Sunkist is not doing well...

[softie]

I have a problem on my hands :(

Sunkist has vomited twice since he's come home. He vomited two of the crickets (undigested) he ate the first day, which I kind of expected as it seemed that he wasn't being fed properly before, and the added stress of coming home.

Today, he vomited his meal of meal worms, and has given us weak stool so I'm going to have to take him to the vet tomorrow.

From my guesses, he's got internal parasites, which can be treated easily.

I'll keep updating on Sunkist. I really hope he bounces back :(

[ronsig]

Oh no, I hope he will get better soon. There is nothing more stressful than having a sick pet....:(

Sigrid

[Robin's Nest]

Oh, no, so sorry to hear that.:( All fingers, toes and talons crossed in hopes that Sunkist is back to normal real soon! :)

[aka.pody]

Aw poor little guy. It seems to me that somehow you were chosen to take care of Sunkist.
There's no telling what would have happened to him if you hadn't come along and rescued him.
Pets are always so pitiful when they're sick. You always want to do more and end up feeling helpless. I sure hope he's going to be okay.

[naburu]

Sorry to hear the little beauty isn't doing so good. Hope the vet takes good care of him. :)

[tstmard]

Oh no!:ohno: I'm sorry to hear this. I hope it's just something that's easily treatable. Poor Sunkist.:upset:

[birdybuddy1]

I'm so sorry! I hope Sunkist recovers quickly under your good care! Obviously he had already developed this problem while living with his previous owner. I sure hope he is okay, but just know that no one could care for him better than you are. :)

[missmadison]

Hope all goes well at the vet and he gets better soon! Please let us know how it goes.

[softie]

Aww thank you guys :) And Sunkist thanks for all the lovely wishes as well :)

The good news is that its night here and he's up and walking around. Wendy is practically doing laps haha :)

Since he is active, he's not dangerously lethargic, which is a good sign.

I took the initiative to call up his previous owner and ask what kind of set up Sunkist had (He had him ready in a box when I went to pick him up) and unfortunately, he's been living in forest bedding for the past 5 months. Peat moss is an optional substrate for the humidity hide, but as flooring, its extremely bacterial and I'm sure his poo wasn't removed very often.

He also had no heat so he's basically been shivering the past few months (they need 90 F in their warm hide)

As far as feeding, he gave Sunkist empty crickets (crickets that hasn't eatten any veggies for extra nutrition) but would just dump a cricket or two in his tank for a week and leave him be.

The man obviously had no idea how to care for a gecko, but I know he was sincere and didn't mean to do this on purpose. He just wasn't educated.

Okay, so Sunkist has internal parasites, no doubt. The way he's been stepping over his poo in his bacteria playground is sure to give some bugs. And the internal parasites is probably what made him so thin, on top of that, he had been eating way too little of junk.

After the vet, if he permits, I'm going to keep Sunkist on a daily diet of baby crickets, mealworms and waxworms. Waxworms are treats but they provide fat that will benefit Sunkist.

I really hope all of this goes well. I don't think I can handle losing him :(

[louara]

I am so sorry for you and Sunkist,but it is good to hear that he is somewhat active.
I'll be thinking of both of you tomorrow and wishing for the best.

[tstmard]

Poor Sunkist. I'm so glad he's in such a loving caring home now.
I don't think you're the only one who'd miss him. I think he has alot of fans here.:D

[naburu]

It's great to know that you obviously care for him and really know your stuff! Kudos go to you, for sure!

[softie]

Thanks guys :) I guess I did learn a thing or two from my parents :) Wendy came to me three years ago (as a youngin!) And she was in a similar situation, but not as bad as Sunkist :(

Okay, I don't want to jynx myself but here is the one thing I am terrified of. Internal parasites can be treated with medication

A disease that has some wierd name that I can't remember is uncureable.

There is no treatment for it and its basically a death sentence. It has the same symptoms of parasites but it can't be diagnosed without checking the stool.

I'm crossing my fingers that this isn't it and that its just parasites. The disease starts with a C. I'll just wait until the vet tomorrow as I don't want to worry about the C!!! :(

[naburu]

I found a C word but I don't think it's it.
Coccidia?

But it's treatable, and you said your C word isn't... Hmmmm.... *is on the hunt again*

[pal0m1n0]

Sorry to hear about this Softie. Hope he gets better soon.

[Kip.The.Great]

Oh no! :( I hope it's nothing bad, and something treatable. :(
I hope poor sunkist gets better and can live in a nice caring home for the rest of his life. :)

[Marinepits]

Best of luck at the vet today! ;)

[softie]

Thank you guys :)

I'm all set and ready to go to the vets in a few minutes. The appointment is at 8 and it's 7:30 now.

Hehe, Annie, nope that's not it, but this is :( Cryptosporidium... I don't want to hear it today, please please please please please...

Wish Sunkist some luck! :D

Here are some pictures I just took, he's so beautiful :) Colors on the camera don't do justice at all

http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn200/LikeADrug/Reptiles/Leos002-2.jpg

http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn200/LikeADrug/Reptiles/Leos003-1.jpg

http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn200/LikeADrug/Reptiles/Leos004-1.jpg

http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn200/LikeADrug/Reptiles/Leos006-1.jpg

He's missing almost 18 nails on his 20 little fingers and toes. My guess is that as he was shedding, he wasn't provided enough moisture and humidity, so when his legs started to shred, the skin on his fingers were never taken off and it constricted the area.. so the nails basically fell off with the skin. (You should feel Wendy when she walks on you.. don't wear long sleeves as all her nails act like velcro!)
http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn200/LikeADrug/Reptiles/Leos007.jpg

And he's missing *3* digits.. again.. probably the shedding problem that just took away his whole finger.
http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn200/LikeADrug/Reptiles/Leos008-1.jpg

And lastly.. his tail. I plan to keep this as a Before photo after I fatten him up! :D
http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn200/LikeADrug/Reptiles/Leos005-1.jpg

[Eoz]

Good luck to Sunkist!

We all have our paws, talons, fingers, legs, wings... Etc Crossed here :)

[chompie_puppy]

Goodluck! I hope the little guy is ok and just needs some love and care to become better!

[softie]

I have good news! :D

It's just internal parasites so he gave me some medication and if dosed properly, Sunkist will be in better shape pretty soon.

The vet told me if he finds anything else through his stool, he'll give me a call (I don't want that call)

So, I have the meds, Sunkist is in his box in the car seat next to me and I'm on my way to get the fattest waxworms I can find!

[Eoz]

Woo! :D Glad to hear the good news!

Hope he gets better soon! :)

[Kip.The.Great]

That's GREAT news! :D:D:D

[louara]

Fantastic news:):):) I'm keeping my fingers crossed

[birdybuddy1]

Aww thank you guys :) And Sunkist thanks for all the lovely wishes as well :)

The good news is that its night here and he's up and walking around. Wendy is practically doing laps haha :)

Since he is active, he's not dangerously lethargic, which is a good sign.

I took the initiative to call up his previous owner and ask what kind of set up Sunkist had (He had him ready in a box when I went to pick him up) and unfortunately, he's been living in forest bedding for the past 5 months. Peat moss is an optional substrate for the humidity hide, but as flooring, its extremely bacterial and I'm sure his poo wasn't removed very often.

He also had no heat so he's basically been shivering the past few months (they need 90 F in their warm hide)

As far as feeding, he gave Sunkist empty crickets (crickets that hasn't eatten any veggies for extra nutrition) but would just dump a cricket or two in his tank for a week and leave him be.

The man obviously had no idea how to care for a gecko, but I know he was sincere and didn't mean to do this on purpose. He just wasn't educated.

Okay, so Sunkist has internal parasites, no doubt. The way he's been stepping over his poo in his bacteria playground is sure to give some bugs. And the internal parasites is probably what made him so thin, on top of that, he had been eating way too little of junk.

After the vet, if he permits, I'm going to keep Sunkist on a daily diet of baby crickets, mealworms and waxworms. Waxworms are treats but they provide fat that will benefit Sunkist.

I really hope all of this goes well. I don't think I can handle losing him :(

I am glad that he seems to be perking up a little! He is so lucky you found him! :)

It looks like you were just in time, I'd hate to think what would have happened to him if he was still with his previous owner. :(

Good luck, clearly you are doing all that can be done to put him on the read to recovery!

edit: I posted before I saw your good news! Yay! :)

[lamagdalena]

I hope he recovers, he certainly needed a mommy like you to take care of him, He is in the best hands possible.

[softie]

Thanks guys! I think he'll be okay now :)

I got Panacur for this medication, which is basically a deworming medication. It's used for pigeons, but it works just as well with reptiles. I need to dilute it and give only about 100 to 120 mg/kg.

For his size, his healthy range of weight should be around 40 to 45 grams. Right now, he's at 28 grams which is way too low, especially for a male.

I also got some antibiotics as Sunkist has bacterial infection in his gastrointestinal tract, and he was injected with some fluids, and he needs a few more periodically, so I'll be making frequent vet trips with him.

With his regular feeding of baby crickets and wax worms, I'm going to need to make him some formula that he can easily digest. I also need to make a water mixture of half fresh water and half Gatorade, for the electrolytes that the Gatorade will provide.

I'm crossing my fingers!! And I think Sunkist is too :)

[Rainbow]

Yay! :D

I'm so glad everything is going to be o.k for Sunkist and I'm sure he'll make a fast recovery, thank goodness he's in your hands.. if left in that other home I'm sure he would be near or at death by now. It's horrible when people don't properly heat their reptiles but in this case not at all. Sending you many good wishes on a fast recovery little Sunkist. He sure is beautiful gecko!

[Pippin's mom]

Yea for good news!:D Glad to hear it is something very treatable and Sunkist will be okay! Its a good thing you two found each other.:)

[Marinepits]

Wonderful news!

[tstmard]

That's good it's something treatable. I hope you're able to get back to healthy soon.:)

[AniGamer]

I have a problem on my hands :(

Sunkist has vomited twice since he's come home. He vomited two of the crickets (undigested) he ate the first day, which I kind of expected as it seemed that he wasn't being fed properly before, and the added stress of coming home.

Today, he vomited his meal of meal worms, and has given us weak stool so I'm going to have to take him to the vet tomorrow.

From my guesses, he's got internal parasites, which can be treated easily.

I'll keep updating on Sunkist. I really hope he bounces back :(

Hope Sunkist does betetr. BTW, you're so lucky. My vetinarians, all three, will only except cats or dogs. :(