crested gecko STILL NOT EATING!!!

Discussion in 'Rhacodactylus (Crested) Geckos' started by RLHam3, Feb 16, 2010.

  1. RLHam3

    RLHam3 Embryo

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    8
    Hey everybody. So i got my first crested gecko from a breeder about two months ago. I don't remember his exact length when I got him, but i do remember that he weighed around 4.7 grams. Now he is at about 5.5in and weighes 6.4 grams. Is this normal progress for a crestie his age? the reason that I'm concerned is because of his eating habits.

    When i got him i housed him in a 2.5 gal aquarium with a few vines and a papertowel substrate. He had absolutely no problem eating while in that set up. If i didn't replace his repashy in a couple of days he would eat most of it. The problems started when i moved him into an zoo-med terrarium (12x12x18) i have a cocohusk/dirt substrate and a homemade back ground made of that substrate and vines. He also has one fairly large plant that he likes to hide in. The temperature is kept at room temp (around 70-72) and the humidity is almost always close to 80. At first when i moved him into this new set up i would never find any evidence of him eating. I put the repashy in clear disposable tops to containers so i thought that he might not be able to see the food, so i put a paeice of white paper under the food so that it looked different. Since then there have been a few times where i've found evidence of him eating. but only a few. What is going on? i know that the move to a newer bigger terrarium will make it hard for him to find food but he's been in there for about a month and he still almost never eats the repashy. (he loves crickets though) Am i doing something wrong? does the food need to be somewhere else in the terraiurm besides on the floor? how much repashy should he be eating. Whats going on?!?!?

    and even worse lately i havn't found any food missing and his feet havn't been as sticky which i hear is a sign of malnutrition for crested geckos. (i thought he just needed a "bath" but i've given him 3 without any effect) Because of this i've been kinda force feeding him. (i put i glob of his food on the tip of his nose with my finger and make him lick it off)

    but as you can tell i'm very concerned for my little guy and wanted to know what everybody thinks that i should do?
     
  2. JEFFREH

    JEFFREH Administrator

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    5,483
     
  3. 00luke00

    00luke00 Well-Known Member

    Messages:
    4,853
    Hello,

    If he is not eating much of the repashy and you feel it is leading to malnourishment, you may just have to compensate this with the crickets for the time being, just until he gets a bit healthier. The stress of moving to a new environment can mean that they wil not eat but this will not generally last for more than two weeks.. Make sure your crickets are dusted correctly so he will be getting the same supplements he would if he was just on the repshy.

    Hope this helps,

    Luke
     

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