african fat-tailed gecko not eating.

Question
QUESTION: Hi, I have an african fat-tailed gecko, Ive only had him since July and he is my first reptile. When I first got him he ate everyday 3-5 crickets and kept his weight.And he has significantly grown since i got him. But recently since about Decemeber he hasn't been eating. I have tried meal worms, super worms, and the occasional wax worm as well as crickets. But he doesn't seem at all interested in them. He tends to stay pretty much in one spot, under a log which has his heating pad under the tank and where his heat lamp is kept. But he is still very very active when i take him out for his exercise daily. His tail is also getting smaller. I am very worried about him, and have tried everything to get him to eat like he used too(I dont exacly know if it is a male, but i like to think he is). I have heard that they tend to get lazy as they get older. But should i be concerned or will this eventually pass?Thank you,Ashley

ANSWER: Hello Ashley,

Sometimes, during the winter months, they can tend to slow down due to the cooler weather.  Are you monitoring his weight?  If so, how much weight has he lost so far?  
Let's go over your setup a little bit.  You have an undertank heater with his log over it, & his heat lamp is over that, correct?  Are you measuring the temps?  You should keep track of the temps there, especially the basking area since he has undertank heat as well.  The temperatures should be in the middle 80's during the day & they can fall to 70 or so overnight & that will be fine.  
Do you have a dish of calcium in the tank for him, or are you dusting his feeders?  
Do you have a cave or hide for him with moss in there for him?  That is always a good thing to keep in the cave because you can keep the moss moist especially when he is going to shed so he wont retain any of his shed.  
I also like to provide low output UVB for geckos, also.  It definitely doesn't hurt them.  So I would look for a reptisun 5 tube flourescent bulb to use for him, also.   
I would try right now, getting a plastic eye dropper to get some water mixed with some pedialyte & some calcium in it.  At least get some fluids into him to see if that will help.  You can also get some chicken or turkey babyfood & see if he will lick that off of his nose, or you can make a bug slurry in the blender if you can stomach that.  :-))
Are his colors still nice?  What do his eyes look like are they bright or are they sunken in?
Let me know how he is doing.  

Tracie

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

QUESTION: Hey Tracie,

So i took your advice and he absolutely LOVED the turkey baby food. He acts like hes starved every time i give it to him. It seems to be the only thing that he will eat. Ive been giving it to him for the past couple of days plus the pedialyte mixture, and i have seen a BIG difference. His tail is starting to fatten up a bit and he is much more energetic in his cage.
As for the set up in his cage, the temp stays around the mid 80's during the day and lowers to the upper 70's at night. I do have a cave for him with moist moss in it but he doesnt go in there very often.
As of the calcium issue, i usually dust his feeders. But i have mixed some of the calcium and vitamins into the baby food. I hope thats ok.

Thank you so much I really appreciate your advice. If you know fo anything else that i can do, please let me know.

Ashley : )

Answer
Hello Ashley,

Great that he loved the turkey babyfood!  So he is probably going to get spoiled now!  That is ok, he will eventually go back to eating.  I am glad that his tail is fattening up again & he seems to be perking up a bit more.  Maybe he was not getting quite enough calcium perhaps.  
You do have an undertank heater then or the heat pad?  It sounds like the temps are fine no problems there.
Have you tried any phoenix worms, he might like those.  They are small & high in calcium.  Maybe he just needed a bit of a change.
Also, he could be slown down a little due to the wintertime.  I would continue for a few more days since his energy is improving.  Then, try to feed insects again & see what he does.  
Could you maybe get a Reptisun 5 flourescent tube bulb to put over his tank?  I always feel that geckos benefit some with a little bit of UVB lighting.  It helps them absorb calcium more efficiently.

I am happy to hear he is doing better!  :-))


Tracie