Key Takeaway:
- Gargoyle geckos are vulnerable to metabolic bone disorder, necrosis, parasites, mouth rot, respiratory infections, egg binding, impaction, and other illnesses
- Gargoyle geckos are healthy pets but may get sick from time to time.
- Sick gargoyle geckos may exhibit signs such as rapid weight loss, sunken eyes, lethargy, reduced appetite, pale skin, general weakness, bloating, diarrhea, and vomiting.
- A sick gargoyle gecko should always be treated by a vet to increase its survival rate
Keeping your gargoyle gecko happy and healthy is quite easy. You just need to offer a balanced diet, maintain proper husbandry, and get rid of any stressors.
Doing so should help keep your gargoyle gecko healthy most of the time.
But do gargoyle geckos get sick? Yes, but they rarely get sick unless you neglect them.
Surprisingly, gargoyle geckos have fewer health problems than your typical pets.
Knowing how to identify an unhealthy gargoyle gecko can help you save your pet’s life. Moreover, you’ll know when to visit a vet. So, let’s get into it
8 Signs and Symptoms Of A Sick Gargoyle Gecko
Gargoyle geckos are vulnerable to metabolic bone disorder, necrosis, parasites, mouth rot, respiratory infections, egg binding, impaction, and other illnesses.
But how can you identify an unhealthy gargoyle gecko? Well, you can start by watching out for these tell-tale signs:
Reduced Appetite
Gargoyle geckos enjoy eating their fruit purees, commercial gecko diets (CGDs), and insects.
A healthy gecko should at least show interest in food and of course consume a bit.
On the other hand, sick geckos will have zero interest in food. They can go for days or weeks without eating.
Reduced appetite could mean that your gecko’s husbandy is wrong, or your gecko is sick or stressed.
Adjusting your temperatures and humidity to the correct level may get your gecko to eat.
But if that is not the case, your gecko might be suffering from an illness. Besides, your gargoyle gecko might have some internal parasites.
In some cases, a gargoyle gecko not eating is quite normal. Maybe your gecko is shedding or pregnant. Additionally, geckos rarely eat when they are breeding.
You don’t have to panic about your gecko’s lack of appetite if it hasn’t lost weight. Your gargoyle gecko should come around after some time.
Severe Weight Loss
A sick gargoyle gecko is bound to lose weight due to the lack of feeding. So, if you’ve been weighing your gecko frequently, you’ll start to notice its weight declining after some time.
Sometimes the weight loss is so severe that you’ll notice your gecko getting slimmer with time.
Weight loss can be attributed to parasites, poor nutrition, and stress.
You also need to monitor your gecko’s growth and weight. If your gargoyle gecko is underweight, there is something wrong.
Abnormal Poop
Poop can help you detect health problems. A healthy gargoyle gecko will have droppings that contain solid dark waste and white or yellow uric acid.
However, if your gargoyle gecko has problems, it will have abnormal poop. Below is a table to help you recognize abnormalities in your gargoyle gecko’s droppings.
| TYPE OF POOP/ ABNORMALITY | POSSIBLE CAUSES |
| Watery waste with traces of insects | Poor digestion, impaction, or parasites |
| Watery dropping with traces of red or pink spots | Parasitic or bacterial infection |
| Foreign objects in the droppings | Your gecko ate an indigestible object |
| No droppings at all | Impaction, constipation, or your gecko hasn’t been eating |
| Brown or green poop | Gecko has ingested substrate or has internal parasites |
| Grey or chalk-like poop | The gecko ingested shed skin or an inedible substance |
Lethargy
Gargoyle geckos love exploring their habitat and hunting for food. Therefore, your gecko will always be moving around, especially at night.
Their curiosity will drive them to climb around the plants and vines.
But if you notice that your gargoyle gecko no longer moves a lot, there must be a problem.
Geckos should move a lot at night as they are nocturnal creatures. But if that’s not the case, your gecko might be sick.
Sluggish movements and standing still for hours are a sign of lethargy. You might also notice that your gecko spends most of the time hiding or lying close to the water bowl.
Lethargy can be a sign of impaction. Therefore, you might need to visit a vet to have the gecko checked out.
Sunken Eyes
All geckos have bright and protruding eyes. Therefore, you can easily tell when your gecko is sick because the eyes will change.
In most cases, the eyes will no longer be as bright as they normally are. The eyes will also have a sunken appearance and a reddish color.
Sunken eyes indicate that your gecko is dehydrated. Maybe the humidity in your enclosure is very low or you haven’t been providing your gargoyle gecko with fresh water.
You can solve the dehydration problem by misting your gecko often, increasing the humidity, or feeding the gecko with a liquid formula.
If the abnormal eye shape doesn’t change, you should visit a veterinary to diagnose and treat the issue.
Dull & Pale Skin
Unless your gargoyle gecko is shedding, it should always have bright and colorful skin.
Unfortunately, that’s not always the case. Your gargoyle gecko’s skin might become pale and white due to an illness or stress.
However, you should rule out the possibility of shedding before you conclude that your gargoyle gecko is sick.
A dull and wrinkled skin could mean that your gecko is dehydrated. You should also touch the skin to feel the texture. A healthy skin should feel smooth and soft.
Bloated Belly
A bloated belly doesn’t mean that your gargoyle gecko has been feeding well. Unless your gecko has eaten too much, it shouldn’t have a big belly.
A bloated belly could mean that your gargoyle gecko has impaction or constipation. Maybe your gecko ingested loose substrate or insects with tough exoskeletons.
For impaction, you can try soaking the gecko in lukewarm water for 15 to 20 minutes.
Mild impaction should clear after soaking the gecko and increasing the vivarium’s temperatures. However, if the impaction is severe, you’ll need to visit the vet.
Stuck Shed
Shedding for geckos should always go smoothly as long as the humidity levels are okay.
A healthy gecko should shed without problems. But if you spot bits of old shed stuck on the gecko’s toes, tail, and other parts, you should be worried.
Stuck shed can restrict blood flow to the tail and toes, causing necrosis. Therefore, you must act before necrosis sets in.
The best course of action is to soak the gecko in lukewarm water and help it shed. Increasing the humidity levels in the tank and misting the gecko should also work perfectly.
Other signs that you shouldn’t ignore include:
- Regurgitation
- Floppy tail
- Deformed tail or spine
- Obesity
- Tremors
- diarrhea
Best Course Of Action When Your Gargoyle Gecko Is Sick
The best course of action is always to take your gargoyle gecko to the vet. If you are a first-time gecko owner, you should seek professional advice before attempting any home remedies.
However, not all illnesses require the intervention of a vet. Some of the illnesses can be sorted by removing stressors and proper husbandry.
Ensuring your gecko’s diet is packed with nutrients will also help.
Increasing humidity should help solve shedding, dehydration, and skin problems. Digestion problems and lethargy can be corrected by increasing temperatures.
But if none of the home remedies work, you should book an appointment with a qualified vet.
Summary
Gargoyle geckos should remain healthy as long as you provide them with the right care. However, geckos may manifest some symptoms that may worry you.
So, if you spot any alarming symptoms such as severe weight loss, sunken eyes, bloating, lethargy, or poor appetite, seek professional assistance.
An early diagnosis will save your gargoyle gecko’s life.
