Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a male pictus gecko, probably about 1 year of age. Two nights ago my daughter fed him four medium crickets dusted in rep-cal--his normal diet. Last night she noticed that his stomach was very rounded, which worried me a little. I cleaned out his poop corner so that I could see if he was eliminating properly. Today there is only a small white spot in his toilet area--no solids, just some white on the sand. I took him out of his humid hide, and he still looks bloated and was lethargic (for him). He did run a little when I put him back down, but not nearly as fast or as far as usual. What can I do? Anything I can feed him (with a syringe if necessary) to get things moving, assuming it IS constipation?

Thanks!
Jan

I would not force feed him anything. If it is constipation, you may remedy it with proper basking temps. I would increase the basking spot or give some other form of supplemental heat if the temps are suboptimal.
Justin J

HI

There is also the chance he could be impacted from getting sand in his mouth when he dives for the mealworms. If there is a chance this is it, it isn't good.

Update:

I soaked him several times over a couple of days in warm water (which was suggested on some websites) and made sure he had plenty of water in his tank. He had a semi-normal poop the next day, and normal after that. His belly has gone down considerably: he seems to be acting more normal (i.e., he runs when I reach for him ). The under tank heat mat seems to be working ok, and he only eats crickets, so he doesn't get a lot of sand when he eats. I fed him three small crickets last night. This morning there is a very normal poop. Yay! Thanks for the advice!