Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have had a baby Gecko for 3 months and he was doing great! FAT, active, smart, a sweetpie! Then, last monday i could not find any poop in his cage, and the same happened during all the week!Today, for the 6th day in a row i could not find any poop!He does not look sick or emaciated at all. His belly is round and his tighs incredibly fat, so i suppose he is eating as usual. What is wrong with him?

About his husbandry im doing everything according to the book, and i didnt put any substrate in his cage to avoid impactation.

Any guess? What should i do?

Does he have a food bowl? If so, lay off on his feedings for a few days, and give him some warm water baths until he poops. My geckos sometimes don't eat for a few days, doesn't mean their sick, they will eat when they're hungry.. give him some time.. you didn't change anything in his tank did you? if so, he might be stressed out..
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GeckoFire-Dale
Proud owner of 2.3.1, AND 2 eggs in the oven
Questions?Drop me a line

No, i didnt change anything in his cage BUT on monday, the same day he stopped pooping, i allowed him to free roam on my couch a little bit.I took him out from his cage for the 1st time!He is still a baby, you know, he must be around 8 months only!

How are his temps in his cage? Do you give him a temp gradient to change between.. such as 87-88 on the warm side and as 75-80 on the cool side? How are the hides and things in his cage? do you have a hide on each side of the cage?
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GeckoFire-Dale
Proud owner of 2.3.1, AND 2 eggs in the oven
Questions?Drop me a line

Well, as i said in my other message i live in a VERY hot county, so i dont need any artificial lights, my problem is not to bake my reptiles, lol!
I keep my GECKO indoors, in my living room with the air condo on 24 hours a day. So the temperature variation is not very big.The tem varaition goes from 78M to 84 Max.
Yes, his cage has hides, and a box with a wet sponge, and a bowl of calcium and a worms nursery with gut loaded adult worms too, and a bowl with vitamins, etc...

Hi Flavia. I think the point being made is that a max of 84, assuming that your temps usually hover between 78 and that max and only reach that max sometimes, is not really warm enough for a leo, and could be affecting its digestion. They need a constant warm spot, along with cooler areas to move to when they wish. If you were in a cooler climate, I would be telling you to bump up those temps to the high 80's up to 90 on the "warm" side. Is there some way for you to give your leo a warm spot in its cage, with the rest of the cage at the cooler temperature that your A/C provides? This is very likely to help your leo function more optimally.

When i bought my LEO i caged him in the kitchen where the temp varies from lets say 82 until 90.In the kitchen there is no air condo. I dont know whether it was because of stress (he was a TINY baby)but he spent several days without eating at all!He was becoming emaciated, his belly was flat, with loose skin!.Then i changed his cage to the living room where the temp is lower because of the air condo.The same day he started eating like a pig! Since then i never had a problem with him again!He is VERY fat, his tail is huge!
By the way, he made a big "you-know-what" today after i gave him 2 warm baths.lol! Perhaps the air condo is making the living room too dry. Anyway if that happens again ill move him back to the kitchen where the humidity level is much higher and the temp too.Do you think 82-90 its ok for him?

Leos do fine with very little humidity as long as they are provided a humid hide 82-90 isn't to hot but it will make it hard to provide a thermal gradient. I would suggest leaving him in the living room and putting a heat pad under one side of the tank. Cold blooded animals need to be able to change there body temperature when neccesary. 90 degrees is actually the optimum temperature for the warm side of the tank, but around 78-83 will be fine for the cool side. You have to take into account that in the the wild these geckos live where it regularly reches 110 and 120 degreed but the combination of nocturnal habits and deep burrows gives them access to pretty much any temperature they would want.

even though they keep growing for much longer.
personally if your leo has a nice plump tail i'd lay off the feeding for 2-3 days to see if it poops. No sense stuffing it full if nothings coming out.
A visit to the vet might not hurt as well if nothing passes over a couple of days.

good luck with it!!
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Sometimes, if your gecko is too cold then his digestion will slow down. Also, if he gets too hot or dehydrated the poop inside can dry out and be harder to pass. One thing you can try is soaking. Set up a tub of water that is 5-10 degrees warmer than room temp, and soak him for 15-20 minutes each night until he poops. Be careful though because most geckos flip out when they find themselves stuck in water. It's good to use something with a lid.

He is in my living room where the room temperature is always between 78(min) until 84F(max).Not a great variation of temperature!But i live in a very HOT country so i needed to put his cage in the living room where my air condo is.
Ill try to give him a soak, thanks!

It would be much better if you heated one side to around 90 and he needs a thermal gradient to regulate histmperature.

Yesterday i gave him two warm baths and during the night he made the biggest poop ive seen in my whole life!Thanks!