New hatchling not interested in Food Please help

[nick61304]

I have a new hatchling that is roughly 8 days old. We have gone through the shedding process and have tried to interest the hatchling to crickets and mealworms. He has not shown interest in either. Also I believe he is blind as he does not react to any movement in front of his face. I have read about the slurry mixture and am a little hesitant just because I am not sure if that would even interest him as he will not even act interested in the mealworm or cricket guts. Is he just a lost cause? I hate to give up on him as he is a beautiful hatchling. Any suggestions would be great. I have also noted that he has not defecated since shedding. He is in the tank with two moist hides calcium, water dish on Paper Towels so no reason to be impacted.

 

[Neon Aurora]

I wouldn't do anything drastic at this point. I don't think it's unusual for some hatchlings to get some trouble getting started.

When I had trouble with my hatchling, I did this: start by to gently holding the hatchling and touching a mealworm to its lips. Hatchling can be very defensive, so when I got a warning hiss, I held the mealworm into the gecko's mouth. When she closed her mouth, her feeding response kicked in and she ate the worm. I had to do this every day for a few days before I was able to move to tong feeding. After about a week of tong feeding, she was eating everything I put in front of her voraciously. Just be sure to be careful if you do it this way. It needs to be done so as not to cause too much stress, so very gently.

I've only raised a few hatchlings, though, so maybe someone more experienced can also chime in. =)

 

[acpart]

I agree the assisted feeding method described above is a good idea. I've had some hatchings that took a really long time to figure it out. My "worst" case (not really worst because I have had a few hatchlings who just couldn't handle it and passed away) was a very small, skinny gecko that was kept by herself in a shoebox rack so I could keep an eye on whether or not she was eating. Weeks went by with no poop and no eating that I could see. I tried to assist feed with no luck. For some reason, weeks later,she finally started eating and actually became independent and got big enough to sell!

Aliza

 

[nick61304]

A little update. I actually got him to eat 1 mealworm last night. It was a little tricky but was able to get him to bite down on one and swallow it. I believe he defecated overnight as well. I may be wrong as I have two hatchlings right now and need to separate them. The other hasn't gone through his first shed so I am not sure if it was him or not. Also he seemed a little more active this morning. I am going to try to get him to eat another tonight. Will one worm a night be sufficient for now though?

 

[acpart]

If that's all you can get it to eat, by definition it will have to be sufficient. One is better than none.

Aliza

 

[nick61304]

A little update: We have been getting him to eat a mealworm a day with exception to last night he ate 2 mealworms. We are still having to assist in eating and truth is if it keeps him alive I really don't mind. At this moment we are just waiting for the 2nd shed and to see how he continues to grow.

 

[acpart]

Keep it up. I've had hatchlings be reluctant like this for months and all of a sudden the eating kicks in and they do great.

Aliza

 

[nick61304]

Guys he is dong good and starting to eat a little better and he is starting to get a little bit of a tail. I have attached some pictures for you guys.

 

[acpart]

He looks pretty good with a nice little belly. Keep it up. He'll catch on eventually.

Aliza