# Leopard gecko egg binding



## Gee-Rex (Jan 1, 2011)

Hey guys,

My leopard gecko is egg bound, well the vet thinks she is, and he's given me some calcium glubonate and some antibiotics in case her eggs rupture. He's told me to introduce her to a male and see if that will stimulate her to lay eggs, I have done so. 

She is really weak, especially her back legs, I took her to the vet yesterday but he's only given me until Friday to see if she can lay her eggs. Then if she doesn't get better then the only option is surgery, however sad as it is, I don't have a couple of hundred pounds to spare, so if she doesn't lay I'll sadly have to have her put down.

My question to you guys is, has anyone had any experience with egg binding, and any success stories to try and get your leo's to lay? She has a moist hide, top opening, with about 4cm of moist moss inside. I really need her to get better, so any help is appreciated.


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## trogdorable (Feb 4, 2011)

Gee-Rex said:


> Hey guys,
> 
> My leopard gecko is egg bound, well the vet thinks she is, and he's given me some calcium glubonate and some antibiotics in case her eggs rupture. He's told me to introduce her to a male and see if that will stimulate her to lay eggs, I have done so.
> 
> ...


was it a specialist vet you saw? when i had an eggbound female she was given an injection of hormones ( forget what ) to stimulate her to lay.
were you breeding her this season? did you introduce a male to her before to breed?


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## trogdorable (Feb 4, 2011)

to add my female did not survive, she deteriorated so quickly she would not have survived an operation


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## trogdorable (Feb 4, 2011)

also, the vet " thinks " she is? i wouldnt be trusting anyone giving me a diagnosis and prescribing things on what they " think". 
tbh, i would be seeing another vet.


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## Gee-Rex (Jan 1, 2011)

He wasn't a certified reptile vet, but he does know his stuff. She's never bred with, and I wasn't planning on breeding her. The problem why she got egg bound was her heat mat died, and it's on a stat, so i don't always check her temperature because it's always constant, so she was probably cold for about 12 hours, so had to go buy a new one. So the vet thinks the stress of being cold has made her bind her eggs. As as soon as I put her into her viv with her new heat mat, I noticed she was walking funny. The vets I went to was a veterinary hospital so they're a little more specialised I guess.


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## Gee-Rex (Jan 1, 2011)

He couldn't see the eggs, that's why he can only say he thinks, he wants to do an ultrasound. He also thought it could be damage because she regurgitated some meal worms because of the cold. He's almost certain it's egg binding, but he looked extensively and couldn't see because her stomach is so swollen. I trust his judgement.


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## trogdorable (Feb 4, 2011)

im sorry but i wouldnt go near this vet if he PAID me by the sounds of it. 
he is only speculating what is wrong and the prognosis of this " theory" may result in you having your leo put down ?
did he even mention doing x-rays to ensure it is egg binding?

numerous times , wether it was because a plug got pulled out, a heatmat stopped working or if they escaped for a week, ive had leos go without heat for far more than 12 hours with showing any signs of stress. 

seek a second opinion from a SPECIALIST.


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## mstypical (Feb 16, 2011)

So she hasn't been in with a male? To even get caught gravid?


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## trogdorable (Feb 4, 2011)

well if you trust his jugdement no point in me saying anymore. 

mystipical , my leo had never been with a male and she still became egg bound, it is possible, but a real vet shouldnt be dishing out a prognosis and treatment on a loose theory.


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## trogdorable (Feb 4, 2011)

regurging and a swollen belly are also symptoms of a parasite load


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## Chris18 (Mar 22, 2009)

What are her laying options?
Remove the male from her enclosure as this will add stress meaning she'll hold onto the eggs longer. She will tell the male to go away because she's already made the eggs and is in the late stage of being gravid... Males are persistent and will try to cover her even if she's not ovulating or already gravid.
12 hours of no heat will simply not cause this problem unless she was already in the really late stages and was already holding onto the eggs for longer than she needs.
The most common reason for egg binding is an unsuitable lay site or high levels of stress for whatever reason.


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## vgorst (Sep 27, 2011)

*If* it were egg binding I would add far more laying spots with different substrates in (eco-earth for example) and in different areas and leave her alone. If she can't find the right lay spot, she won't want to lay. The vet should have injected with oxytocin (?), calcium injections is more for calcium deficiency/MBD treatment.

As far as I'm aware, eggs don't tend to rupture but are more likely to be re-absorbed, in which case infections like scepticaemia is likely.

If I were you, I would ask (a different vet) for an x-ray and a faecal test. As Trog said, it could be a heavy parasite load but also things like impaction would cause those kind of symptoms - which you should be able to tell from an x-ray.


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## Gee-Rex (Jan 1, 2011)

She has one top open hide, with about 4cm of moist moss. The calcium is because shes not walking properly, because her belly is so big, so the calcium to retain her strength in her back legs. He didn't want to inject her with oxytocin because he doesn't know 100% what's inside her, that's why she's going back Friday for an ultrasound. He's giving this a shot before anything else. She's never regurgitated before, and she was eating like a horse, and her poos were normal, right up until the heat matt died and she started walking funny. He told me to go get a UVB light which i have, but I'm not sure on how to install it, I have the light fitting, and the exo terra repti glo 2.0 UVB, I'm guessing i need a bracket to put it in place, but I have no DIY skills at all.


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