• Responding to email notices you receive.
    **************************************************
    In short, DON'T! Email notices are to ONLY alert you of a reply to your private message or your ad on this site. Replying to the email just wastes your time as it goes NOWHERE, and probably pisses off the person you thought you replied to when they think you just ignored them. So instead of complaining to me about your messages not being replied to from this site via email, please READ that email notice that plainly states what you need to do in order to reply to who you are trying to converse with.

  • IMPORTANT! PLEASE READ!! About the Google Adsense ads being displayed

    =====================
    Posted 08/15/2025
    =====================


    Yeah, I know. They are a pain in the butt. But they pay the bills to keep my server running. Just a fact of life, I am afraid.

    Want to get rid of them? Simple. Just become a Contributor level member or above and they will be gone. -> Please click HERE."

    Is that too much for me to ask of you to keep this site running? Well, sorry about that. I too wish I could get everything for free. But alas.....

    =====================
    Addendum: 01/10/2026
    =====================


    Google Adsense ad revenue for December, 2025 was just $30 over the cost of the lease for the server running this site. So, in effect, the money providing the incentive for me to continue running this site is coming SOLELY from the paid memberships and sponsorships here. Which honestly ain't much....

Problems with new gecko...advice

S

Snoopysmom

New member
Joined
Jan 20, 2009
Messages
67
Reaction score
1
Points
0
Location
Michigan
Got a leopard gecko last Sunday. Temps in the cage are correct... a couple degrees on the warm side since she came without a tail and was a bit skinny. Paper towel as a substrate. I've been feeding her 3 crickets a day (the guy I got her from said he's been feeding her only 2 a day and I was told by another gecko owner to increase it gradually). I fed her one cricket this morning and around noon I noticed a mass of cricket parts in her cage. It looks like she regurgitated a couple crickets... or at least a bunch of parts. She also seems to be headed into a shed.

Is this normal or should I be worrying about impaction since I have no idea what the previous owner used as a substrate?
 
it may have crypto. Do not put another gecko in with it. Dust all crickets with calcium/D3 and put a small dish with calcium and D3 inside the cage also. More than likely your gecko may not make it, sorry:( When buying reptiles always pick a healthy one.
 
Great just freaking great! This is a $5 gecko I took pity on at a reptile show... :( Today, she looks 100% better now that she has shed but I haven't tried to feed her again. Plus, while I don't have any other geckos I do have snakes. I keep everything very clean but I can't swear I didn't touch a couple of my snakes after I touched her when transferring her to her new cage.
Looks like I need to put a call in to my vet. :(>
 
Durn! My reptile vet is out of town until tomorrow. The good news is that I think that I put the snakes in their new homes before I put the gecko in hers. I haven't really handled any of them since to give them time to adjust. I did clean the gecko cage yesterday but didn't handle or feed any of the other reps.
 
Use 91% alcohol on hands and anything else before touching your other animals,this and boiling water are the only things to knock down crypto from surfaces and your hands, "don't use on animals"!
 
Can the reptile strain be transfered to dogs or humans? I'm pretty sure I petted my dog right after the transfer not to mention the kids wanted to help put the cage together. We all washed our hands afterward but... still will make me worry.
 
Calm down... chances are it isn't crypto. Crypto is not at all common in the gecko hobby these days as it was 10 years ago. You DO need to take the gecko to your vet to have a fecal float and smear done to test for parasites. If you cannot get a sample then your vet can do what is called a cloacal wash and test that.
 
Oh, one more thing... it's quite possible she regurged because she has been "starved" (you said she was real skinny) and ate a bit too much to overcompensate. That is not uncommon.
 
Thank goodness for that! To be honest I wouldn't know a skinny gecko from a healthy one... I've never owned a gecko before. I'm going by what the cricket seller told me. She said that it was a bit skinny but that could be accounted by the lost tail. When I told her that the boy (seller) said that just to feed it two crickets a day she looked shocked and said it wasn't enough. Here is a pic I took on Monday...

Lucy3-02-09.jpg


And here is a picture I took today (after shed)...

gecko3-5-09.jpg
 
That gecko is very skinny. I agree with slowly increasing the amount of food. I also agree with the mealworms. It may also have a parasite, so a vet visit is in order. I would suggest that once the leo gets more used to eating more food, try feeding it a wax worm once a week to help fatten it up. Just don't try this yet.
 
She does look a little skinny. Cert. not emaciated, and if she still eating on her own, I'd say her chances are pretty good (excl. crypto). She does need a fecal done, in which case a vet will need to see the animal. She may have just regurged due to stress. You say you just got her @ A show? Could you get a nice pic of her belly? I agree with what the other posters said: offer mealies, and DEF put a calcium dish in there, tho imo I use straight calc w/o D3 in the tanks, to avoid a D overdose. Keep her warm and well hydrated and calm. Get a fecal done ASAP. And try not to freak out "if it is crypto" cuz (thank Gd I never had to deal w/it) but from what I hear, IF it is, there's prob not too much you can about it now. Follow strict quanatine procedures, even move her to another room if you can. You might a small waxworm or two to fatten her once she clears a fecal too.
 
I have heard from great breeders that if it is well kept under optimal conditions, fed good food, fresh water, proper temp., moist hide area, etc. that even if it does have crypto (not saying that it does) it will still live long and act normal. Good luck and please keep us informed!
 
This morning I fed her two of the smaller crickets and she snapped them up. I will try to get a belly pic this afternoon. I don't want to stress her this soon after eating.

The vet is supposed to call today when he gets back from his seminar. He's the only reptile vet in the area so hopefully he knows about geckos. (I haven't had to use him yet but did call around when I bought my first snake)

I will also pick up some meal worms today at the bait store. Suppose I should feed them a little before offering them? What do those things eat? I'll have to look it up.

IF she does have crypto I think we will just be putting her down. Not worth the threat to my snakes... especially long term. (Anyway, that is currently my opinion) I did get her at a show but did not get a card of the place that had her and I can't remember a name. It was the booth owners son... said it was his personal gecko and I didn't see any other geckos at the booth.
 
Vet doesn't think it is crypto... fecal came back clean. Says we can't rule it out completely since sometimes the test isn't always reliable but he said to keep her in quarantine and we'll do another in a month or so if it doesn't look like the gecko is gaining weight.

She's been getting 3 crickets a day for the past 4 days and hasn't had any problems with them... in fact, she acts like she wants more. :)
 
If they are small crix, I'd go up to half a dozen or so. Do you have a weight on her? I doubt it is crypto, most likely neglect/malnutrition/stress. Likely cause of the regurg. Now that she is settling in, let her eat. I agree w/your vet, and def keep the quarantine up. Sounds like she will be very nice for you, just needs some weight. Give her lots of water, varied food, and calcium and herptivite and she will be great.
 
The vet took her weight but I did not make note of it. He wrote it down for future reference.

I would say the crickets are medium size... not the tiny ones. I have yet to find a store that is selling mealworms. The local Meijer store had some sort of gecko food that was cut up into squares. It was hard to tell if it was supposed to be food or just a treat.
 
Back
Top