regurgitation

at least one of my leopard geckos keeps regurgitating or not properly digesting his/her mealworm. some of the mealworms they are getting fed have died because i keep them in the fridge. i think it is the one that eats the dead one. i can tell it is either regurgitated or not properly digested because i can see the feet and everything on the mealworm still. this has happened twice. i dont know which gecko is doing it because i have two (they are still babies and havent been fighting so they are still in the same cage, not sure if they are boy or girl yet) has this happened to anyone before or does anyone know why this is happening? should i not put the mealworms in the fridge so they dont die? i know thw mealworms arent to big because they have eaten them before and kept them down. Please help!!!

I would just say do not put them in the refridge and see what happnes. If they kept them down before when they where out of the refridge then keep them out.

well some of the meals are alive from the fridge and i try to find the ones that are, but its hard. ill try to take them out of the fridge and see what happens. thanks

first i would separate your geckos so that you can figure out which one is having the problem. if something is wrong with it or it is sick you don't want the other one to get it too. if you take the mealworms out of the fridge they will start to pupate and turn into beetles which you can't feed to your leos. i'm not sure that will resolve your problem. what you can do is take the mealworms out of the fridge for 15 minutes or so before you feed them so that they warm up enough to start moving around. that way you will know for sure which ones are alive and healthy. usually though mealworms turn hard and black pretty quickly once they die.

what are the temps like in your enclosure and how are you heating it? do you noticec any discoloration on the belly of either gecko, esp. the one that is regurging?

I've noticed this happen with leopards when they are either too cold OR too warm. You want to shoot for a temp gradient from 75-80 on the cool end and 88 on the warm end. Temps in the 90s can really put a lot of stress on their systems, while low temps obviously bring about metabolism-type issues that you are describing.

I can tell you that these guys weren't in good shape in the first place. The place that he got them from isn't very good and was trying to get rid of everything they had.

it is also highly possible that both gecko are infested with internal parasites. unfortunately many pet store leos are. parasites can also cause regurg problems. you might think about getting fecals done on them. the actual treatment is pretty simple once you have a diagnosis.

the temps are fine. i dont have an extra enclosure to seperate them right now. once they get bigger they will have their own cages. does anyone know what the usual price is for a fecal? thnaks

Around $20, give or take a bit. Why not call and ask around?

[QUOTE= Why not call and ask around?[/QUOTE]

good idea. thanks. can the price include more than one feces

Usually when quotes are given it's for one sample. If you want to do more than one, explain that and see if they will give you a discount for the quantity. Can't hurt to try. ;)

You stated that "the temps are fine", but how are you heating is a more important question. Leopard geckos require belly heat to aid in the digestion process. Regurgitation is usually caused by one of three things, lack ofbelly heat/improper digestion, eating too much or too large food item, and/or parasite infection. A 10 gallon tank runs about $10, add another $10 for an under the tank heater, it is worth it to seperate them, especially when trying to determine which gecko is regurgitating. Although, if it is due to parasites, they are likely both infected by now. Good luck and keep us posted.

the problem has been fixed. thanks for your help everyone.

how'd it get fixed? Fill us in so someone reading here with the same problem can benefit from your experience...

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Originally Posted by elevatethis

how'd it get fixed? Fill us in so someone reading here with the same problem can benefit from your experience...

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i just took the mealies out 15min prior to feeding so i knew which ones were alive.