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HELP! VERY SICK GECKO!

Aesear Jul 15, 2003 08:04 PM

This afternoon I went to the pet store to get crickets for my crew. I also went to check on the baby leo that the store has had in a cage with a much larger leo. the baby has been on the verge of death ever since I noticed it about a week ago. The first time I saw it, it was as I said, with the gecko nearly twice its size and the crickets it was being fed were a good deal larger than the baby's head. There was no calcium on the crickets or in a dish and only a heat rock for heat. the water bowl was too deep for the poor thing to drink from properly and it looked TERRIBLE. its tail is bone thin with absolutely no fat reserve there whatsoever. the hip bones are jutting up, his skin is sagging off his ribcage and his legs have virtually no muscle whatsoever. he was listless and I yelled at the pet store people until they said they would move him to his own cage. The next time I came in he was still in the cage. I threw an even bigger fit until they again promised to move him. the next visit he was moved but they didn't even have a heat rock with him! no heat light! no NOTHING! I chewed them out again, utterly furious and they said they would move him again. so I came in this afternoon and he was in his own cage, with heat rock but he was laying as if drowned in the water bowl (still too deep for him). the pet shop employee made to take him out of the cage and he moved, surprising her that he was still alive at all. I was livid by this time and told her I would take him. Now what I want to know is this: is he even worth trying to save or should I simply put an end to his misery. he can walk and will drink a little bit of water when I drip it on his nose but his underbelly looks mostly black. I'm worried that there is something that is wrong with his internal organs. This poor little thing looks to be only a month old. should I take him to the vet only to have him say that the little guy is doomed or is there something that might still be done? sorry for the long post but I need to know what to do.
Thanks in advance.

Replies (5)

pspguy Jul 15, 2003 08:06 PM

n/p

LeoEyes Jul 15, 2003 09:41 PM

Well you can try to save him, but you should be warned it will not be an easy road and mostly likely he will not survive. The best thing to do, if you are willing to give it a try, is to first get him in a properly set up cage. Since he is so weak you should help him eat. I suggest feeding him a kind of bug slurry. What you do is take some crickets/mealworms/ supers, any or all of the above and grind them up in a blender (yuck!)with a tablespoon of pedialite (help hidrate him) and some ensure. Get a little dropper and let him lick it from the dropper, to do this put a very tiny amout on his nose (this is if he doesnt start licking it on his own) and when he starts licking put the dropper near his toungue. Be careful not to get any in his nostrils. Feed him as much as he will drink. Also do this like twice a day or so. I don't claim to be any vet or expert but this has worked for me. Again the ultimate descision is up to you whether to try or put him to sleep.

One thing you need to do is get a fecal done on him as he may possible be carrying parasites. And also get a vet visit for him, but i recomend letting him get some strength back before taking him in, as it is very stressful.

dragonlady01 Jul 15, 2003 10:45 PM

LeoEye's method is probably the best you can do for him/her right now. Good luck, let us know what happen.

armiyana Jul 16, 2003 05:00 AM

Be sure to hydrate the little one first! Use the pedialyte and make sure it drinks over the next 48 hours BEFORE you try to feed it. I don't know if a bug shake is enough liquid or not. Better to be safe than sorry IMHO.
Trying to force feed a starving leo when it may be dehydrated can cause liver damage or failure.

Good luck ;_:

tke Aug 18, 2003 12:08 PM

Everything is worth trying to save. Take him to a vet right away. I bought my kid a leo from a breeder. He or she had parasites. The vet gave it a shot of vitamins and antibiotics I had to give it oral for a week. Mine sounded almost as bad as yours. I gave it Hydro-life for 2 weeks because it was just to weak to get and eat food. My vet said it needed a uva and uvb light. And a ceramic heat bulb for nights. No light at night it throughs off thier sleep eat cycle. Under tank heater no hot rocks. Two hides one for the warm side and one in the middle. And make one of the hides moist the one in the center. I was for sure mine was a goner, But mine is finelly turning around. Cost is alot if you have none to spare but let me tell you the gecko I bought was 15dollars and the rest about 300dollars. But when I scratch its chin it look like its in heaven. So to me it was worth it whats money anyway. Hope I helped.

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