Leopard Gecko - Diseases

Diseases

There are several common diseases that leopard geckos may experience.

• Gastoenteritis or diarrhea is a disease that is caused by a bacterial infection caused by unsanitary conditions. An indication of the disease is that the leopard gecko has watery and/or bloody stool. Normally the stool is dry and well-formed with a small white portion. It is contagious and can be spread easily. Other symptoms of the disease include weight loss, a skinny tail, undigested cricket masses. If it is not treated, the gecko will stop eating, become dehydrated and scrawny, and possibly die.
• Coccidia causes gastrointestinal problems when protozoan parasites infect the lining of the intestine. It is contagious and can infect other leopard geckos that are in close proximity to the infected one. If untreated, the leopard gecko will stop eating and become sluggish, dehydrated, and anorexic.
• Metabolic Bone Disease or MBD is a nutritional deficiency due to the lack of calcium and vitamin D₃ in their diet. Calcium and vitamin D₃ are critical for proper bone formation during development and for proper calcification of eggs for a pregnant female. Those with MBD will experience symptoms such as weakness, bones becoming spongy, deformities in their limbs and spine, twitching or tremors, and a lack of appetite. Recovering from this disease can be very difficult.
• Anorexia in leopard geckos can be caused by stress, unsanitary conditions, nutritional diseases, or other diseases. These anorexic leopard geckos will appear thin, develop an extremely thin tail, become weak and sluggish, will stop eating, and usually die if untreated.
• Dysecdysis is a condition in which a leopard gecko has problems shedding its skin due to poor nutrition, lack of humidity and moisture, and poor care. Incomplete shed skin will appear as dry patches on various areas of the body such as the head, eyes, limbs, and tail. Leopard geckos with this condition may develop eye problems, have difficulty in walking, and noticeable constricting bands of old skin around their limbs. If the condition is not treated, it could lead to infection.
• Dystocia or “egg-binding” is when a pregnant female cannot expel her eggs. This could occur due to the eggs being too large to be passed through the oviduct and cloaca, nutritional factors, an ill or weak female, and other unknown problems. With this condition, the female will usually stop eating and become weak and lethargic.
• Stomatitis or Mouthrot is when a leopard gecko has swelling around its mouth area with pus or a cheesy-like substance.
• Pneumonia is a severe respiratory tract infection caused by bacteria in the lungs. This can occur to leopard geckos if their environment is too cool in temperature and humid thus causing their immune system to become compromised. Those with pneumonia will show mucus bubbles in their nostril area and have difficulty in breathing. The problem usually gets resolved when the temperature rises to about 82°–85°F for them.
• Sand Impactions and prolapse can occasionally occur. This can be caused if a leopard gecko ingests sand or other substrates they live on.
• Cryptosporidiosis, also known as 'crypto', is a highly infectious disease that is often fatal to leopard geckos if it is not detected and treated in its early stages. Although a definitive diagnosis can be difficult to make, the disease can be recognized by regurgitated food in the enclosure, liquid feces, and consequently a very thin body and tail (also called "pencil tail"). One should never buy a gecko displaying these symptoms. Even if the symptoms are not caused by crypto there is probably another problem with the gecko's health. Although the success rate is still low there are experimental treatments for crypto that can be successful, but involve a painstaking process. Because of this and the difficulty to diagnose the disease, a lot of suspected infected pet leopard geckos get humanely euthanized.