I'm very worried. - Page 2

Samba · 09-24-04, 09:31 AM

Jaime - if the mealworms are in a dish, I don't think they'll cause any stress; I mainly referring to having crickets jumping around and bothering her. =)

If she 'goes' on top of her hide make sure you clean it thoroughly and as soon as possible when you notice she has 'gone'. This will reduce the chances of reinfection. I'm not sure how well plastic cleans, but if I were you I'd put her in a disposable hide until she is better. I keep my babies in these, as they are cheap, and you can throw them away after a week or so and start fresh with a new, clean hide. (By disposables, I mean the tupperware bowls with tops that are designed to be thrown away after a use, instead of being kept and washed). You can get like, 4 of them with lids at Wal-Mart for about a dollar. Hope this helps... good luck!

TryToForget · 09-24-04, 12:04 PM

The humid hide that she's using as her bathroom is one of those tupperwares that you're talking about. I didn't know how much they cost because I got mine from someone. I think I will go out and buy a few packages of those. I had no clue that they were that cheap.

Approx. how long do you think I should wait before I start trying to feed her crickets again? I've been giving the meds since wednesday. I was thinking about trying tomorrow or sunday since the vet told me to call back if she doesn't eat within a week.

Thanks.

-Jamie

Samba · 09-24-04, 02:10 PM

Yes, I would try tomorrow. In the evening, gather your crickets, (a little smaller than normals helps, but don't go teeny tiny... 3/4 of an inch should be good) and place into a container which has a lid. Place crickets into the freezer for about 15 seconds. (Not too long... you don't want them to die). Remove crickets and place onto shallow dish (or lid of some sort), and place in gecko's tank. Crickets will twitch and turn as they come to, hopefully attracting a hungry gecko. Observe under low light, and in a quiet room.

Wait and see if she eats... and don't be impatient, after all the stress this gecko has been through it might take awhile for her to come around. Don't forget to count the crickets because they will come to and begin moving about the cage, and you'll probably need to remove the ones she doesn't eat within a few hours. You can calculate what she's eatten (if anything) by counting).

Call your vet within a week and report your observations, whether she's eating or not, bowl movements (in case she needs to have another fecal done), etc.

I hope this helps out a little bit; although I am not a veterinarian, I have rehabilitated a great number of reptiles, including leopard geckos. I find this technique works best if you maintain a low profile, dim the lights, keep the TV or radio down, basically just allowing the gecko to calm and relax.

Keep posting updates.... =)

TryToForget · 09-25-04, 10:26 AM

Okay thanks. That's a good idea. I've never heard anyone say to put crickets in the freezer. I'll probably do it more then just this time (she's a little slow lol). Also, I'm figuring that the medicine is working because she hasn't had any diarrhea since wednesday. She hasn't peed since then either though so I'm a little worried about that. I'll probably give her some water with the syringe when I give her her medicine today.

.

-Jamie

TryToForget · 09-25-04, 10:38 PM

Well I just tried feeding her and she wouldn't eat. I did that cricket in the freezer trick that you told me. I had 3 crickets, 3 mealworms, and 3 mealworm larvea for her to pick from and she didn't touch any of them. She also pooped earlier today it was half way between solid and liquid so I guess she must be getting a little bit better. How long do you think I should wait until trying to feed her again? Monday?

-Jamie

Samba · 09-27-04, 11:55 AM

Well, since today's Monday, yes, LOL =)

Try again, make sure that once you place the insects in the cage to not interfer with her. No hands in the tank, moving things around, etc. I would suggest just getting a chair and watching her for awhile. Just pretend your not there. It'll be hard (sometimes you want to help), but just let her do her own thing. If she still hasn't eaten call your vet for further advice. Be patient with her, and keep posting updates! =)

TryToForget · 10-01-04, 10:15 PM

I haven't updated on her progress in a few days so I'll do that now. My vet had told me to call in a week if she didn't start eating. Well, she didn't so I called Wednesday. I brought her in Thursday and she was weighed and I was shown how to force feed her. When I brought her in the first time she weighed 20.5 grams and when she got re-weighed (after not eating for another week) she weighed 20.4. I thought she would have lost a lot more weight then that but I guess not so that's good. So now every day I have to force feed her until she is eating well on her own. I need to give her 0.2 ml of canned/wet dog/cat food. I'll probably try giving her a few crickets on Monday or so to see if she finally wants to eat. I hope everything is going to be fine after this. I don't want to stress her out anymore then she probably already is..

-Jamie