fat-tail gecko

Question
QUESTION: my fat tail gecko seems to be very weak and unable to lift itself up on its legs. Whn he does move, it is almost like he is dragging himself, with little control over his leg movements. Never a big eater, he is eating even less now, although his tail still appears quite fat. Subsequently, he is also pooping infrequently. He is 6 years old. What do you think ?

ANSWER: Hi Maureen,
The first thing that pops to my mind is something pertaining to his care.  Are your temperatures where they belong for him? Here is a link so that you can check your temperatures, etc.
http://www.goldengategeckos.com/carefattail.htm
The next biggie that comes to mind is his diet.  Are all of his insects "gut loaded" for at least 48 hours prior to feeding them to your gecko?
Gut loading is feeding the insects a proper diet which generally includes grains, greens, veggies, fruits...
Those gel cubes are not a complete diet for the insects.  They are basically water.
If the insects are not healthy and nutritious, then the gecko isn't getting the proper nutrition.
When you offer insects, are they of the proper size?  Never larger than the space between your geckos eyes.  Too large of insects can cause internal blockages...those blockages can press on nerves causing numbness in the legs.
Do you use a calcium that contains Vitamin D?  This is important to them.
Are you using a sand or other loose substrate?  They are not recommended as they can also cause blockages.  
If all your care is correct with housing, temperatures, diet, etc or if making any needed changes does not help, then a vet is needed to rule out internal parasites or to find the cause of his not eating.  To find a vet that can treat reptiles:
http://www.herpvetconnection.com
http://www.arav.org/ECOMARAV/timssnet/amm/tnt_mdsearch.cfm
http://www.anapsid.org/vets/



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QUESTION: Temp always 80-85 heat lamp and under heaterpad. I have always had him on sand, I will change that to newspaper stat. I only feed the crickets the cubes, should I put cooked or raw greens/veggies in their keeper? I always buy medium crickets, because the large lay eggs. Also I haven't dusted the crickets in awhile nor do I offer calcium. I tried at one time but he didn't seem interested. If I start doing all these things, can/will he get better?I am afraid he has MBD. Thanks alot

Answer
Hi Maureen,
Use raw veggies, greens. You can also add unsweetened oatmeal, and they do make a cricket food that is like a powder. Here is a good site on feeding crickets..
http://www.nyworms.com/ccare.htm
I would raise his warm area temperatures up to 90-92.  The 80-85 is fine for daytime mid range but be sure to also have a cooler area during the day.  For night time, you can keep the UTH heater and the overheat heat(if the overhead does not produce light) but if that makes it too warm, then turn off the overhead heat. Since they spend most time on the ground, measuring the floor temperature in the warm zone is needed.  The thermometers with the wire with a probe on the end work great for this.
That's good on the cricket size. Good on switching to newspaper.  For my leopard gecko I use a bit of a different setup on the floor...
What I have found that works great for safety and heat distribution is using about 1/4 inch of children's play sand(since the tiles fit tight together, there is no sand danger) on the bottom of the tank and on top that you place ceramic or slate floor tile.  What is nice is that the 12 x 12 and 2 smaller  squares fit perfect in a 20 gallon tank with no spaces between the tiles.  The sand and the tile distribute the heat wonderfully.  Using the under tank heater as described is what distributes the heat.  Also, overhead heat will help in heating the tiles...I've been using this set up for several years and the leos love it.  Using a tile that isn't smooth is recommended.

They do make other dusts for the crickets that your gecko may like. It is important that he does get calcium with the vitamin D3 and he should also get a vitamin supplement. You can use each product on alternate days.  Also, place a milk cap  of the calcium in his tank...He will lick at it when needed.
In getting him used to the dusted crickets, start out with a tiny amount of the powder so that there is very little on the crickets. Increase over time. I like using RepCal brand vitamins and also their calcium.
If he has swollen joints, etc, yes, he may have MBD. If it is severe, then a calcium liquid from the vets is needed.  Also, an x ray is really the only true way to see the degree of MBD..which, btw..when caught early is reversible.
You may want to try enticing him to eat by offering some wax worms..only a few though as they are very high in fat and are not a staple food. You can offer butterworms, and some mealworms on occasion.
One other thing that MAY help if he does have MBD is adding a UVB/UVA producing light to his tank. Even though they are nocturnal, its really unknown if they need the UVB/UVA. They are fluorescent tubes. You can go with one that states 2% uvb....
Since you haven't been dusting the insects, what may be happening is that he isn't able to use the calcium in the crickets or there just isn't enough calcium in the crickets. The uvb helps their body to better utilize and process the calcium in their foods.  It may be the boost that he needs.  Again, if he doesn't show improvement, then a vet is needed.