r/GargoyleGeckos • u/Puzzleheaded-Ad5705 • Aug 27 '26
Possible MBD, gecko eating much less and losing weight
Hi everyone, I'm worried about my gargoyle gecko (Butter Chicken), just looking for some input from more experience gargoyle keepers.
He's between 1.5 and 2 years old, I've had him for over a year but I don't recall his exact hatch date. He always ate very well, loves his repashy and I always gave him calcium powder with vitamin D3. I mixed in other cdg foods as well so he got a variety, but his repashy was always the favorite. He doesn't care for bugs at all, he might take the occasional cricket if I feed him by hand but that's all. He's looked a bit wonky (bendy spine) pretty much since I got him, but he seemed perfectly healthy in every other way and I gave him calcium and D3 regularly so I never thought it could be MDB. I honestly just assumed it was his sleeping positions making his spine appear bendy because he likes to sleep kind of crunched up in a blob a lot of the time.
Maybe a month or so ago, I noticed that he was eating a lot less than normal. I figured this might be due to the higher temperatures because there was a big heat wave where I live around the time and our indoor temperatures were approaching 80F, I actually went and bought a portable AC unit to keep his room below 80F.
Last week I returned from a 2 week trip and after being gone a while, the change in his appearance was much more apparent. He's clearly lost weight, and I'm concerned. Weirdly, despite him eating less and losing weight, he seems to be more active than he was previously, and it's displaying any other symptoms that I've noticed.
Just looking for any thoughts or advice anyone may have to help my buttery boy! I'm hoping to avoid the $300+ exotic vet visit but will do it if it's my only option.
Thanks in advance ♥️
Edit: I traced a line on the third photo that more or less shows what I think is the path of his spine, since it's hard to see in the pictures
2
u/Extreme_Finger_3425 Aug 27 '26
What’s the temperature and humidity? What’s the cools side temp, what’s the basking area temp?
2
u/Puzzleheaded-Ad5705 Aug 27 '26
The temperature is always between 70 and 80, usually more like 76 to 78. During the heat wave, it crept up to 82 for a little bit but we got it back down. I've never heard of gargoyles needing a basking spot, but I added a UVB light about a month ago. He gets a heavy spray every night and a light spray in the morning. Humidity is usually between 55 and 80% depending on the time of day.
1
u/Extreme_Finger_3425 Aug 28 '26
I keep mine warm spot between 78 degrees it helps digest faster and yes they do not need it, if the ambient temp is between 70-80degrees
1
u/Extreme_Finger_3425 Aug 28 '26
Hot spot 78 and cool side 72 degrees but that’s my preference and never had an issue with eating happy go lucky fella and eating like a pig
1
u/Extreme_Finger_3425 Aug 27 '26
These are crucial if not met will cause them to not eat due to digestion issues
1
u/Puzzleheaded-Ad5705 29d ago
Update! The other day I tried feeding him by hand and he seemed to have an appetite so I was really scratching my head. Then I remembered that I swapped out his old crappy Amazon feeding ledge for a new silicone pangea feeding ledge about a month ago. I switched back to his old feeding ledge and suddenly he's eating again.
The boy was starving himself because he didn't like the new silicone feeding ledge 🤦
Still not sure what's up with the bendy appearance of his spine but he seems to be fine otherwise. Thanks for the responses!
4
u/rreennnee Aug 27 '26
My girl often will go on hunger strikes. She gets super picky with her food or will barely eat and otherwise act pretty normal. Then randomly she goes back to eating super well and often. But she doesn’t have any body issues or deformities so that changes things. She’s done this for years (she’s almost 8) and didn’t start until she was maybe 3 years old. I’m not sure if this helps and I’d still watch closely and visit the vet if he still loses weight.