My leo wont eat!

Question
I have had my beautiful leopard gecko for almost a year now and he is wonderful! His body and tail are fat and I tell everyone how much of a pig he is. Well, starting this week, he won't eat a thing! He hasn't eaten now in about 6 days. The only thing that has changed was that I cleaned his tank and put a new carpet down. But after that he ate fine. Then, all of the sudden, he stopped. His water is going down so I assume he's drinking. However, there is no poop and his crickets are just jumping around in there. Can you please help? I don't know what to do!!

Answer
Hi Heather,
They can make ya crazy, can't they?  Many do slow down on eating this time of year... plus, given your leo's age sexual maturity is in full gear.  If everything is fine otherwise, I generally don't worry too much about not eating.  Sometimes the not eating is due to needing a bit of adjustment in temperatures, especially this time of year when the weather outside is turning cooler. Double check your temps and make any adjustments needed.
Also, even though it has been a while since you dared to change things in his tank, this could also be a cause of it.  They really do hate change.  Even just the change in daylight hours (if he sees real light) can cause them to change their routine.
Please remove all the crickets that are in his tank. You don;t want the crickets to go nibbling  on your leo.  Don't offer any food for a few days...then, offer him a few crickets..if he eats, great..if not, just remove the crickets and wait another day or 2.  Try offering some waxworms to see if they interest him.  Just remember that wax worms are only as a treat and not a staple diet due to their high fat content.
Of course if he starts to loose weight, acts differently, etc. then a vet visit is needed.  It sounds like he has a good fat storage(fat tail) so going for even a few weeks w/o eating isn't a problem and it is good that he is eating.
Since he hasn't eaten, he won't poop but do watch to see if he may be straining to poop in which case, he may be a bit blocked and will need to see a vet.  You can try a warm, shallow bath if you think he may be a bit blocked.Again, if he is straining to go and a bath doesn't hep..its off to the vet!!!