Sick gecko...

Question
QUESTION: My gecko is really skinny, it always has an aweful smell to it, i have been force feeding it for the last week because it will not eat on its own...what do you think is wrong with it?

ANSWER: Hi Amanda

First I need to know what kind of gecko is it that you have?

We can go on from there

Thanks
Sandy aka LadyGecko

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

QUESTION: It is a leopard gecko, today we went to the store and got Repta Aid, while i was giving it to him he pooped out 3 mealworms. The mealworms obviously hadn't been digested.
         Thank you!

ANSWER: Amanda-OK-now I can try and be of some help

Usually when insects are not being digested -the hot spot on the bottom of the tank-right above the under the tank heater-is not warm enough and the gecko cannot digest its food properly

You need a digital thermometer with a probe on the end to measure the temperature of the hot spot on the floor of the geckos tank
Place the probe of the thermometer right above where the under the tank heater is located to get the temp
It should be at least 99-90 degrees in that spot and the rest of the tank should be cooler

If you are using an overhead "basking light" for your Leo-that may be the problem
Leos seem to do much better with belly heat since they are nocturnal animals and not really "basking lizards"

Can you please give me the details about your Leo and its tank

Age/size of Leo
Length of time that you have had it
cage substrate
type of heating
supplements being used to dust insects and is a small dish of calcium left in the tank 24/7?
moist and dry hides?
and anything else that you think that might be relevant

Sandy aka LadyGecko


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

QUESTION: Thank you for all your help but while i went away for 3 days on a trip he died. I still want to now why he died, so here is a description of what you asked earlier:

   He was about five years old, i don't know how big he was.
   I got the gecko from a friend because he gave up with it, I only had him for about 2 weeks.
   The heating has 3 places for bulbs, one for night, one for day, and a place for ReptiSun 10.0 UVB light. The cage stayed up to 90 in the day time and 80 at night.
   We were feeding him mealworms that we had raised in a container.
   There was not a moist spot for him to hide, the hole tank was dry.
   I have 2 other geckos that i have had for about 3 months. They were doing just fine, eating on their own and was a little more active, until i brought home the sick gecko. I didn't know that geckos could have external parasites, so we divided off my other 2's tank. We only gave the sick one a little space because he was not active at all. I don't know why the other 2 gecko's are doing worse than before...could they have parasites from the sick gecko? And what should i do with the other 2 geckos?

Answer
Amanda-I am so sorry for the loss of your Gecko

The answer to whether there can be parasites passed from the sick/dead gecko to your two other geckos is a big YES and chances are that these parasites are Internal-most commonly pinworms in Leos

Pinworms in large infestations will kill a baby gecko quickly as they rob the gecko of all of the nutrition that it gets from its food

Let me venture an opinion about what the problem with your geckos set-up is as i see it

First-leopard geckos do not need any type of direct overhead lighting and I believe that overhead lights are useless for them as a heat source

They do best with belly heat provided with a uth(under the tank heater) and the area of the floor of the tank right over that uth should be the hottest spot in the tank at 88-90 degrees

The rest of the tank can be room temperature providing that the room where they are being kept is not excessively cold-ie during the winter months

Leos need a moist hide for aid in increased humidity during shed time without increasing the humidity in the entire tank

You can make a moist hide with any plastic container with a lid left on it
CoolWhip/margarine containers work well
With the lid left on the container-cut a hole in the side of the container for your Leo to get in and out of

You can put moistened paper towels on the bottom of the container and re-moisten them as needed
Change them when they become soiled

Most geckos are not really community lizards and really do best when housed alone
You should never introduce a new lizard to one already established in your home as it can spread parasites and disease
A quarantine period of 90 days is recommended before introducing any geckos to each other-if you are going to be breeding adults
Females can have dominance issues when kept in the same tank and males should never be kept together
As to what you should do with the other 2 geckos-I would bring them both to a herp vet and get a fecal float test done for parasites and if it comes up positive your vet will give you medicine to eradicate them
You should ideally house them in separate tanks as they often find a way to climb over/around and under any divider put into a tank

Good Luck with your Leos

I would like to suggest that you visit an excellent website for gecko keeping and you should be able to find many answers to your questions on the Leopard Gecko forum there
www.geckoforums.net

Also-
Please don't hesitate to write back if I can be of any further help

Sandy aka LadyGecko