Trick to feeding the stubborn (usually baby) Leo

Hey guys. I've noticed alot of new leopard gecko owners that have problems with getting their new pet to eat. Usually this is the case with young leos from a pet store it seems, who may need to be nursed back to health. Anyway, I have a young tremper like this who has refused to eat for about a month, and I found a very simple way to force feed my Leo (that has worked on others) that I'd like to share with those new Leo owners who could use this information.

Start off by washing your hands with a non scented soap, and get your feeders ready, whatever they may be. Take your Leo who you wish to feed in one hand, and cup him/her in your fist to where only the leos head and neck are only free to move. Take your feeder and hold it between your thumb and index finger (finger closest to your thumb). Bring the feeder to the mouth of your Leo, and while still grasping the feeder, use your thumb and middle finger to gently close on opposite sides of your leos mouth. Your Leo should instinctably open his/her mouth. If not open and close your thumb and middle finger repeatably until the mouth opens. Take this opportunity to slip the feeder, which should still be held between your thumb and index finger, into your leos mouth. If the feeder is spit out, within three tries your Leo should realize it's food and do the rest of the work. . Hope this helps a new owner out there, as an experienced owner most likely knows this trick.

Great info However, what you described is technically a force feeding and this could be stressful, especially on a young leopard gecko. When you make your leopard gecko gape, it's not always a neutral sign of "Here's my mouth, ahhh". Gaping is a sign of stress or agitation...

Also, when you hold a young leopard gecko in order to do this, they tend to stress out more from what I've observed and experienced. They squirm a lot more and can drop their tails easier..

What some people do to entice a picky eater to eat is to get some of the feeder's guts out (squeeze/cut it) and rub it on the lips. The gecko instinctively licks their lips...when they taste the guts, the gecko will probably eat it.

My gecko just needs extra stimulation...shaking the food, dropping it, move the food closer with tongs veeeery slowly to make him interested.

But! Whatever works best for you and your husbandry! Thanks for sharing your information!

Good added info . Yes, I thought about adding the info with how stressful it can be to feed this way, and is either a last resort or second to last with slurry being last, depending on your preference. Anywho, my iPod was clutching and taking forever to type lol so thank you again for your insight