Please Help :(

I have recently purchased a crested gecko from a pet store, they recommended using coco fibre substrate which has been fine for around 2 weeks.

This morning we noticed he (Demetri) had a mouthful of substrate. He was sat on the bottom of the vivarium with his mouth wide open.

No live crickets were put in the tank last night, as we feed him live food 2-3 times a week.

He has Zoo Med's Gecko Food put into his food every time we feed him- is this enough calcium as we were told by the pet store that this was all he needed??

He is still active, but he doesn't seem himself.

My main concern is that his jaw seems rather floppy, almost as if it is broken. It is worse at the bottom front part of the jaw (almost like his chin?)

Temp and humidity is all fine, we have also replaced the substrate with paper towelling for now to try and help.

Any advice would be great.

Thank you. ( I can upload a picture if needed)

 

Welcome to the forums, I'm sorry that this event brought you here.

Pictures would certainly be helpful, if its not too much trouble. I'll try to address waht I can, I'm honestly a bit rushed but wanted to make sure this was responded to in a timely manner. Hopefully other members can chime in, and I'll check back as soon as I can again.

So the gecko took in a mouthful of the substrate for no apparent reason? That is peculiar; did he end up swallowing it or was he able to spit out what was in his mouth?

Can you elaborate a little more on his behavior... you say he doesn't seem himself... what is he doing differently?

The gecko diet you were advised to use isn't all that great (assuming its the 'Day Gecko' diet), its mostly added sugars and fillers. I'd also consider looking into a calcium supplement that contains D3 such as the product "Ultrafine" by Rep-cal with the pink label, or something similar to dust the insects with. Next, I recommend you get him "Crested Gecko Diet by Repashy Superfoods" developed by Allen Repashy. This diet you can feed entirely on its own, no added supplementation. It's backed by years of research and use with thousands of crested geckos and breeders as the only food source, and has proven to be very effective. I'll elaborate more on this later when I get the chance.

I know some of the questions may seem irrelevant, but if you can get pictures up and give us some more info we can help to deduce possible issues and treatments if something is wrong.

 

Firstly, thank you for your reply. Much appreciated.

At first we were concerned mostly for his tongue as it seemed to be caught amongst the substrate. After attempting carefully to remove some of this substrate without harming him he was able to stick out his tongue. He was then left with an open floppy jaw. This has, since last posting, closed and seem slightly better.

I just wondered are there any other suggestions that may have caused his floppy jaw.

Also, thank you for your advice on the gecko diet food, will take this into account.

I will try and upload a photo later, when hopefully he will be more active.

 

Welcome to Reptile Rooms! Sorry this is what brought you to us but hopefully we can figure something out to help your little guy...

1st - His diet, this is the best MRP (Meal replacement powder) out there and its all your crestie will need. Cresties do eat live insects but this powder that you mix a small amount with water (follow the directions on the bag/bottle or watch one of the many youtube videos) you can give them as their entire diet.

2nd - Could he have fallen? What do you have as "furniture" or decorations in his tank? Some of the foliage from Petco isn't sturdy enough for a crestie... Pictures of his set-up would be very helpful

3rd - Does he seem to be able to move his jaw at all now that it's closed? If you spray down his tank can he get his tongue out to drink some of the water?

I hope he's doing better and he just mistakenly chomped down on some substrate and was able to get it all out...

 

Thanks for the reply.

Since first posting he has been able to open and close his mouth, he has not, however, had anything to drink. He is able to move his tongue around though, although we have only seen it twice or three times.

Would it help at all to syringe feed him? I'm just very concerned he hasn't eaten or drank anything all day

Also, I was advised from another site to take out his leaves and branches, but to leave his hide and feeding bowls in the tank.
I have also replaced the coco fibre substrate with paper towelling to aid with him not eating any more at this time!

The branches were very sturdy, so I doubt there was a fall involved. But thank you for bringing that to mind.

Bare with me whilst I attempt to upload photos.

 

He seems to be doing fine now, i'll keep a very close eye on him over night and keep you updated. Thank you for all your help.

Lauren

 

Oh! He's an adorable little flame Very cute. If that's a photo post-incident he looks to be ok in the jaw area... Also keep in mind that they don't have to eat every day so I wouldn't put him through the stress of syringe feeding him just yet... maybe if he hasn't eaten in a week or two and starts to loose weight, but not yet.

Good luck and keep us posted as to how he is doing!

 

Oh, and sorry for posting again. Where can I find this Crested Gecko Diet food from? I can only find it on Ebay for a shipping price from America!!?? :/

Thanks for all the help

 

Oh boy, where are you located?

 

I live in Leicester, in the United Kingdom. I would not hesitate at all if this was the only option! However, if you know of anywhere closer that it would only take a few days to get here (not weeks) then it would be a lot better for Demetri.

 

The link I posted before is to PangeaReptile... they ship all around the world. Also you might want to call around to maybe some of the local pet shops by you to see if they sell Repashy Crested Gecko Diet (MRP).

 

Just did a quick search and found http://www.stickyfeet.co.uk/ selling it in the UK...and it's on sale! =D

 

Hey guys,
This is Demetri this morning, I beleive he has been shedding, as the orange colouring on his head as nearly disappeared. Is this normal? Please forgive me as i'm extremely new to all this and just want to get an opinion from some experts Does he look okay?

 

He definitely looks like he is in shed... Be sure to mist his cage in the morning and night for the next day or so to keep up his humidity so it will be easier on him to shed. Keep in mind, you won't actually see shed skin like with a snake because geckos eat it... also note that he may not eat his normal food because he'll have had a nice big meal already! Lol. Good luck! He's a looker!

 

Oh! And when he is shedding sometimes they can't "stick" to things easily because the skin on their toes is shedding too... just be careful when you're handling him and don't be too frightened if you see him towards the bottom of his cage until the shedding is done

 

Thank you so much for the reply, how long does it usually take for a crestie to shed, i've read all different things and not sure what to think.

 

It's hard to say... It usually happens very quickly... and it usually happens at night. They get all dull colored during the day and usually that night they will complete the shed. But when they are younger sometimes they don't really have the "practice" to do it quickly and can take more than just the night.

 

HELP. His jaw should not be like this again! It keep getting stuck on the flat paper towelling that we have put down for him. We have been giving him extra calcium to aid him, but what else could this beeee!!!!!!!!