Very thin leo problem

[chris124578]

My friend asked me to place this....
Her leos are all looking very thin.... Well, there tails are very thin, but there body still has some fat...
im not sure how often they are eating... but i think one problem is the temp is too low.. she only has a 50watt on a 20 gallon...
all 4 juvs are not in good shape.. although she had 2 adults with them up until about a month ago, and the adult have nice fat tails...
can you help me in anyway??
thanks..
matt

[JeffT]

Tell he rto seperate them all. It sounds like some kinda infection that has spread through them all. Im not sure what else to do, probably for her to get fecal tests, 4 geckos at like $15 each, it will only be about $60 which is fairly cheap.

[bob_thesnowman]

well if they are all together if there truly was a disease i would think that if one had it,they all would,i don't think it'd be necessary to get fecals on all of them,just seperate them all and take a feces sample from the skinniest one to the vet,try and get it as fresh as possible to better the chances of them finding the cause,in the mean time if you find that they are not eating add some electrolyte to the water supply,and if they are really skinny try syringe feeding them pureed dog food,good luck with this one,hopefully she didn't wait until it was to late...

[althena]

You know, I noticed a huge decline in my leopard geckos when I moved. At first I thought it was stress. But, it went on and on and on and on... Turns out it was the temperature! I felt so silly for not noticing it earlier. :P For one ten gallon I have a 60 watt bulb and a heat rock. They are back to eating like pigs, but they still need to put back on a lot of weight....

But seriously, I agree - a fecal exam is probably the best thing your friend could do for those geckos whether its a sample from one gecko or all the geckos. You'll get an answer and it may save their lives, you never know. (And seperating them is a very god idea as well.)

[bob_thesnowman]

yes,it wouldn't hurt for her to check her temps either,winter is approaching and i find around this time of year,changing bulbs to a higher wattage is nessacary,lol,although i find heat rocks a evil,i'd personally go with an undertank heater

[DragnDrop]

It's always a good idea to get a fecal check done, can't hurt. What I'm wondering is if stress might be the root of the problem. You say it's a 20 gallon tank, with 4 juvies right now - and there were 2 adults in with them until a month ago? Aside from possible parasites or disease, I'm inclined to say that stress from over-crowding could be a big part of it. The adults would have most likely gotten the lion's share of the food, scared the living daylights out of the juvies to the point where they wouldn't want to eat even if there was food left over. The wattage of the light might be okay, it depends on the ambient room temperature, but if it's a bit on the low side too, add that to the stress and you can have some awfully thin juvies after a few weeks.

[Gregg M]

What kind of substrate is she useing....... If it is sand or any other type of small loose bedding, that is the problem........ Sand impactions can take a long time to build up and even longer to kill a leo........ But usually once the weight loss has staerted it is too late......... Sand is a leos worst enemy and I cant believe people still use it as a substrate for them......

[Zoe]

that is the problem While I do agree that sand can impact, it's not 100% necessarily the cause.

She should get a fecal done on one or two of them at least (this will also determine the presence of sand if that's what she's keeping them on), but it sounds to me like stress and low temps.

Zoe

[eyespy]

No, a fecal will NOT determine the presence of sand. Most of the junk gets caught in the villi of the small intestines, finger-like projections that are almost like the "hooky" side of Velcro. Most sand never passes. It takes surgery or a high-pressure lavage to get the stuff out.

But yes, still get fecals done as parasites are a strong suspect and there is always the possibility of a bacterial or fungal infection of the digestive tract too.

[drewlowe]

I highly suggest getting a fecal done. If they were in fact all housed together they pretty much have the same thing going on (if it is a parasite). Have your friend make a vet appointment and make sure to take in a fecal sample no older than 24 hours old. The fresher the better!!! Instead of taking in all of the leos have them take in the sickest to be examined and the freshest fecal.

Can you find out what are the temps in the cage??? They need a warm(85-90) and a cool side (77-80). I don't suggest using a hot rock at all for them!!! If the temps are too low they may not be able to digest food or have no appetite.

Stress could be another factor exspecially since they had 4 juvies and 2 adults in a 20 gal. I would still see the vet and i would also seperate all the juvies into their own enclosure to monitor thier health better.

[Zoe]

eyespy - really? When I had my leos on sand (for about a month before I switched back) their poop was packed with sand?

Zoe

[eyespy]

The vast majority of cases where a necropsy reveals sand impaction as the cause of death never had notes about sand found in their fecals. If they are obvious sand eaters taking in mouthfuls of the stuff it's more likely to show up in the poop. The stuff that accumulates grain by grain through tongueflicking or getting just a few grains of sand along with the food is more likely to adhere to the moist sides of the intestines than to pass through the system.

[crazyboy]

chris- find out the temps she is keeping them at, how often she is feeding them and what she is feeding them .

Althena- Heat rocks can cause hot spots that will burn your reptile. You are better off getting an uth.