Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My AFT has lost interest in crickets for the past week or so. Usually he's insatiable when it comes to crix and eats as many as he can catch, but lately he is just disinterested.

I was cleaning the tank and removed all the stuff from it today, and the hide so he can gob up any loose crix as he usually does, but he would just look at them and turn away. I am pretty sure that he ate some crickets , but I am still worried. He also is not pooping as often as I'd like, and has lost a little weight, although he still looks normal, and not malnoureshed.

He is aprox 9 months, in a 10 galon tank. Temps have been good, I bought a UTH few weeks back to regulate more as it gets colder. I have it on the side of the tank (out of the gecko's reach tho). I mist few times a day so I dont think humidity is a prob. Could it be calcium or vitamin deficiency? i tried to give him some calc suplement to lick off my finger but he didnt care for that eirhte.

Help.

ive ben doing research on AFT cuz im looking at gettin one soon. so im not speaking of experance but jsut from what i have read. have u tryed feeding him milworms or a pinky as a change of pace? it might be he is just sick of crix and if u give him a treat milworm or pinky then he might eat normal again.
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1 anole

If your gecko has previously been eating normally and has suddenly stopped, there is obviously something wrong. Based on your description of his behaviour around the crickets and his irregular bowel movements, I would lean towards a possible case of impaction. What are you using for substrate? If it is a loose material like dirt, or sand, I would change it to cermaic tile or paper towel. This not only helps to prevent impaction by limiting loose material in the tank, but also allows you to have a good view of the animal's stool in order to check for any irregularities that may show up in it.

If it is a serious case of impaction, then it will require a vet visit. If your gecko is losing weight then I would say you should definitely book an appointment as soon as possible. The remedy is fairly simple, however not taking the steps to resolve it, could prove fatal if it is impaction and is serious enough.

Best of luck,
-Adam

Well he seems to be back to normal now. I had him on paper towels so it wasn't an impaction.

As far as feeding him something else, well he didn't want to eat mealworms when I got him, and I don't want to feed him pinkies just yet, he's 10 months old but i wont try pinkies until he is at least a year.

Thanks for the replies tho.