2.5 month old leo always shedding

MartinW · 07-22-03, 04:47 PM

I have a gecko (Imogene) that was born on May 8th. She's a het blizzard and I have her clutch mate (Indira) as well. Indira is doing fine, but I'm worried about Imogene. It seems like she's always shedding. I don't think it's because she's a ghost leo because I can see the loose skin hanging off. She ate 4 crickets and 2 mealies yesterday. She has a moist hide, a dry hide, a dish of water, and a dish with mealworms in a tank that's a bit under 10 gallons (she's alone) with a 90*F hot side. Indira has identical parameters and hasn't had any problems since I got her. Imogene is also a bit smaller than Indira. It's not just her toes and tail that's shedding, it's her whole body. I'm not sure, but I think she might be a ghost leo, in which case maybe the other times I saw her shedding it was really just her skin color and I didn't look close enough, but I think it's more likely that she's almost always shedding. If she is almost always shedding what should I do? Is that a problem? My other leos aren't like that.

Martin

LISA127 · 07-22-03, 08:20 PM

How often is always shedding?

Tim and Julie B · 07-22-03, 08:39 PM

hmmm....at 2.5 months she should be up to about 10-15 crix or mealies, if she won't take more there may be an underlying problem. The next time she begins to pale before shedding place her in a well washed margarine tub with some damp paper towels. If she still has difficulty shedding after that then a vet trip may be in order. If you have pics I'd like to see them.

MartinW · 07-23-03, 12:34 PM

Thanks Tim & Julie. I can't remember, but I'm thinking maybe it's just one shed that wasn't complete because I don't remember seeing her with her regular appearing skin for a very long time. So I put her in some water and took off most of the shed, except on her tail because I'm scared that the tail will fall off. I decided because of this that I'll keep a log book of my geckos so I know exactly what's happening. I don't have a camera so I can't put up any pics.

Martin

MartinW · 07-24-03, 11:59 AM

I have good news! I woke her up at around 1 pm and fed her some crickets and she ate 5 of them! (I usually feed her at night) Also, her tail skin that I didn't take off is almost completely off! She's still around half a month behind in size of her clutch mate but hopefully her appetite is back. Is it possible that leos don't eat as much when they're shedding?

Martin

Samba · 07-24-03, 12:09 PM

My leos decrease or don't eat at all when they are in shed. I think this is because they usually eat the shed itself. I think it's normal for them to eat only a little or nothing at all during this time, so long as they regain their normal eating habits a few days after shedding.