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 Gecko getting skinnier? |
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 Group: Members
Posts: 19 Joined: 27-March 08 Member No.: 26,609  |
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#1
 May 14 2008, 12:00 AM
I've had my gecko for 10 days now. In the last 4 days or so, he's gotten a bit skinnier, tail wise - we have been having some trouble with our crickets dying, and I don't think he hunts well in such a large tank, but then again he could be shedding. Do they get skinny before a shed? He has a ravenous appetite, he's just too lazy to catch the buggers! Poop looks okiedoke.
 
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 Group: Members
Posts: 2,744 Joined: 18-March 06 From: Wisconsin Member No.: 15,061 |
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#2
May 14 2008, 10:16 AM
They don't get skinny before a shed... Obvious weight loss in 4 days is NOT good. Why don't you try mealworms in a dish in the tank all the time, then try feeding him crickets in a smaller container. I don't know how young your little guy is, but he could just still be stressed still. Make sure your temps are 88-92 on the hottest spot measured with a digital thermometer. And keep trying with the crickets. If he keeps losing weight, I'd suggest getting a fecal to the vet to check for parasites. The obvious weight loss is really kind of worrisome...
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Group: Members
Posts: 19 Joined: 27-March 08 Member No.: 26,609 |
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#3
May 14 2008, 03:46 PM
It's not really bad - it's only a tiny bit on his tail. I have mealworms, but he doesn't have a taste for him, though I'll keep trying. He'll eat crickets if I put them in a jar by him, or release ten at a time. It's just they all run away? He is out, don't get me wrong, he's just not the most agile hunter.
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Group: Members
Posts: 114 Joined: 4-February 08 Member No.: 26,236 |
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#4
May 14 2008, 07:22 PM
Pop all but two legs of the crickets off so that can't run away. They will wiggle a lot so they will be very appealing to your gecko, and he won't have to chase them 
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 Group: Members
Posts: 542 Joined: 10-July 07 From: Maine, USA Member No.: 22,973 |
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#5
May 14 2008, 09:25 PM
I have yet to see a leopard gecko that IS a good hunter LOL. You can try taking the decorations out of the tank while he's being fed. Or, try feeding him in a smaller, empty tank. And some geckos just don't like worms. You can read my other posts here to read that I just convinced my leo to eat supers, but I'd stick with crickets right now since yours is still young and you don't want to have to fight with that now.
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Plan ahead... commit... adopt...
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 Group: Members
Posts: 2,170 Joined: 1-June 05 From: Edinburgh, Scotland Member No.: 9,805 |
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#6
May 15 2008, 02:05 AM
If you are concerned about weight loss you need to be weighing him, it is the only way to reliably track it. You can pick up a cheap set of digital kitchen scales (must be digital) at Walmart, Target etc.
When he is so new I would also try feeding one cricket at a time - it will take you longer but it might help to encourage him. I've had leos that just got disorientated by several feeders at once and would turn their back and not eat rather than figure it out. Try putting one in the tank at a time and see how he does for a while. -------------------- Jill
"It is better to debate a question without settling it than to settle a question without debating it." Joseph Joubert
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Posts: 2,002 Joined: 21-January 06 From: Tennessee Member No.: 14,019 |
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#7
May 15 2008, 09:58 PM
Mine also seem to do better with one or two than with crickets running every which way. She also seems to do better if I partition off a section of the tank, or drop the crickets into the hide she is inside of (even if it's the one with tall walls and a lid for a roof, and I have the roof off; it's the small space and corral effect that is beneficial) I found that moving to a different tank was too stressful, and I could not get her to be interested in food.
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Think on these things!
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Lo-Fi Version | Time is now: 4th July 2008 - 05:32 PM |