follow-up question

Question
QUESTION: My son's 4 year old leopard gecko got a nasty eye infection in both eyes, and we took him to the vet and he's now starting oral meds and eye drops. It is really bothering me as to how he could have got it. I use paper towels and moss for his substrate, one on one side and one on another side of his 25 gallon tank. So I know it's not from that. We did, however lose power almost a month ago and he was without his heat lamp for about 12 hours- we had to drive an hour up to my Dad's just for Gilbert's heat lamp to be plugged back in. So when we got him there he seemed to adjust fine, and he seemed fine up until about 4 days ago. The vet has no clue how he got it, and I'm looking to see if I can find an answer so this never, ever happens again. Watching him suffer is breaking my heart into pieces!
Any ideas or suggestions would greatly help!
P.S. Do you know of any correlations w/ UV lights versus conjunctivitis? I read somewhere about that, but it did not go into detail at all. I think his lightbulb might be UV...
Thanks! Ashley

ANSWER: Hi Ashley,
Sometimes, they can get shed stuck in their eyes and they scratch/rub at it which can cause an infection.
Other causes can be rubbing it on something in the tank...nutritional problems mainly vitamin A deficiency, bites from feeder insects such as crickets, respiratory infections, and even some parasites. If he was without heat for 12 hours, and the temperature was below 60-65 for that time, its possible he caught a slight respiratory infection but usually with that there will be some mucous drainage from the nose and also raspy sounds when breathing. Its a good idea to have emergency heatpacks for power outages..these are simply those that are sold as hand warmers or foot warmers for humans.  Just be sure to cover them for the leo to lay on so they aren't too hot next to him.
Here is a link that you can read a bit more on all of those causes.  
In most cases the treatment is gentamicin drops in the eyes if I remember correctly.
http://www.reptilechannel.com/reptile-health/lizard-health/leopard-gecko-cant-op
As to your uv question...
There are some lights that were causing problems with reptiles eyes.  It was happening mainly with ones that state uvb and uva output.  This was happening with the ones that are called "compact" and also some of the spiral or circular ones.  Here are a few links where you can read more about it and also find if the light you are using can be the cause.  
If you are unsure if your light is one of the "problem lights" an easy way to find out is to remove the light and switch to a regular household lightbulb.  If the light is the cause of the problem, the problem will go away when the offending light is removed.
There has been new studies that have proven that compact uvb lights, both the spiral/coil type and the ones that look like long "U's" laying on their side and a few other brands are causing what basically amounts to snow blindness in reptiles.  To read more on this, you can go to http://www.uvguide.co.uk/index.htm

The  link will take you to my discussion group and to a post that tells how to tell the new compacts from the old ones.  IF you are  using one of the new ones, then the light should not be the problem.  http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/UVB_Meter_Owners/message/6721
Hope this helps you and your sons leo out.


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: OK, so after reading the links, the light is not the problem- both the day light and night light (blue emiting color. I'm thinking it was defintiely the power outage.   I just wish I knew of someone close by that could do house-calls to help me with Gilbert's eye flushes and stuff. It's REALLY difficult, and to have to do it twice a day is murder, and just plain abuse for the little guy. He's always been so docile, and now he's become irritable and agitated. And now he doesn't open his eyes at ALL. After the flushes in the beginning, he'd keep them open a little while.
So, if you know of anyone in the Hooksett, NH area that would be able to do a private house-call, that would be greatly appreciated. (the vet that saw my Leo only does house-calls for routine health check-ups, not for sickly animals.)  :0(
And if you have any advice on force feeding or something quite like that, that would be helpful. His tail is getting thin, and it should be fat, isn't it?
Well thank you for your buntiful knowledge on this wonderful little creature. I really do appreciate every bit of it.
Ashley

ANSWER: Hi Ashley,
You are correct, their tails are how we know if they are loosing weight or too heavy.
Sometimes, when they are in the cold for an extended period of time, their needed gut bacteria will drop below what it needed for digestion.  This can also happen due to stress and oral medications such as antibiotics and medications for internal parasites.  Also, stress can cause an overload of internal parasites.  If his "poop" is normal, chances are its not an overload of internal parasites.
To boost their gut bacteria, we use products(probiotics) to replace that bacteria such as bene bac...labeled for birds, approved for reptiles.
nutri bac
acidolophliz+
or plain, human grade Acidophilus......   one capsule will dose for at least 3 days in a row.
BeneBac ..most larger pet stores should carry it...especially if they have birds...
Acidophiliz+  I think  PetsMart carries it..if not....on line at www.reptilesupply.com
Some people use a tiny amount(1/2 cc or less) of live culture plain yogurt for 2-3 days, but this is only something that is recommended for reptiles.
You can try offering some waxworms to entice him to eat...only a few as they are not a staple diet due to the high fat content.  We call them the candy of the reptile foods!!
Here is a link to making a slurry to offer your leo.  Many times, if you just touch their mouth with something they will lick at it.
http://www.encyclopedia.com/video/zSFFhbdNqw4-leopard-geckos-not-eating-make.asp  It does call for using mealworms in the slurry...but you can leave those out and add some babyfood chicken or turkey instead.  You don't have to make a big batch of the stuff, and if you want, just use some of the ingredients such as babyfood chicken, ensure and pedialyte and the acidophilus to see how he does with it..

Instead of trying to hold him with your hand, he may feel safer/more secure if you wrap him in a soft cloth.  If the vet only prescribed flushing them out, you may want to take him back to the vet and ask about the gentamicin eye drops and also to listen to his lungs to rule out respiratory infection. He may also do well with an oral antibiotic such as baytril.
Even though your lights are correct, you might want to try using a less bright daylight bulb for a few days and see if that helps.  Also, if you aren't using a undertank heat source, you may want to add that to the warm area.  You only want it to cover about 1/3 of the tank. You would place his warm hide in that area.  Its also important to place something on top the glass so as his belly doesn't get too hot.  That temperature there should be  88-92 degrees. I use slate tiles placed on top of about 1/4 inch of sand(the sand is not visible or accessible).  This helps to distribute the heat very nicely.
Sorry, I don't know anyone in your area that would be able to help you out.



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Oh I'm sorry, I think you mis-understood. Or did I not say? lol He is on baytril and the rx eye drops. I just expected him to come around a little more than what he has been. I don't see much improvement, and I was hoping that I could cancel his 10 day follow-up at the vet's next Monday because of his improvement. But that's not the case!
I am going to get those items tonight for the slurry. Will I have to suck it up into a small syringe and give it to him like he gets his oral anit-biotics? He is not accustomed to eating anything that doesn't move in front of him.
As for the "poop", it has been looking a little runnier than normal. But same whitish color it has always been. Should I be looking for something in particular that would be alarming?
Lastly, I think the slate idea is brilliant, with the sand underneath. Do you remember where you got the tiles from? And I need to get an under tank heater, I used to have one for him but the sticky part that is supposed to stick to the botom of the tank wasn't sticky anymore, and I threw it out. Do you think I should put it on the same side as the heat lamp is on? Or will that cause too much heat in one spot?
Thank you so much for your very valuable help and knowledge. :0)
Ashley

Answer
Hi Ashley,
Glad to hear he is on both drops and antibiotics.
Hopefully he will lick the slurry off your finger because force feeding really stresses them out. If he licks at your finger, great...if he licks at it all on his own from a dish..even better. Leos generally don't eat things that don't move, but will lick when something is on their mouth.
I got my slate tiles at either home depot or Lowes.  They were about 2-3 dollars each.  You can measure your cage and you can get tiles to fit and if any need cut, they should cut them for you there. The under tank heater goes on the same side as the heat lamp..you may have to move the heat lamp a bit off toward the center to get the right temperatures.  Remember to measure the floor temps.  For this, those thermometers that have the probe on the end of a wire work wonderful.
The loose poops, can be from the antibiotics which is normal.  If they continue after treating with the acidophilus and the baytril is gone, then you might want to test for internal parasites. Once you start on the slurry you might find that the dark part of the stool turns more of a tan or lighter color.