# New Leopard gecko hiding constantly and not eating :(



## Gman1980

Hi all,

I bought a new Viv along with a beautiful 1year old mack co dominant female gecko from a reputable reptile store on Thursday. She was actually from the stores breeding stock! Shes gorgeous, we have named her Kima.

Problem is, its now Sunday morning and she hasnt eaten anything. She seems to spend all her time either in the hot or cold hides. 

We have a floor temp of 90 in the hot end during the day, supplied by a 7W heat mat that we are checking regularly and a cool end temp of 75. We have a humid hide with damp moss as advised by the store. She has calcium and fresh water available all day.

Im anxious to remove the uneaten hoppers that we put in last night as Im worried that if she does get hungry there wont be food in with her.

I realise that its a new home and this may be stressful for her, and cant help but think that her moving from a pet stores nice quiet breeding room to my living room its just a question of her getting used to it! But 3 or 4 days with no food and hiding constantly? Is this normal? Any help at all would be welcomed!!!


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## LloydEvans

Just wait.. 
She's nervous, scared and only just settling in to her new environment..
Gecko's can go a few weeks without eating before you need to start worrying at all. 
Even when she's settles in you'll find she'll just hide.. but as soon as everyones in bed and you're house is silent she'll come out and go on the hunt!


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## Gman1980

Thanks man! Reassurance is always nice. I kind of knew that but like I say, its good to hear it from someone else!


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## wazoman

*Be patient*

I agree she will be just settling in so give her time and she will soon be eating as normal. Be careful you don't fall into the waxworm trap just to get her to eat, my brother (bless him!) fed my gecko waxworms for a few days when i was away and now he won't take anything else yet (well not until he is hungry enough!).


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## LeoChris123

HI I had the same problem (but mine was about 1-2 weeks old) and I have had her since Tuesday but it was only last night that she ate something which was about 4 crickets!!:gasp:
What food was the shop feeding her? I went and found this out and all of a sudden she was eating. Don’t worry I bet she knows what she's doing
.


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## Gman1980

Thanks Guys! I spose Im just a worrier!

The shop were feeding her hoppers, which is what I have. She was given maybe like one waxworm a month when she was breeding. Im going to wait until she is regularly eating hoppers til I introduce a VERY occassional waxworm!

Hope shes gna be ok, cos shes a wee cutie!


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## x_plum_x

When my boyfriend first got his leopard gecko it didn't eat for 9 days. We were really worried about her, but she came around soon enough


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## Gman1980

am just wondering if it might be anything to do with me being up late? Is it maybe the case that if I go to bed a bit earlier she will get comfortable coming out of the hide? because at the mo I havent seen her out at night at all,let alone hunting!


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## Gman1980

Have been sittin watching her with the red light on and she is shedding!!!:2thumb:

This is putting my mind at rest BIG time!
:no1:


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## jools

First off, an adult Leo which is a healthy weight can easily go several weeks without food so not to worry yet. But obviously you will be happier once feeding is established. In my experience, as a general rule, adults do take longer to settle - sometimes a up to a month. Also when a Leo is about to shed some will go off their food and also for a day or so afterwards. 
Your best course of action at this stage is to leave her in peace to get used to her new home and start to feel secure. No handling - just food, water, poop and a brief check on her twice a day. As long as all your husbandry is ok I am sure she will be fine. If she is not eating in another week or two then post again for more help - the important thing at this stage is to keep her as stress free as possible.


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## paraman

Gman1980 said:


> Hi all,
> 
> I bought a new Viv along with a beautiful 1year old mack co dominant female gecko from a reputable reptile store on Thursday. She was actually from the stores breeding stock! Shes gorgeous, we have named her Kima.
> 
> Problem is, its now Sunday morning and she hasnt eaten anything. She seems to spend all her time either in the hot or cold hides.
> 
> We have a floor temp of 90 in the hot end during the day, supplied by a 7W heat mat that we are checking regularly and a cool end temp of 75. We have a humid hide with damp moss as advised by the store. She has calcium and fresh water available all day.
> 
> Im anxious to remove the uneaten hoppers that we put in last night as Im worried that if she does get hungry there wont be food in with her.
> 
> I realise that its a new home and this may be stressful for her, and cant help but think that her moving from a pet stores nice quiet breeding room to my living room its just a question of her getting used to it! But 3 or 4 days with no food and hiding constantly? Is this normal? Any help at all would be welcomed!!!


Its worth remembering that leopards are active at generally dusk and dawn and hide during the day so dont be too suprised if you dont see it moving around. Ours is 5 years old and I doubt Ive seen it more than 20 times in total:2thumb:


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## Gman1980

Not gonna lie....am a bit concerned that you have had him/her 5 years and still call him/her "it"

Thanks for the reply anyway m8, i know ur hearts in the right place, but Ive since posting this noticed my leo (kima) coming out alot more confidently and have probably seen her more than 20 times in the space of a week.

If you have had "it" for 5 years and have only seen "it" 20 times, then maybe you should be more concerned than I was when I posted this initially...?

Maybe Im way of the mark like. Thanks for ur feedback anyway: victory:


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