Dory won't eat

I am kind of upset because my leopard gecko dory will not eat anything I provide her.. I keep her tank clean, I change the water every night, and I make sure her hide is moist, and she has the temps set up correctly. She had fallen from one of her structures that was a log that she used to climb on, It scared me because I saw her fall I checked her breathing and she seemed to be the same, her tail untouched, etc. I have since then moved the structure so that she can lay on it but not climb it. I am wondering why she isn't eating I heard that sometimes they stop eating for a while, but I didn't think it happened during the summer? and she usually eats a lot of worms and crickets. If anyone could give me a hand at helping her it would be great, I don't want to make the same mistakes as I did with my other gecko R.I.P Leo <3

Quick few questions.

1) what are the temperatures on the hot side? is this controlled by a thermostat?

2) is there a possibility that your female may be gravid (heres a link to check http://www.vmsherp.com/LCBreedingLeopards.htm )

3) What type of substrate are you using?

4) what food have you tried so far?

5) have you noticed any other odd behaviour? what do her poo's look like?

I have never heard of a gecko losing her/his appetite during the summer, it is normal during the cooling down periods of the winter that they may reduce the amount their eat and conserve their energy. This is know as pre-conditioning for breeding.

There is a questionnaire that, if you would fill it out, we can be more than helpful.

http://www.leopardgeckoforum.com/t134-please-read-and-fill-out-with-your-health-questions

Thank you Kodie... yes... Zak if you could fill out our care questionaire it would greatly help the membership have all the info we would need to answer your question with out having to ask a hundred questions ourselves... Please take a moment and fill it out, just copy/paste it into this thread..

next thing,... there's a lot of reasons a leo would stop eating, from food boredome to ovulation, pre and post shedding, trauma (the fall could have scared her and she is still recovering from the scare. My boy Eros fell once outta my hands and didn't eat for a few days from the shock). There are also age milestones that she passes as she matures that could cause a feeding halt as well, even ambient temperature outside could affect eating. When days are hothere outdoors Eros doesn't eat either.

It's likely not a major issue, esp. if she is still pooing normally and active, we'll certainly know a lot more once you fill out the care questionaire.

Don't panic Zak . I know you are concerned because of your last one but if you fill out the questionnaire we should be able to help out;)

Jolene

About your leo:
- Sex: Female.
- Age & Weight: I had purchased her from PetSmart in a very healthy condition on 7th of May she was 7 months old, her birthday is October 27th. My kitchen scale said: 50Grams, I am not sure if this is correct though. (Probably off a lot because she looks like she'd weigh more), but you can judge by the picture at the bottom I guess.
- Morph: I believe she's a Giant Tangerine.
- How long have you owned your leo: Two months and seven days.
- Where was he/she obtained (Pet store, breeder, wild caught, etc.): PetSmart.
- Is your leo wild caught or captive bred: No idea.

A) Health/History
- How often do you handle your leo: About twice a week.
- Is your leo acting any different today? Not really except that she seems more lazy but she's always been kinda lazy.
- Has he/she had any problems in the past, if so please describe: I'm proud to say No problems.
B) Fecals
- Describe-Do they look any different than normal: The white is a little more golden, but no dramatic change.
- When was the last time he/she went: About two days ago.
C) Problem
- Please briefly describe the problem/issue you are experiencing and how long it has been going on: She won't eat anything I provide her.

Housing:
A) Enclosure
- Size: 30 Gallon
- Type (ex. glass tank, screen enclosure, tub kept): Glass, with screen top.
- Type of substrate (sand, vinyl tiles, ceramic/stone tiles, etc.): Reptile Carpet.
- Hides (how many, location and type (hothide, humid hide, regular hide etc.): Three hides, and a moist box, and a cactus, feeding dish, and water dish.
B) Heating
- What is your main heat source (heat bulbs, under tank heat mat etc) **Please include the brand and size of your UTH if you use one**
- What are your cage temps (hot side and cool side): Hot side is: 90 degrees, cool side: 84.
- Method of regulating your heat source (thermostat, rheostat, light dimmer etc.): thermostat batter powered one.
- What are you using to measure your temps (probe thermometer, infrared lazer tempo gun, stick on temp gauge, etc): probe thermometer.
- Do you have any lights (describe type (red,blue, basking etc) and cycle duration): No lights.
C) Cage mates
- How many (males, females): 1 Female.
- Describe health, or previous problems of cage mates: No pervious cage mates, I switched cages after my last one passed away.

Describe Diet:
A) Typical diet
- What are you feeding: Mealworms, dusted crickets.
- How often are you feeding your gecko and how much per feeding?: I am planning on feeding her once a day, until she's about a year old which is coming up soon (October 27th).
- How are you feeding (hand fed, tongs/tweezers, left in dish, ect): I place the worms in front of her on a plastic wear lid for feeding.
B) Supplements
- What calcium suppliment are you using (please include brand): Fluker's Calcium WITH VITAMIN D3 Phosphorus Free, I also gut load my crickets.
- What multi vitimin are you using (please include brand): I don't have any of that, because I am not sure what I should get.
-How are you implimenting your suppliment program (how often do you dust with each suppliment, do you leave calcium in the tank 24/7 etc.): No I don't leave calcium in the tank 24/7, I usually do every other day, and skip the weekends on the calcium.
- What are you gutloading your feeder insects with: Fluker's High-Calcium Cricket Diet.


Picture of her:

She still hasn't even taken a bite of anything.

Hey zak. About the two things I would suggest right now are to bump your temps up to 94 for a while and see if that helps. Some times a warmer temp will kick start their appetite. One other thing you might want to try is just leave her be for a couple days. Some times when mine are off food I don't offer for a couple days and then they decide they are hungry after that.

Good suggestions Jolene something else to consider zak is she may be coming into her first ovulation which can put them off food... honestly it just looks too me like she's full she looks very healthy from the picture, lots of junk in her trunk she has a well filled out tail. My boy started slowing down his eating too around 7 months old and now that he's a bit over a year he usually only eats 2-3 superworms a week. I would bump her temps up tho like Jolen suggested. It can only help at this point. The warmer temps could make her more active and being more active will usually make them hungry

smsararas2 wrote:Hey zak. About the two things I would suggest right now are to bump your temps up to 94 for a while and see if that helps. Some times a warmer temp will kick start their appetite. One other thing you might want to try is just leave her be for a couple days. Some times when mine are off food I don't offer for a couple days and then they decide they are hungry after that.

Alright, I bumped up her temps to 94 and I am going to see what happens.

Kermit wrote:Good suggestions Jolene something else to consider zak is she may be coming into her first ovulation which can put them off food... honestly it just looks too me like she's full she looks very healthy from the picture, lots of junk in her trunk she has a well filled out tail. My boy started slowing down his eating too around 7 months old and now that he's a bit over a year he usually only eats 2-3 superworms a week. I would bump her temps up tho like Jolen suggested. It can only help at this point. The warmer temps could make her more active and being more active will usually make them hungry

You're probably right I don't think she's had her first ovulation yet, I will try the temps and stop offering for a couple days, then I'll see what happens.

I bumped her temps up and she moved to the cooler side now, I cleaned out her cage and scrubbed everything with animal safe dish soap to make sure there wasn't anything in there making her sick. I also put like 5 worms in a dish in there and I supply water. I am not so worried but I am curious, she still being lazy, I give her a warm soak everyday, then I let her be for the rest of the day. I did see a poop in there when I cleaned it so I am positive she's pooping.

im sorry, I didnt see this on the questionnaire...but When was the last time she ate?

She ate on the 12th of July.. and she's still not eating, and hasn't been active at all.

Female leopard geckos go off feeds on a yearly basis, it's a cycle you get used to after a year or two. This usually happens during the breeding season when they ovulate. I have one female that went 4 weeks without eating, and just a week ago she started eating every day again.

One way to tell if she's ok is by observing her tail to make sure she still has plenty of fat stored in there. Also weight her once a week to track her weight. If she's not losing any weight, then leave her alone as she's just doing what female geckos do every year.

Leave fresh mealworms in a mealworm escape-proof dish in there, and change the mealworms out once a day. she may eat a lil here and there, but chances are she won't want to eat at all. Mine ate once during her 4 week hunger strike.

Agreed with mardy

I have the same with my female, shes actually not eating at the moment... But I am not worried but will keep an eye on her

I agree too
On sunday I had to buy waxworms because my female leopard gecko had refused to eat for 2 weeks.. she didn't touch locust, mealworms or morioworms

Alright, thanks this makes me feel so much better I will try wax worms in a week or so then.

She has ate about twice since this has started, a few worms, and a cricket, I am buying her some Wax Worms, tonight. Hopefully this will start her back up

Hey Zak, how is Dory doing? Did you get her to eat?

She's was doing better for about a few days she ate for about three days straight and had a wax worm then stopped and then, a couple days ago I gave her a mealworm and a wax worm, then the next morning I saw that she spit up the mealworm, and hasn't touched them since. I don't understand why she's doing this.

If what you mean by spitting up is actually regurgitation then that does not sound good, especially if its not related to overeating as such. Maybe the staff can advise you further as I have not had this experience with any of my leos before.

I'll be perfectly honest, you should go to a herp vet and tell them that she's regurging on you now. This can be really bad, and I don't mean to scare you, but it's not just "worms" or anything simple and easy like that.

She looks like a very healthy leopard gecko. They are currently still in breeding season so this could have a big impact on her not eating. I wouldn't worry too much at this moment in time, and just offer her once a week for the time being, till she gets back to eating like normal. And keep a close eye on her weight. If it suddenly drops or goes way below normal than I would get stools samples done and a vet trip. But it could be to do with "I',m not hungry" or the fact of breeding or going into winter months.

But its good to hear she is eating on and off.

Thanks for all advice, I don't see any bloating and she doesn't show any weight loss. I am going to keep an eye on her, She's very moody though when I try to hold her she will move her tail in the air, I know that means somethings frightening her but I am always so careful with her as for my last one. So I don't know why I pose a threat.

We all pose a threat Zak because we are big and imposing:D.

I have some leos that don't like me holding them but are more than willing to climb up on my hubby's arm without any urging.