Baby very light. First time keeper concerns

I just got my scale in the mail and now I am scared for my baby crestie. It’s supposed to be 5 months old but is only 3.75g and looks kinda skinny too. :face_with_peeking_eye:
Yes it’s new, only had it like 2 weeks tomorrow. But I don’t know the intake weight as I didn’t have a scale that could measure that low weights.

It did take a few licks of treat banana and of crested gecko diet (dragonfruit) while out. Some from my fingers and two licks while sitting in the bowl. (What a mess) so it ate something today.

Before I only know for sure of 2 crickets in the whole 2 weeks.

I am thinking of putting it in a baby bin instead f the 20x20x30cm enclosure it’s currently in just so I can monitor and if needed handfeed easier…

2 Likes

That sounds like a completely reasonable weight for a 5 month old - they hatch out at 1.5-2g usually, so that would be a doubling in size since hatch more or less.

Drop the crickets and leave it alone until you know for sure that it’s eating its CGD. It can sometimes take as long as a month for them to start eating once they’re in their new home, handling and handfeeding only prolongs this.

4 Likes

The thing that worries me is that I can see some ribs and little Maple looks thin to me.
I don’t know he this little one would survive two or more weeks of refusing food…

1 Like

Day I got it:

2 Likes

Dec 22nd (looked a bit more filled in but it looks thinner again now)

2 Likes

It’s completely normal for growing cresties to be ribby, especially if they haven’t eaten in a little while. He looks fine to me.

Cresties are naturally quite skinny animals if you look at the ones in the wild, it’s just the hobby that has normalised chubbiness unfortunately. Not that you want them to be as skinny as they are in the wild, but healthy animals are pretty lean.

Even tiny babies can survive a month without eating, without losing much, if any, weight. It’s not ideal, which is why it is important that you leave him alone to figure things out, as handling will just stress him out, which is one probably the number 1 reason for them not eating. They don’t need to eat as often as a lot of people think, and it is completely normal for them to not eat for a week or two after they’ve just come home, i’d say it’s even the norm.

So just leave him be, he will be absolutely fine. Only feed a tiny drop at a time, their stomachs are tiny at that point, so they’ll most likely be full after 1-2 licks. If you feed too much at once, it can be hard to tell whether he has eaten at all.

3 Likes

Every handling was because he jumped out and landed on me. I don’t know if it wanted that (It’s used to humans from hatching) or if it tried to escape my hand and miscalculated.

That’s why I thought maybe I should change enclosures once. To either bigger (more space to run and hide) or a baby box (easier to access without accidentally touching gecko).

The current one only opens at top front about 2/3 so I might spook him more in that than another option.

I will try to move even more slowly and hope he doesn’t jump out then.

I got a top doen picture of the baby today. (In terrarium so no stressing it)

Does it look okay to still wait for it to eat goop? Or is it “insects is better than not eating” time?

1 Like

Looks like your average baby to me, i wouldn’t be too worried
Here’s one of mine from this season for comparison, this one is eating and growing super well - Some babies are just lankier than others

3 Likes

At least it found the bowl. I THINK I saw a lick at it when I opened the camera. It just freezes when I turn on the camera so I try to not do that often.

Screenshot of it in front of food.

I found lick marks today! Yay!

2 Likes