Female Leo not eating...

[bamf64]

my female leopard gecko is not eating. she hasnt been for the past 3 months. her tail is still nice and fat im just wondering if theres anything wrong with her.. checked for impaction didnt find anything. any advice?

[coldblooded]

Is she ovulating?
What are the temperatures in your set up, are they high enough? (post your setup, please)
How did you check for impaction?
Has she lost any weight?

[bamf64]

Is she ovulating?
What are the temperatures in your set up, are they high enough? (post your setup, please)
How did you check for impaction?
Has she lost any weight?

assuming ovulating means that shes breeding, than no, shes not.

shes in a 20L with newspaper, two identical hides, water dish, food dish, plants and branches ext....

her temps are about 89 as her hot spot under the warm hide and 75 under cool side hide.

i checked her belly for signs of blockage and saw nothing. and since i have had newspaper her entire life i figured it wouldnt be a problem.

ive never weighed her so im not sure if shes lost weight. although shes still as chubby as shes always been

ideas?

[coldblooded]

Ovulating does not mean breeding. Females will ovulate (follicle production) and occasionally go off of food. You will see a pink circle in her abdomen if you gently bend her backwards. You may also see egg follicles, which will be white and round.

In my opinion, her temperatures are a bit low. That will cause them to go off food. Bump her up to about 95-97F on her warm side.

[olstyn]

I concur, except about the temperature. Most literature I've seen recommends between 88 and 92 degrees F for a warm side temperature, so 89 should be just fine. Regarding the going off food bit, my female does that every year at some point between late winter and early spring (she's doing it right now).

As long as she's not getting significantly thinner, I wouldn't worry too much. Just keep offering food on at least a semi-regular basis and she'll eat eventually. This time around, I've opted to just keep a dish of mealworms in my girl's terrarium at all times; that way when she eventually decides to be hungry, she can just have at it right away. (Normally she gets crickets as her main food source.)

It wouldn't hurt to monitor her weight if you can, because that'll give you a more accurate picture of whether she's losing weight than just an impression based on what her tail looks like.

[coldblooded]

I have been keeping my animals at 96-97F for nearly two years with no adverse side effects. Many larger hobbiests will also tell you the same thing (except they've been keeping them that way for much longer, haha.)

I was suspicious at first, until I tried it. They will not burn or anything silly like that. I have seen animals that were not eating at 92F start eating when the temperature was bumped to 97F. It also encourages better thermoregulation and digestion. You may also witness a higher activity level.

That aside, I would just keep an eye on her as well. I wouldn't be too concerned.

[bamf64]

Thanks everyone! ill make sure to let you guys know when she starts eating again!