I work for a pet store and we have a leopard gecko that won't eat. He was sold about a month ago and the customer returned him because he wasn't eating. He's been taken to the vet and got a clean bill of health. Since then, we've gotten three more leopard geckos in stock that seem to be thriving. The other three eat all of the crickets and the one that won't eat shows no interest in them. We tried mealworms - he ate five last Monday, but hasn't eaten since. We tried Jump Start appetite stimulant and he wouldn't take it. When I mist under his hide box he goes crazy and tries to lick it dry - like he's dehydrated. Anyway, the cage setup is ok, we checked temperature, humidity - everything seems to be ok. Is there something we are missing? Does anyone have any tips on how to get this finicky guy to eat? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
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Juvenile Leopard Gecko won't eat
Replies (5)
A couple of things to try:
1) KEEP SPRAYING! A dehydrated gecko will usually not eat. If the leo is acting thirsty, it likely is.
2) Seperate this leo. Keep it in an isolated cage and preferably not on display in high traffic areas. A quiet corner would work nicely.
3) You've tried appetite stimulant, if he's staring to get skinny use Flukers Repta-Aid for carnivores. I had a couple of leos that were too weak to eat or just not eating, and I swear this stuff is miracle juice after a couple of days. It's pretty much a calorie replacement so it should give some strength and stimulate appetite. It's worked on all of my leos that stop eating.
After that, and a vet check, I'm out of ideas.
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Brian Skibinski
Milwaukee Reptiles
Brian@MilwaukeeReptiles.com
try some small waxworms. And make sure he has enough calcium. Sometimes when mine are licking a lot and acting thirsty, they really want calcium. You should also try giving him water from a dropper. Its a lot more effective than spraying.
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1.0 Pastel/Jungle Leopard gecko from JL (BJ)
0.4 Normal/Hi-Yellow Leopard gecko (Beatrice, Goldie, Freckles, Pepper)
0.1 SHCT Leopard Gecko (Brite)
0.1 TBD Leopard Gecko (Rainbow)
0.0.1 Tang Nearly Paternless (Peaches)
0.0.2 Corn Snakes (One snow, One red albino)
Damn! I knew I was forgetting stuff! Yeah give waxworms and all food should be dusted with calium and a multivitamin.
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Brian Skibinski
Milwaukee Reptiles
Brian@MilwaukeeReptiles.com
When I first got my leo he didn't eat for a while just from the change in environment. If he acts that thirsty...he may not have found the water dish, I know that sounds stupid but I would set him in there and see what he does.
On the box of Fluker's repti-aid for carnivores it says it rehydrates the animal as well as stimulating appetite and providing necessary calories.
Ok, now I know this sounds weird but I HAD that same problem and now my Gecko eats 12-14 crickets a day. I cut the heads off of the crickets. Then I dust them and put them on a tile in front of the leos humid hide (or one they use most). If you kill them like this you can't leave them in long or they won't be good food anymore. My Gecko is doing well now, but when I got him/her it would not eat and was loosing weight. I watched it with the crickets once and saw that as the crickets went around the Gecko got annoyed and ran around when the crickets would touch it. It worked for me. Now I don't know what my leo is going to do as it gets older. I plan to try live prey again, we will see. Hope your Gecko gets better!
Amanda
