Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Well, here he is. In all of his would-be glory...

My last rescue left.

I've done everything - including two vet visits. Read older posts as to the results of the vet visit - I don't want to go into it again...

But, suffice it to say, one look at poor Pablo and one knows there is something SEVERELY wrong.

I am posting two pictures in response to the discussion on crypto. Looking now, from the vet advice, to common, everyday user/lover real-world experience advice.

Thanks.

Second picture.

I apologize for the blurriness.

Look close at the blurr and you can see the triangle of darkness on his underside....

Thanks for looking and I look forward to hearing what you think...

And what could possibly be my next course of action?

- D

I'm pretty sure that the spot you're talking about is just his spleen.
-Alice

Sorry to but in, but were is this info about crypto? I just got another leo two days ago. For free Its 8.7grams. It looks just like that from the top, but when you look at it from the under side theres a little black dot just behind its right front arm. Then about half way back to its tail it is transparent. Does any know why.

The spleen is a longish organ. The dark patch looks like the liver. A dark liver suggests dehydration. Crypto doesn't quite look like that, it looks like multiple black dots/patches on the underside, not just one. However, you don't always get the black dots, so keep that in mind.

Make sure he's drinking, always provide a fresh shallow bowl of water, mist his tank regularly on the warm side (some geckos like to lap the water off the side of the tank).

-Lemur 6

When geckos go off food for a long time, their fat reserves become mobilized into their bloodstream. Eventually, the liver can no longer do it's job by filtering it, and gets glogged up and swollen. This is called Hepatic Lipidosis, or "fatty liver." It does not mean it has crypto!

This little baby is in bad shape, and if nothing has showed up on fecal examinations (ie: worms, coccidia or flagellate protozoans), it may very well have a bacterial infection since these infections do not show up on fecal floatations or smears. A fecal culture must be grown in a qualified lab to determine the type of pathogen and it's sensitivity. Usually, Baytril, or Septra can clear up these infections if caught early enough.

In the meantime, make sure he is warmer than normal temps... around 92-94 degrees (belly heat) on his enclosure warm side, make sure he's on paper towel, and dropper feed him (do not force-feed!) with the following slurry:

In a blender, combine:
1 small can Hill's A/D pet food (available at most vets)
1/4 cup Ensure (not chocolate)
1/4 cup pedialite
1 jar baby food squash or 1/4 cup plain canned pumpkin
1/2 tsp. each calcium powder and herp vitamins
2 crushed tablets or 2 opened capsules of milk thistle (found at most places that have vitamin and herb supplements - it is a liver purifier)
* a handfull of mealworms puree'd with this mixture if you can deal with that!
- Pour slurry in ice cube trays and freeze, thawing out only what you will use in a few days.

You know, I used to go out to the petstores and rescue babies that looked like that, or take peoples unwanted, sick leos. I cannot even calculate the countless hours I have spent trying to rehabilitate them, and the amount of money I have spent in veterinary visits, lab tests, and medication, only to watch them suffer and die. I just don't do it anymore because it is too heartbreaking and devasating for me. Besides, by taking these gentle, pathetic little creatures off their hands, it is only perpetuating the problems by not having the stores be accountable for the proper care and husbandry necessary to keep these babies healthy.

Best of Luck.
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Marcia McGuiness
Golden Gate Geckos
www.goldengategeckos.com

I wish I had it a few months ago...I had an adult female that stopped eating just after she was shipped to me for no apparent reason. She ended up looking like Pablo just before she died. I felt horrible...I couldn't get her to eat anything for months and I don't know how she hung on so long. I hope it never happens again. It is heart-wrenching to see them suffer, knowing that there's not much you can do once they get to a certain point.

I've known Marcia for a few years and seen her save lots of geckos with that special food. But doesn't tell her husband she puts meal worms in the blender. hehe! All kidding a side she has brought a lot back from deaths door.
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danny h.

1.3 leopard geckos

Poor little guy i dont have any medical advice to contribute.. except that the little blue dot on the belly, which isnt what you're talking about anyways is the kidney or liver or something, my vet told me yesterday. but i wish you the best of luck
Ironic, he looks EXACTLY like the baby leos I saw today, that Pets Unlimited is seling for 100 dollars a piece.... i resisted the urge to tell them they were going to die soon, because wel... its a pet store that obviously doesnt care.. so sad..

There are laws against animal neglect and cruelty. In my city, the agency that you report such things to is called Animal Care and Control. I don't know if it would be the same in your city but I bet your city has a similar agency. And don't think it won't do any good. In my city Animal Care and Control brought a lawsuit against Petco for mistreatment of animals. They have made some changes and improvements in the way they do business here. I think the case may still be in the courts.

Anyway, as this is a current problem all you have to do is pick up the phone and report them. Take two minutes out of your day and do something that may make a real difference.
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Sarah Stettler aka Starling
Sarah@stargecko.com
StarGecko.Com COMING SOON! Star Quality Leopard Geckos
Specializing in Hypotangerine Tremper Albinos

Hmm I am going to try to find a number for that

What he doesn't know wont hurt. LOL!!

My brother asked me one night what they taste like...I said, "I don't know...you want one?" He said, "Sure," then popped it in his mouth. He bit down once and was spitting it out before the "crunch" sound made it to my ears! He went on for a while telling me how nasty they were! I was laughing so hard...it wasn't my fault HE wanted to try one!

The vet actually called today - to check on how Pablo is doing. We are all still anxiously awaiting a decent poop sample... as soon as I have something in that regards, it's back to the vet for another check. I don't think the first check (back on January 2nd - different vet) was quite enough - and sometimes these things incubate for awhile.

I am at least happy to report that Pablo hasn't lost any more weight since Monday. His eating is still sporadic - sometimes it's a full cc, sometimes not even .5.... but, it's something...

It's a long story as to why I am trying so hard to save Pablo... I didn't buy him from the pet store, the owner gave him to me.... well, you see, Pablo was one of four of my first gecko babies to hatch. I had the four until they were about two-three months old, then "sold" them to the pet store in order to get a bearded dragon (dragon was free - suffered from intra-specices mutilation and was missing her left foot - but I needed the terrarium the geckos were in). So, I sold my four babies to this pet store - a VERY reputable pet store, and took home Lazlo. Everything was fine.....

Two babies, Baby Hughey and Van Gogh, were both sold. Just Baby and Pablo remained. Everything was fine until one day (I used to frequent this store every other day or so to buy crickets) I saw some new, emaciated geckos that a different person brought in to the store - in the SAME terrarium as my two babies. It wasn't long until my babies started looking sick, too. Unfortunately, by this point, I hadn't run into the owner that knew me and who would ACTUALLY listen to my complaints - the pet store staff (with the exception of one sympathetic girl who tried to help me) was severely lacking in knowledge (just imagine some of the petco people you have encountered throughout your days, and how helpful they have been) - and no one would "surrender" the geckos to me... that was the "owner's" decision to make. Then came the holidays - I was gone for 10 days in Virginia... my first day back, I ran into the owner... and he must have heard that I was coming, because he didn't argue or say anything. Just gave me the three sick ones (two of my babies and one someone else had brought in).

Soon followed a vet visit, and two of the geckos passed within the first few days of me taking them in. So, at this point, I am so emotionally involved with Pablo - if I knew what would save him, I would do it... i feel so responsible. I feel so passionate about the mistake I made, selling my babies, that I don't feel as though I can bring myself to keep breeding my adults. I WILL NOT ever "sell" another one of my babies. this whole situation has been heartbreaking - to the point where I can't even talk about it - which explains why I am so much more comfortable "writing" about it....

thanks - for those of you still reading - for reading...

marcia - i will definitely put that cocktail slurry together. i have tried the blended crickets/ensure/powder/etc mixture - and my little one hates it... so right now we are settling for wet dog food mixed with pedialyte and calcium/vitamins.

I will keep everyone posted...

- D

I understand totally about how it feels to be emotionally attached, and to be so desperate to save them... especially if they are your own. I think every one of us has experienced that in some way or another. But, don't give up! I've had some real sick rescues make it just fine... as a matter of fact, Libby, my 74 gram Tangerine Albino pictured in the posts above was a rescue that was emaciated from parasites.

I once had a breeder ship me a gecko in the dead of winter without a heat-pack, and I thought she was dead except that rigor mortis had never set in. She remained unconscious for 3 days while I kept her warm and hydrated with sub-Q injections. She finally started to respond to touch, but developed a serious respiratory infection and the vet suggested I euthanize her. I just couldn't give up on her! She was unable to hold her head up for several weeks, and it took her over a month to be able to walk on her own. I kept that little gecko alive dropper feeding her on the slurry I made for over 3 months!!! Yup, you heard me right.. three months of.

To make a long story short, she finally started to eat on her own, and I cried like a baby when I saw her trying to strike at a cricket for the first time. She had neourological damage from being so hypothermic and never did get very big, but gave me so much joy! She had as much of an instinct to survive as I had to save her.

Hang in there, and try not to put such a guilt trip on yourself. Tell yourself whatever you would tell someone else that was experiencing the same feelings. Keep us posted.
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Marcia McGuiness
Golden Gate Geckos
www.goldengategeckos.com