So, I figured I would update everyone on my Pictus geckos. Back in the beginning of March, I bought 1.5 pictus geckos (well, I bought 1.4, but the guy gave me 1.5 because one of them wasn't doing so well.... long story lol). When I got them, they were only in captivity for a month or so (I did not know they were WC until AFTER I received them) and were pretty skinny. However, they have been doing great! They seem to shed every 2 weeks! One female lost her tail in shipping, and just started to bud a new tail about 2 weeks ago. The smallest one has grown a bit. The one female that came sick is eating, however her tail is still really skinny. She is living on her own just in case she has any parasites. She is active at night and eats well, but just doesnt seem to be gaining weight. It's kind of odd. However, the male has made, by far, the most progress. Here are before and after pictures of him, after me having him for only 2 months:

BEFORE:


AFTER:


Though his colors have gotten darker, they are not as different as they appear... The first picture was taken with a flash, the most recent one, without a flash.


I will get pictures of the females later, but the male was out today and I just HAD to take a shot of him because he is so much healthier than he was before. I can't really weigh him because he does not like to be held, however he looks as though hes gained a good 10-15 grams!

One thing I have found strange though is that 2 of the females had produced eggs, and both clutches were infertile. They were living with the male before I bought them, but have not been with him since. However, I was told they retain sperm, and since the first clutches (from mid March), they have not produced any eggs. Is this normal... for them to NOT retain sperm? I know it seems like a weird question, but I thought I would ask.

He looks great!

As for the egg laying, perhaps they were bred while they were in the wild, and laid the majority of their eggs then. Then laid the last clutch with you. My last clutch my female laid has proven to be unfertile.

That is entirely possible, and a really good concept. I didn't think of that, honestly .

Oh MUCH better! I'd maybe get a fecal done on that one lady... still could be parasites. A little dewormer could do her some good. SO glad to see they're doing better, though. I was a little worried for them!

Yep! They just needed a little TLC and lots of crickets and calcium and they are doing GREAT!

That one female, I have had 2 fecals done on her already, and nothing was found. I am honestly wondering what is wrong, but her tail is even smaller than it was when I got her! But she is still moving and active... which is what I feel is so weird. But really, the progress in the male I just find to be amazing. It really proves that any animal can bounce back with a little care.

Hmm maybe she's just having a really hard time adjusting to the captive life. You said two of your ladies laid eggs, was she one of them? I can't remember if she was the one that I said looked gravid or not. My female has stayed the same weight for the past few months, but her tail is growing and I think she's finally done producing eggs.

Here's a good trick for weighing pictus. I have a palm scale, so I just put that inside one of my faunariums, grab my adult pictus, put them on the scale, and if they decide to jump off (it's inevitable, they always do!) they aren't getting anywhere when they do jump. So I just scoop them back up and do the process all over again until I get a correct reading. It's very important you monitor their weight. Especially the sick female. It would be good to know if she's actually losing weight or remaining the same weight. I hope even though her tail has reduced that her belly size has increased?

As for the fecals, try collecting a couple days worth of fresh feces, have them all tested just incase it's a parasite that only shows up at certain times.

She looked gravid, but she was not. I never got a good look at her tummy because she isn't easy to hold. She never laid eggs.

Like you said, though her tail is small, her belly is bigger. Which is what makes her LOOK so sickly. I will take more fecals in, and try out your weighing concept. But like i said, she isn't easy to get my hands on. To tell you the truth, none of them are very easy to hold lol.

Glad to see the male is looking so much better - after speaking to Jess about these guys, it's nice to hear good news.

Weights with geckos is one of the very best ways to monitor any potential illness. Do what you have to, but track her weight. Is she being kept in isolation?

As for the eggs thing - it is also possible that their bodies disposed of the sperm as they weren't getting the proper nutrition. I've known several people who have taken on gravid rescues only to have them reabsorb the eggs and not lay any more. It is unusual with pictus and a lot of the smaller species because they are more prone to laying themselves to death but it certainly is possible.

Yea I wondered if that were the case too. But its okay, I would rather them be healthy and happy than lay eggs.

Also, yes, the female is in isolation. She is only 6.5 grams... which is really not good, but I will check her daily to make sure it doesnt change. What scares me is I also weighed the male, and he is 12.3 grams... which is almost double her weight! I will keep everyone updated on her, though!

Stubby was only 11g when she started laying eggs. Since then she's only gained 3 grams, but has remained the same weight. I know her tail has a lot to do with her not weighing much, but she's very healthy and eats like a pig. Diego is huge! he's 24.5g. It's funny because when I got them, stubby outweighed diego and she was tailless and not gravid at that time. Males just tend to grow much bigger than females so it's given that they will weigh about double their weight.

How does your other females compare to her? I'd compare her weight to the healthy females that are about her size, not the male since males outgrow and outweigh females.

So I reweighed the female today, and she is now 6.6 grams. Not much of an improvement, but at least she is not losing weight. The other females weigh about 9-10 grams each.

Now that you are saying how big your male is, I feel like my male is underweight! Your male must be a lot longer than mine, cuz mine is fairly plump for his size

Glad to see she's gaining weight. You have to take into exception that the other females were eating like pigs, while she refused to eat.

lol your male looks healthy. My male is also about 9 months old. Your male is about the size of my stubby, so he's got quite a ways to grow. Ask Jill, it was almost like Diego grew over night. I need to put diego and stubby together for a comparison pic.

Lol yea I just read somewhere that pictus geckos normally dont get larger than 6 inches, and my guy is already at 5 inches... so he must be bigger than 6 inches if he weighs that much! lol. I would LOVE to see pics of your little guy.

Ask and you shall receive! I made this thread just for you.

By the way, have you named any of your pictus geckos yet?

Haha yes, they are all named after PACMAN characters...

Inky, Blinky, Pinky, Sue, Clyde, and Pac

Clyde, of course, is the male... and Inky is the female that isn't doing so well.