Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Sorry to bother you guys again, I am just wondering how long I should wait before seriously worrying (unlike I already am... not) about my leos tendancy to not eat?

They are a bit over a month old and are not very fat.

Thanks, please don't flame me -_-

i have heard that in the winter, they will go anytime from 1-3 weeks without eating. but thats not 100% sure...
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Matt
My Reps:
1.0.0 Brown (Bahaman) Anole
0.1.0 Green Anole
2.1.0 leopard geckos a Norm, an Abberrant, and my newest... a Blizzard!

Hi

Since it is concerning you so much, and there is nothing anybody can really say to help easy your mind, why don't you go ahead and take them to the vet. and take a fecal with you and have the vet. ease your mind.

I mean this in the nicest of ways. I know what it is to be concerned about a gecko you are falling in love with.

Take Care, TLB

And how much would all that cost? -_-

Already spent pretty much 2 paychecks worth of stuff of them so far...

A vet visit can cost anywheres from 40-100 bucks dependig where you live.. someone here mentiond it was like almost 100 in NY or something.. I paid 50 for mine. Thats just the examination, anything they do in there like will be more. Liike mine got cornea dye test done, which ran 17 bucks.. a fecal will be about 15-40 i am guessing, from what people say here...it all depends on the vet & where you live

I wouldnt waste money on a vet visit just yet. Remind me again how long you've had your geckos. Please understand, it is completely normal for a gecko not to eat in its first 2-3 weeks in a new place. I dont know how many times i'm going to have to say this. Just put your dish of mealworms in front of their hide. Pretty soon you will notice mealworms missing. You can even try throwing one or two into their hideout. If they go a month or 2 without eating, then take them to a vet. But its way too early to assuming there is a medical problem.

You said your leos are only a month old, correct? That is way too young to be doing any handling. Eliminate that completely if you havnt already. Babies and juveniles are way more skittish than adults. They will be alot more stressed if they are that young.

Thanks, just worried me that they are young so they don't have much fat stored, and the mealworms don't move enough to get their attention usually.

Well I guess I should be okay because they have all eaten something at least.

I will give them another two or three weeks, thanks.

they should be pretty active when u first put them in the dish.
of course by the morning they are very lethargic. i then remove them.

i use a long pair of medical tweezers and hand pick the most active mealies to feed. i know that is pretty extreme!

i also use the tweezers to drop a mealie in the hide in front of my leos. this allows me to obsess over feeding them without actually disturbing them.

i completely understand your frustration!
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Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Lizards

1.4.0 leopard geckos - raine, mango, noodle, jaws, & sobe
0.1 bearded dragon - sydney
0.1 king snake & 0.2.3 corn snakes
1 red eye tree frogs, 3 green tree frogs, 2 firebelly toads
5 anoles,8.0 bettas & numerous tropicals
1.2 dogs (dachshund-pepper, brittany spaniel-jenni, lab-kaci)
1 hubby & 2 boys

www.skayart.com

I got mine from reptilefood.com

I do the same thing, but in the dish after a few seconds they usually just sit there. On the paper towels they run like hell. When the light on they wiggle like crazy, but not with red light unfortunately. Oh well hopefully eventually the leos will figure out when I drop them in they are alive, as they usually react once touched.

Are the mealworms on the cool side or warm side of the tank?

My mealworms tend to vegetate if left on the warmside...
Also, if you throw in a piece of carrot or potato into the food dish, the mealworms will move around to eat it. Just make sure you cut it big enough so your gecko doesn't eat it.

-Lemur 6

Ahh they are on the warm side, should I try the cool side?

I would put in some moist food but I would be afraid of leo taking a bite out of it or the mealies burrowing into it

-Have you tried feeding them crickets?
(sometimes leos will respond to the movement of the crickets, especially if they are used to eating them)

-Have you contacted the breeder you got them from?
(she should be the one to answer these questions about the animals you got from her)

-Have you considered the fact that you will most likely have to take these animals to a vet?
(Reptiles are not disposable pets, and deserve the same respect as a dog or cat gets, ie. if you have reason to suspect they are ill you should take them to a vet)

Note: 1 month old leopard geckos should not take 1 or 2 weeks to acclimate to a properly set up enclosure/captive environment. Subadult or adult leos sometimes will take 1 or 2 weeks, even a month to start eating regularly but in most cases hatchling leopard geckos will only take a day or two to acclimate. Another thing to consider is that a very young hatchling/juvie leopard gecko does not have much fat stored in their tails as an adult does. They cannot go very long without food before they reach the "point of no return".

In short, you have good reason to be concerned about those geckos.

My 2 cents, for what it's worth.
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Peace-
Kelli Hammack
H.I.S.S.
email me

Have you tried feeding them crickets?

Yes, but only one will actively eat them... the others are too scared to come out and eat... And by the time I am gone the crix are already hidden from them...

Have you contacted the breeder you got them from?

Yes... She said feed crix...

Have you considered the fact that you will most likely have to take these animals to a vet?

Yes, but I really didn't want to spend another paycheck on them so quickly -_- And I am completely broke now

So basically if they don't start eating by next weekend, when I will get paid, it will already be too late?

;_;

That you posted one here, then decided not to get them because everyone said they didn't look healthy? If it is the same group of Leos and you changed your mind, they really did not look good, and may have some underlying problems as to why they aren't eating.
Make sure you try to get a fecal from each of them to take to the vet.
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Sara

No they are not the exact same ones

Are they from the same person?
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Sara

But they were in much butter condition than the ones in those old photos... Ill post them tonight if you wish

After they tried to pawn those animals that were on their deathbeds off on you, why would you trust them to sell you healthy animals?
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I don't know, I saw all of her other leos when I went to her house and they all were perfectly healthy.

np
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Sara

Kelli was much more diplomatic that I am feeling right now. I would think that since you post on this forum just about more than anyone else, something should have clicked by now with all the advise you receive. It is very aggravating and discouraging that you have spent so much money on these leos, worried about them so much, yet do not seem to have done much research on their care or understand the level of commitment (this includes financial) that is required for their health and well-being. It sometimes seems that you do not take the advise that is given unless you get the answer you want to hear. So, here's mine:

- Baby geckos need to eat every day. If they have not eaten in the amount of time you are describing, and are insuring they have the correct temperatures and care, they are sick.

- Sick geckos need to be seen by a veterinarian.

- Veterinarians cost money. This is part of the responsibility of pet ownership.

- If you have no money, perhaps you should spend less time on this forum and go out and mow lawns or shovel snow to earn some. It's Superbowl Sunday... lot's of people would love to have someone take care of that while they watch the game.

- If your leos die because you did not take care of their health needs, then you will have wasted all of the money you spent on them in the first place... not to mention all of the time spent worrying and asking for advise.

This is my personal and professional opinion.
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Marcia McGuiness
Golden Gate Geckos
www.goldengategeckos.com

I don't ignore the advice given, I just hear a lot of conflicting advice...

And I thought I did quite a lot of research on the care and commitment, I just didn't expect to go from healthy to severely ill inbetween my two payment dates.

I apologize for going off on you... I rarely do that, and I always feel bad when I do. I would like to be helpful and supportive, and I understand your worry. I agree that there is quite a bit of conflicting information and advise, but the only thing I can suggest is to consider the source of that advise and use your own better judgement.
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Marcia McGuiness
Golden Gate Geckos
www.goldengategeckos.com

How big are the mealworms that you are offering to your leos? If they're too big, they won't eat them (scares them).

-Lemur 6

Hmm I will try some smaller ones, the ones I am offering are kinda big...