Dealing with a potentially dangerous issue involving a pet can be incredibly difficult as a caring owner. Everything from mild skin irritations to being constipated is enough to make the hairs on our arms rise. In the case of leopard geckos, what are some things you might want to do if they are feeling constipated?
Thankfully, the first thing anyone should do in such a scenario is take a deep breath and assess whether the pet is truly injured, or in this case, constipated, before looking towards the next step, as a false diagnosis can be just as problematic as a delayed response.
This article will discuss how often a leopard gecko should poop, why they feel constipated, and what you can do to help them out. After all, no one likes constipation, and leopard geckos are no exception! We recommend reading this article to help you understand it better.
How Often Should Leopard Geckos Poop?
A young leopard gecko will constantly be eating in its early stages of rampant growth, meaning you can expect one in its juvenile stages to poop multiple times a day due to its frequent meals, but as they mature, their feeding habits slow, and thus their need to defecate does as well.
An adult leopard gecko can safely go two to three days without eating a single morsel and be completely fine. You can tell early if there are issues because geckos have very short digestive systems and usually relieve themselves quickly after a meal.
The longest stint you can expect your pet to go without pooping is five days; however, this timeframe should raise an alarm if your reptile has eaten continuously for the same period without a bowel movement, as it could have an obstruction or something more serious.
How Long Can Leopard Geckos Go Without Pooping?
A fully mature gecko can go up to five days without pooping, assuming it hasn’t eaten in that same time period. Still, you should watch its eating habits and daily routine more closely toward the end of the third day, as you may notice indicators that your leopard gecko is experiencing complications.
Depending on your living situation, the food you offer, and more, your gecko may be slightly slower than normal; big changes in the environment can also stress your gecko and affect its daily routine.
How Can You Tell if Your Leopard Gecko Is Constipated?
The easiest way you can tell if your gecko is having a hard time relieving itself is to inspect the places it usually leaves its droppings. Leopard geckos are creatures of habit and often leave traces in the places they inhabit to mark their territory, without making a mess of their favorite areas.
A gecko suffering from constipation will often refuse to eat and become lethargic over time, declining to move from whatever spot it has deemed comfortable, and may begin showing visible signs of discomfort.
Attentive owners will note the time span between the last successful feeding and defecation to truly discern whether or not their gecko is constipated, with the rule of thumb being that if your gecko hasn’t defecated at least three days after its last meal, there is a large chance that it has become constipated and needs a visit to the local veterinarian.
As an owner, it often isn’t easy to gauge these things, even for the more experienced, long-term Leopard Gecko savants. At the risk of sounding cliché, it’s far better to take your pet to an expert rather than assume the best and let your little friend suffer needlessly.
What Are Some Reasons Why Your Leopard Gecko Does Not Poop?
Unfortunately, nature itself can cause your leopard gecko to have difficulties defecating; anything ranging from a change in temperature, environment, eating habits, or personal caretaker can influence how often your gecko is pooping. Also, whether your gecko has eaten will obviously affect its ability to poop.
1. Your Gecko Is Not Eating
Naturally, if your gecko hasn’t had anything to eat, there is a large chance it will not be able to defecate by association, as its body will need something to process and release to achieve the desired effect. Changes in eating habits are natural as geckos mature, but spontaneous changes after full maturity often indicate something has gone awry.
If you suspect your gecko has an internal issue and is actively rejecting food, it could be dealing with parasites, lethargy, or being too cold; all of these issues can cause a gecko to stop eating.
2. They May Be Too Cold
Cold-blooded animals rely heavily on temperature regulation to keep them active and healthy. If they can’t maintain their internal systems, they slow down, become less active, and generally lose interest in eating. The problem here is that these are only the initial signs of them not regulating their temperature successfully; as these conditions worsen, they will become immobile, have slowed breathing, and, in absolutely dire conditions, cease eating and drinking entirely.
The best way to combat your geckos getting either too hot or too cold would be to create an enclosure where they can actively choose between one side of it being the “Warmer” side and the other being “Colder”; now it’s worth noting that neither of these places should hit extremes outside your geckos’ comfort zones, more so the maximum conditions they are safe to inhabit.
Poor temperature regulation can lead to just as many complications as a bad diet, with the worst situations often causing us to “Miss the forest for the trees,” as the saying goes. For instance, if your gecko gets too hot and becomes dehydrated, it may become constipated because it isn’t healthy enough to eat or have a regular bowel movement.
3. Environmental Changes
Just as some people aren’t keen on sudden changes, geckos are sticklers for a stable, consistent environment. Being removed from a long-term enclosure, having a new “roommate,” or anything involving constant agitation from either people or other pets can cause extreme stress in your gecko and cause it to become docile, or worse, lethargic.
While life does indeed happen and we occasionally need people to help take care of our pets when we are out of town, or you happen to be watching over someone else’s, it is pivotal to remember that leopard geckos are solitary pets and cannot be housed with others of their species, nor should they be exposed to constant loud noises or be overstimulated, notably by children or very excited adults.
4. Parasites
While parasites aren’t unheard of among leopard geckos as a whole, they can be difficult to diagnose accurately, especially for newer owners. Your cold-blooded friend could have nabbed them from another leopard gecko during breeding, the breeder you originally purchased your gecko from, or even simply by being exposed to them outside in the grass.
Regardless, if your gecko starts having irregular bowel movements and sudden lethargy, it could be directly related to a parasitic infection, which thankfully can be easily treated with medicine from your local veterinarian; don’t delay the visit!
5. Possible Dehydration
Geckos, like most living beings, need water to thrive, and a shortage can cause health complications or put them in truly dire situations; take a moment to observe your gecko and its enclosure to understand better whether it’s dehydrated with a few easy checks.
At a glance, a dehydrated gecko will have skin that has lost its luster and looks pale; if these changes are paired with flaky, wrinkled skin or sunken eyes, these three signs alone can tell you your little friend needs some refreshing water.
Dehydration can come from excessive heat exposure, a dietary change that has flushed most of the liquid from their intestines, or unexpected changes that have made them too nervous to eat or drink regularly.
6. They Got Impacted
Leopard geckos can get impacted in many ways; dehydration, as mentioned above, can cause impaction because a lack of liquid can make their body too dry to remove waste easily; alternatively, you may have fed them something too difficult to process.
New owners often like to push the boundaries of what their new pet can eat, or want to give them a varied diet, but in doing so you can end up feeding them something they aren’t ready for, or never will be.
The general rule of thumb is that you shouldn’t feed a bug to your gecko that is larger than the distance between their eyes, as the prey may get lodged inside them, or prove difficult to make its way through their digestive tract.
While on the topic of hard pills to swallow, the exoskeleton or carapace of certain bugs can prove to be too resilient for your little friend to handle and get lodged inside of them, taking far longer than normal to digest, raising complications and discomfort in your gecko, so be very considerate when experimenting with new food types.
What Should You Do When Your Leopard Gecko Has a Blockage?
Dealing with a blockage at home can be complicated and even scary for newer owners; thankfully, certain workarounds often lead to success and can help you avoid a trip to the vet, but you should never rule a visit out.
1. Offer New Foods
Stagnation breeds discomfort, and to that end, your gecko might eat so much of a given insect that it just gets bored and decides to stop eating entirely. While abstract, it is indeed a distinct possibility, so you can go for some different insects to shake things up a bit.
Securing these food sources shouldn’t be too complicated; often, they can be remedied with a simple trip to the local pet store, but you can also order certain kinds of bugs online to get them there in a more timely fashion without putting yourself out for a road trip.
2. Monitor the Temperature
As noted above, temperature regulation plays a big part in not only how healthy your gecko is, but often defines how active it will be, both in terms of roaming its enclosure and seeking the warmth it needs, and how hungry the gecko will get throughout the course of a day.
A more active, happy gecko will burn more energy while roaming its enclosure and need to eat more to maintain that energy level; less movement due to lethargy or being too cold to be active will have the opposite effect.
3. Ensure Humidity Levels Are High Enough
Leopard geckos get most of their hydration from drinking water. Still, appropriate humidity levels also play a major role in stabilizing their daily life; their enclosures should never drop below 40% humidity under any circumstances, even in the colder months, and you should also focus on maintaining stable temperatures.
4. Minimize Stress
Even small changes to your lizard’s living situation can dramatically affect its behavior and daily routine; loud noises, sudden moves, tank additions, and more can upset your pet and immediately disrupt its eating habits or alter its digestion.
If you are a newer owner, telling family members or roommates about your new pet can help curb unwanted staring or actions that might agitate your gecko. You should also watch for other animals getting too interested in the new family member and trying to bat at the enclosure or chase it around it from the outside. At the same time, this is usually just what cats do; birds and dogs are prone to jumping into tanks, and a close-range dog bark can sound like a sonic boom to a gecko, so be careful!
5. Provide Plenty of Water
Easy access to water can help flush the blockage out without extra effort or changes to your or your gecko’s routine, and it may be one of the easiest solutions available. Your gecko should always have water readily available, but this could help speed things up.
6. Give Them a Bath
Bathing might be one of the most questionable solutions, mainly because bathing a leopard gecko is hotly debated; some believe it’s unnecessary and can be dangerous if you don’t dry your gecko properly or leave it damp afterward.
Other people argue that the extra moisture can help loosen blockages and allow your lizard to relax and relieve itself more easily; either way, bathing your gecko shouldn’t be attempted by an amateur, and because there is a distinct chance your gecko could be harmed, it shouldn’t be treated as a proper option in the first place.
7. Add Supplements
In much the same way we occasionally need help getting important nutrients and vitamins we are missing from our diet, geckos are the same; adding extra supplements to your pet’s food or water supply (assuming they are approved to be added in such a way, of course) can help regulate your gecko’s diet and make them happier in the long run.
It’s wise to consult your veterinarian before adding random supplements to your pet’s meals, since too much of something can be just as bad as a distinct lack of it. Certain species of bug may raise nutritional values too high, so it’s important to know where your nutritional balances lie before settling on any singular choice.
8. Encourage Pooping
While it might sound silly, you can’t exactly point your finger at your pet and say, “Hey, it’s time you went to the bathroom, mister!” Instead, set up your pet’s enclosure and environment to be relaxing and stress-free, so they feel comfortable enough to go to the restroom without too much effort.
Usually, a clean tank, ample water, a quiet room, and a bit of space is all you truthfully need to do, but again, there are nutritional supplements that can help make this process easier; the problem, however, is that in artificially stimulating bowel movements, you can also cause diarrhea.
9. Give Them Antiparasitic Medication (For Parasites)
You’ll need to get this prescribed first. Still, once your gecko has been diagnosed with some iteration of a parasite, your vet will give you a series of medications to administer to your pet, after which it’s just a matter of getting your gecko to eat it and get them back on the road to recovery.
Before giving your gecko the medicine, review the dosage and how often to administer it; missing the timing can turn constipation into diarrhea or cause other complications.
10. Hand-Feed Them
Bonding with your gecko is good, but knowing when your pet last ate can help you better understand when they last had a bowel movement and the timeframe between the last meal and the most recent release.
Building trust will help your gecko feel more at ease when you interact with it or hold it, so you can inspect it more easily when it’s in poor health or get it the help it needs without making transport from enclosure to carrier a chaotic affair.
11. Rub Their Bellies
While this might be a comfort that other people and animals enjoy at times, the opposite is true of leopard geckos, as their stomach is the most vulnerable spot on their body. Any stimulation to it, or attempts to get it, will often frighten them and make them feel a sense of urgency and panic.
You can also pet their head or chin, but understand this doesn’t actively calm them down, as reptiles don’t usually experience emotion in that way, especially from physical contact; it’s more comfort for you than for the gecko.
12. When in Doubt Go to the Vet
Whether you are a new gecko owner or a veteran, don’t put off anything out of the normal until the last moment. If you notice your gecko is acting out of sorts, not eating for long periods of time, or experiencing constipation without a discernible reason, you should take it to the vet immediately.
Conclusion
A constipated leopard gecko is an unhappy one. While the circumstances behind the initial cause may be a mystery, the treatment doesn’t have to be. You don’t need to do a Sherlock Holmes-esque dive into what the underlying cause is before seeking help for your stuffed-up gecko; be vigilant, compassionate, and quick to act!
