Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey guys, my little gecko is about 4 or 5 months old now and has been eating and has been active continually up until this point. He isn't eating anymore even if you put it in front of him, well i guess thats not true. I have gotten him to eat a few mealworms but still he has lost that "killer instinct" and if he misses the bite once or twice he won't chase after the food. I guess i should add i have not changed anything in feeding rituals or anything. Mainly mealworms with a spray supplement. The other wierd thing is that he is walking really wierdly. His legs are shaking sometimes when he walks and he wiggles alot differently then he normally does. One thing that im not sure about is that maybe Calcium has something to do with it. The supplement does have some in it but im not sure if maybe i need another source. Well im kinda not sure where to go with this guys. Please any suggestions would be great

I have a milkcap full of calcium in my tanks, and I have noticed my leos licking from this on occassion. You may want to add this, just in case they aren't getting enough from the supplement you currently use.

I don't know what to say about the loss of appetite. I would probably take the poo to the vet for a fecal analysis if it seemed really serious. Sometimes my leos get bored with mealworms and they seem uninterested in their food. The simple addition of a few crickets seems to pique their interest, so maybe you could try that. Perhaps they're just to that age where they stop eating as much - which is normal from what I hear. I just don't know exactly how many months it takes them to get to that point.

I'm sure somebody else will offer better advice than I could give. Good luck!
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-Kristin

0.1.2 Leopard Geckos
(Monet, Kumquat, and Tamale)

Thanks for the Reply. I did thing of the possibility of him getting older and possibly eating less ofte. I know that i have read that when they are younger they feed every day, where when they get older its every other day. What im going to do is get some calcium, and also get a few crickets tomorrow and see what happens. Other then that im just gonna have to wait and see. If anyone else has some suggestions please feel free to add them.
Thanks again.

Well, I can at least give the example that mine, once she reached adult size at about 9 months, definitely slowed down her appetite. She went from 5 crickets a day to 2-3 every other day almost overnight. The way I understand it, they eat a lot more when growing than as adults.
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0.1 Albino Leopard Gecko - Tigger
0.1 Crested Gecko - Pooh-Bear

The shaking thing though, can be a symptom of something fairly bad - I forget exactly what, but if that continues, I'd recommend a trip to the vet.
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0.1 Albino Leopard Gecko - Tigger
0.1 Crested Gecko - Pooh-Bear

I think you may be thinking of metabolic bone disease. That's really bad, and the gecko should be taken to the vet as soon as possible. The vet will give him calcium injections. You might want to use calcium supplement for your gecko also. Just put the crickets in the bag with the calcium powder and shake really well so the powder will coat the crickets. Do this everytime you feed them to your leos. You can do the same for mealworms. And you can leave a dish of calcium in a try for them just like the other poster mention.

While I haven't dealt with it personally, I've read about it hear and seen the affects in a garyole gecko. Shakey legs are the huge sign here... In fact, wasn't it just a few months ago someone had a blizzard with shakey legs that needed a lot of calcium support, but was caught in time to save him?

At 4-5 months he isn't full grown, but not well.

You should up the calcium intake of the little guy immediately. Quite honestly, I haven't heard of a spray supplement, use a multivitamin dust for leos and until he shows improvement extra calcium offered is a good idea. The best chance for the little guy would be a trip to the vet for a calcium shot or two to give him a head start.

You don't want to mess with MBD, it can leave permanent disfiguartions of the bones and jaws of the little guy. Making it hard to eat and walk especially. Good luck to the little guy!
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0.1 Albino Leo Gecko
0.1 Crested Gecko
1.0 Dear Boyfriend
Departed: Harvey and Spock

My male blizzard,Devlin, was getting lathargic and shaking when he walked. I took him to the vet and he got a Ca injection and had to have Ca drops twice a day until gradually I was able to stop them all together. The vet thinks that he has a Calcium absorption issue. Luckily he is fine now and has finally started to grow. He has a lid filled with pure Ca in his viv and he eats all of it in about 3 days. (he has always been provided with Ca in his viv. and on his prey items) He needs way more than my other geckos who have never emptied their dishes.
Take your gecko to the vet now.