Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I got a new leo about 3 wks ago. When I first got her she was fine. 5 days ago she started to shed and then yesterday I noticed her eyes were swollen shut. I don't know what to think of this. I have her in a 20g long with that calcium sand. Do you think the subtrate could be the problem? Her temps are 85 on the hot side and 72 on the cool side. I have a humid hide in the tank and her eyes did look a bit better after she had spent some time in it. Any thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Deanna

Get off the sand as soon as possible. If you don't like the way paper towels or newspapers look, you can use tile slates or many other things for substrate.

-Patrick

I have seen this happen with leos right after they shed.....it can be fixed by flushing the eye a few times a day with lukewarm water(preferably chlorine free).

I also recommend placing the gecko in a sterile cage void of any substrate for the time being, as that could be a contributing factor or even the culprit in the first place.

There are more reasons why calcium sand is a poor choice for a substrate and these can be found all over the internet so I won't list them all off, but I recommend switching to paper towels or newspaper for the time being, and definitely long term compared to the calcium sand.
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1.0.0 Lampropeltis getula holbrooki
0.1.0 Lampropeltis getula californae
0.0.1 Lampropeltis getula nigra
1.0.0 Lampropeltis mexicana thayeri
2.3.0 Eublapharis macularius macularius
0.0.2 Rhacodactylus ciliatus
0.1.0 Gerrhosaurus major major

Definately remove the calci-sand...on top of being a huge impaction risk, it can also irritate the eyes and cause infections...this may be what you are seeing now.

Replace the sand with paper towels, tile, shelf liner, or reptile carpet immediately.

Try flushing the eye a few times a day with saline solution. If the eye does not improve within a couple days (if it hasnt improved by now) he needs to see a vet asap, eye infections can turn into permanant damage very quickly.
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1.1 Bearded Dragons
2.2 Leopard Geckos
1.0 Uromastyx (Mali)
1.1 Corn snakes
0.1 Mexican Black Kingsnake
1.0 Bairds Ratsnake
1.0 Rosy Boa
1.1 Green Anoles
1.1 House Geckos
0.0.2 Flying Geckos
0.0.1 Red Eye Tree Frog

I put her on paper towels and rinsed her eyes out the best I could for two days and she did not improve so I brought her in to the vets office and it turned out that she has some kind of eye infection and the swelling was puss. So they expressed some of the puss and put her on oral antibiotics and eye drops for 3 wks. The vet figures that she had the infection when I got her. She seems to be doing better. Thanks for the advice everyone.