Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Tonight I left my room for about 5-10 minutes, and in that space of time my cat went in, somehow got into one of my gecko cages, and has injured one of my young ones. Please don't attack me as I had taken every precaution I could think of to keep the cat out of the tank, and I still don't know how he removed the lid. In any case, I found him sitting above my now-tailless baby.

This particular gecko is about 3 or 4 months old, and was in previous great health. He/she is now freshly missing a tail (which I can't find and assume the cat ate it) and has several obvious scratches with some blood (I think the cat picked him up in his mouth). I know cat bites can be extremely dangerous.

Is there anything I can do for the kiddo at this point? I have moved him in a clean cage (totally seperate from the cat), half darkened, with a low wattage heat bulb to help him stay a little warmer than my room is normally. I'll keep the cage extra clean and mist often to keep him hydrated. Otherwise I don't have any ideas, so if you do - please feel free to share.

I know a herp vet is an option, but tomorrow is Sunday and they aren't open, plus I don't have much money to take it anyways. What could they even do for it? I've never had to take any of my herps to the vet, and this one especially is so young.

I am so upset and sad. I am not a new herp owner, or new to cresties, but I have never had any problems like this before. Thanks for any advice.

Just an update -

I decided to go ahead and rinse the entire body with saline, especially flushing a scratch and puncture on the head that are most obvious. During the process, the little one bit me twice, which I'm taking as a good sign. I'm glad he/she is still feeling good enough to fight back. It also was eye licking, and still moving around actively. *crosses fingers*

I don't know what else to do, so I'm just keeping the tank heavily misted and warm, with only silk plants to prevent any irritation. I guess I'll just wait and see.

Seems like you're doing everything I would do. Maybe give the vet a call on Monday and see if they have any non-costly suggestions. Seems you're doing all you can for now, sterile set-up, misting, not sure about the heat, but if it's generally cooler around your house maybe.

Sorry about the incident, I hope the little ones gets through, sound like he will. I know though things often look worse in person.

The only thing additional to what you're already doing that I'd suggest would be maybe a very small dab of neosporin on the wounds to prevent infection and help them heal more quickly.

I definitely agree about giving the vet a call to see about any suggestions they might have; worst case scenario they don't tell you anything useful, and then all you've wasted is 5 minutes.
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0.1 Albino Leopard Gecko - Tigger
0.1 Crested Gecko - Pooh-Bear