stimulating the feeding response of Non-eating Geckos
By: Marcia McGuiness www.goldengategeckos.com

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 crushed 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 Tblsp. T-Rex Gargoyle MRP to each new thawed out cube.

Using this mixture, draw a full dropper (1 ml. eye dropper type) and place a drop on the gecko's nose. It will start to 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. Patience is the key here.

Wow this sounds like a great idea. I have a few questions though:

1. How much of this should I feed her?
2. Is this for medical/emergency use only, or can I use it with my other geckos who I want to bulk up or just to eat too?
3. How is the stool supposed to look when it comes out?
4. What is the best way to thaw this out, by microwave or by putting it in a bag and running hot water over it?
5. How can I find a reptile vet close to where I live?
6. When I take her to the vet, what will they do to her? (I'm guessing i'll need a stool sample along with this vet visit, right? Will I need anything else?)
7. When I do thaw it out, how warm should this mixture be before feeding it?

I'm sure I'll have more questions, I'll post them as they come to me, thanks for your help.

 

[Xelas]

My first question is that pic yours or the guy you got her from?

Try the slurry, I would add extra calcium (no D3). You'll have to give her some every few hours. The best way to know for sure how much she is getting is to weigh her with a digital scale prior to feeding then again right after feeding, so you know she has eaten some. I'd also give her some warm soaks, she may be dehydrated.

I took the picture.

Where can I get calcium without D3? I thought it was all mixed together in every calcium product. And give her what every few hours, the mixture or the calcium?

 

[Xelas]

Fix it by freezing it. It's done one way or the other- don't prolong it.

Are you SERIOUS?!?!?!?!?! Freezing the gecko? Does ANYONE do that? Thats ridiculous! I'm not going to freeze a living creature that has a fighting chance, she's moving around, she's eating, she's alert, she's just drastically underweight. I really hope you weren't talking about the gecko, but you don't exactly specify what else you could be talking about. Is that what YOU do with your lizards when they turn sick?

 

[Xelas]

First of all, get your geckos off that walnut shell substrate! Put the sick on paper towel by itself, feed it some of my slurry so it will produce a stool, and get the gecko and the poop to a vet ASAP. Poor little thing... I hope the other geckos in that enclosure don't contract whatever it has.

So you think that this is a parasite or sickness? If it was, wouldn't it have just killed her by now? There is another gecko, a Snow, not as bad but pretty thin. Could this have been just the 1st owner who did this not feeding them? If it is a parasite, like that cryptospiridium that was mentioned, shouldn't I just skip the vet and start treating to save time? I'm having a bit of difficulty finding a herp vet near me. For some reason I imagined an entire hospital/veterinary clinic just for reptiles and amphibians. What does the vet do once I take it to them?

I really like your recipe for the slurry. How did you come up with it?

 

[SoulSmilen]

Locate a vet: http://www.arav.org/USMembers.htm

No one is going to be able to diagnose this over the internet; the only way you will know is to get a stool sample and get her to the vet, like has been advised. That answers another question you asked; no you shouldn't skip the vet and start treating, because the cause is unknown.

If there is another thin one, remove it from the group as well, but don't keep it with the other thin one. Once an animal is thin and not as strong as others in a group, it is at a disadvantage and will most likely not eat as well as it should; this can, and many times does, exacerbate a problem that may not have been that severe in the beginning but becomes life threatening in the end.

How many geckos are in that tank and how big is the tank?

 

[Xelas]

Locate a vet: http://www.arav.org/USMembers.htm

No one is going to be able to diagnose this over the internet; the only way you will know is to get a stool sample and get her to the vet, like has been advised. That answers another question you asked; no you shouldn't skip the vet and start treating, because the cause is unknown.

If there is another thin one, remove it from the group as well, but don't keep it with the other thin one. Once an animal is thin and not as strong as others in a group, it is at a disadvantage and will most likely not eat as well as it should; this can, and many times does, exacerbate a problem that may not have been that severe in the beginning but becomes life threatening in the end.

How many geckos are in that tank and how big is the tank?

The tank is a 10 gallon holding 7 geckos including the 2 thin geckos (temporary). They are all under 6 months old except for the 2 thin geckos. I'm buying another 40 gallon that will serve as my "baby tank," but the seller is lagging for some reason so I'm keeping them in there for now. I've had the 10 gallon set up as a hospital tank, but since I bought so many lizards @ once I kinda ran out of room for the babies since I didn't get the 40 beforehand.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

A 10-gallon tank is only sufficient for a single gecko! Overcrowding can cause severe distress and fighting over territory and food. Your geckos need to be housed in appropriate sized enclosures, and it sounds like you need to quarantine ALL of them until you can get this situation with the sick ones resolved.

Do you have them on heat? How do you know the individual geckos are eating? Are you providing proper supplementation for them? I would like to invite you to take a look at the Leopard Gecko Care Sheet on my website for answers to the most common questions.

As far as my slurry goes, I thaw out the frozen cubes in the sink with warm water. It should be at room temperature when administered. I would give them as much as they will eat, but do not exceed 1 ml in a single feeding. It is a good nutritional boost for any gecko, but it is designed to get some nourishment in their bodies and produce a stool for a veterinary examination.

Your geckos are sick, and most likely have a parasite load that was exacerbated by the conditions they have been kept in. They will die without veterinary intervention, and it may already be too late for that little one in the photo.

 

[Xelas]

A 10-gallon tank is only sufficient for a single gecko! Overcrowding can cause severe distress and fighting over territory and food. Your geckos need to be housed in appropriate sized enclosures, and it sounds like you need to quarantine ALL of them until you can get this situation with the sick ones resolved.

Do you have them on heat? How do you know the individual geckos are eating? Are you providing proper supplementation for them? I would like to invite you to take a look at the Leopard Gecko Care Sheet on my website for answers to the most common questions.

As far as my slurry goes, I thaw out the frozen cubes in the sink with warm water. It should be at room temperature when administered. I would give them as much as they will eat, but do not exceed 1 ml in a single feeding. It is a good nutritional boost for any gecko, but it is designed to get some nourishment in their bodies and produce a stool for a veterinary examination.

Your geckos are sick, and most likely have a parasite load that was exacerbated by the conditions they have been kept in. They will die without veterinary intervention, and it may already be too late for that little one in the photo.

You were right, I just got home and saw that she had died. She was fine when I left to work this morning, and it is sad to think that I was too late to save her.

I feed them all superworms in the morning and crickets at night. I dust them before I put them in the tanks usually 1 day of calcium powder, 1 day of vitamin powder, and 1 day with nothing. The crickets and mealworms are always gutloaded and if the lizards don't eat them within 10 minutes, I take the remaining crickets out. Sometimes a lizard won't eat crickets one night, or maybe two but I've never seen a lizard go 3 days without eating at least 1 cricket, and thats only if they had had mealworms recently.

On the 10 gallon, I'm only keeping them in there until I get the 40 gallon, better there together than in the bigger adult tanks, I wouldn't want my adults eating the babies! Every tank has either heating pads, heat emitters, or both.

So about these other ones, I'm guessing I need stool samples on all that have been kept in that tank, right? What do vets usually do to lizards? The reason why I ask is that if its as easy as putting their poop under a microscope and seeing what's crawling around inside then I can do that myself, I have access to many different microscopes and all I would need to do is look up a list/pictures/descriptions of parasites and match it to whatever is in there and treat it, right?

 

[garweft]

Fix it by freezing it. It's done one way or the other- don't prolong it.

I was going to say that, but felt he would respond like he did.

Are you SERIOUS?!?!?!?!?! Freezing the gecko? Does ANYONE do that? Thats ridiculous! I'm not going to freeze a living creature that has a fighting chance, she's moving around, she's eating, she's alert, she's just drastically underweight. I really hope you weren't talking about the gecko, but you don't exactly specify what else you could be talking about. Is that what YOU do with your lizards when they turn sick?

 

[garweft]

So about these other ones, I'm guessing I need stool samples on all that have been kept in that tank, right? What do vets usually do to lizards? The reason why I ask is that if its as easy as putting their poop under a microscope and seeing what's crawling around inside then I can do that myself, I have access to many different microscopes and all I would need to do is look up a list/pictures/descriptions of parasites and match it to whatever is in there and treat it, right?

Are you serious?