Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi all. I am totally new to the Gecko forum and need some advice from gecko keepers. I work for Kindred Spirits animal sanctuary as well as halfway housing out of my own home so rehabbing lizards is nothing new.

My problem is this: Tomorrow I am getting 2 Crested in (I have worked with geckos but none of the ones given to the sanctuary have had MBD) and I need some advice. The female is said to have MBD but I will not know the stage of the disease until I can physically exam her. I am used to tube-feeding larger lizards, snakes and whatnot but I will be honest and say that the size and fragileness of geckos has be pretty intimidated.

Can someone tell me if they have had experience tube-feeding a gecko? Are they as fragile as I think they are? Has anyone had one with MBD and if so what was their treatment plan? Any advice, suggestions or reccomended sites are gladly appreciated.

Thanks in advance to all who reply.

Ellena

This is what happens when people don't take the time to educate themselves.

Here's a website that has health information concerning the more common ailments with geckos.

http://www.thegeckospot.com/leohealth.html

quoted from a section on the above website...

"Supplementation of the food is necessary in order to better match the nutritional content of the diet with that which the leopard gecko would eat in the wild. The best way to add nutrients to livefood is to place the livefood in a bag, drop in some vitamin/calcium powder and shake the bag until the insects are coated. Supplements can also be mixed into fruit babyfood. The most commonly discussed supplements include calcium, vitamin D and phosphorous.

It is important not to use too much supplement, as it is possible for leos to get too much vitamins. I prefer to supplement each meal by dusting the insects, lightly, with calcium powder. Once a week I substitute multivitamin powder for the calcium powder. (Note, for gravid females and hatchlings I like to use the multivitamin supplement twice a week.) The level of supplementation should also be dependent on the quality of the gut load."

I don't know if I'd worry to much about over-supplementing right now. Just do your best to get the gecko eating regularly and make sure the calcium and vitamins are always on the food.

If you have more questions, feel free to ask.

Best of luck and congrats on doing such an awesome thing like rehabilitation. There should be more people like yourself!

-Adam

Thanks Adam, I put the link in my favorites!

I am really excited about having them, the female with the MBD espically. I received them yesterday and they both are doing great. I kinda figured I would play it by ear and not worry about too much calcium. I figured at her point and because she is 9 months old and will be coming into sexual maturity in the next three months... more calicium the better. I would hate for her to become egg-bound or become more calcium-depriven and worsen her state.

Thanks for the reply and below is a pic of the new cages. They were just comepleted yesterday and they are pretty bare right now, but you will get the idea. Working with these animals is very rewarding and I plan to be involved for a long time to come.

Ellena

Now that's an awesome cage setup! I'm sure all will go great for you. Best of luck!

-Adam