Emergency!

[Jay_Bunny]

I went to check on our little crested gecko just now and I found him laying in the cap of CGD. I try and make it a little watery but not too much, but when I found him this morning, the CGD had become a goop and he was plastered in it. I gently pulled him out of the CGD, thinking him dead (he was so covered and not moving). Then he moved ever so slightly so I rushed him to the bathroom and began trying to get the goop off of him. I managed to get a lot off, but there are still bits of it on his legs and a little on his face. He doesn't seem to want to move around any.

What can I do? I've never had this happen before. The little crested we had a long time ago never once got in his food. The cap is like the cap on a gatorade bottle, so its not too deep. Maybe 1/4 inch deep. But even still, it looks like he jumped into it and just didn't bother to get out. He was literally covered in it, head to tail.

[JimiSnakes]

I'm not really sure on how to handle this, but it seems you did the right thing. I'd let him soak in a little bit of warm water for awhile. I used to have to be very careful with the CGD stuff drying out when I had cresties. Do you use a heat lamp? If so, try to keep it hidden from the direct light so as not to dry the CGD out.

I'm sure there is some more experienced members here that will chime in soon.

[tigerlily]

It's not normal for a little one to do that. I've had several baby cresties, and I use the same type of 'food dish' without ever experiencing that problem. This is the baby that replaced the first one that died?

It very much sounds like it was sick like the last one, and that there is probably little you can do. Did you ever get that medicated food or was it just the regular CGD?

[mlededee]

My geckos run through their food all the time. Never will a normal, healthy gecko sit in its food, especially for a period of time long enough for the food to solidify around it.

Are you feeding the medicated food? Have you had a fecal done or had the gecko checked by a vet? Are you convinced yet that maybe you should NOT get another gecko from the petstore that keeps selling you these geckos? Cresteds don't just die for no reason, especially not in quantity--they are extremely hardy geckos.

I don't mean to be harsh but you absolutely have to be proactive in situations like these.

If your gecko is still alive place it in a deli cup filled with lukewarm, wet papertowels. Leave it alone in there for the rest of the day today and tonight use a wet q-tip to remove any food that is left on him.

If you haven't already, order the medicated food that I linked you to earlier. Pay for overnight shipping! Once the entamoeba takes hold you have very little time--by the time you notice that there is a problem it can already be too late unless you act immediately. I cannot stress this enough!

[Jay_Bunny]

The little one did not make it and I refuse to get another gecko from that store. I've never had an issue with any snakes from that store, but I guess there are issues with the geckos. I think I'm going to save up and get a gecko from a breeder online.

I have a large tank for use with adults, so I think I'll get an adult instead of attempting a hatchling again.

I do not use a heatlamp, so that is not an issue. He was sitting in the dish when I found him. I think he had been there all night. We keep the house pretty warm, so thats why we don't need to give them any heat. Temperature is always between 72-78.

So we will wait until we have saved up for an adult gecko and make sure we have everything for the larger tank. (We have the tank, lid and vines, but that is all.)

[tigerlily]

If you are planning on using the same cage, you will want to do some MAJOR disinfecting. You may also want to consider ordering that medicated food just in case.

[Jay_Bunny]

I won't use the same cage. The hatchlings we have gotten from the store were kept in a kritter keeper. When we eventually get an adult, we have a large cage I've had for a long time. It used to house my cousin's chameleon (years ago) so I will disinfect it before housing any gecko in it. It has glass walls, a screen door on each end, and a screen lid.