I have started reading about metablic bone disease for some time. I have noticed that my gecko has become less mobile for some time and when making movements its legs shake slightly. On the other hand, I have not noticed any twisting or immobilization of the limbs on him, nor pronation or curvature of the spine.
I supplement him daily with calcium + D3 and 1-2 times a week with a set of vitamins.
An additional question is whether the amount of vitamins should be high? I mostly coat the dubia in vitamins alone or in a mixture with calcium at a ratio of 1:3 in favor of calcium. Is it correct way and amount?
Should I be worried about MBD and maybe visit a vet or little shaking of the legs is normal for those guys?
EDIT: Nevertheless, I made an appointment with a specialist. Prevention is better than cure.
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Are you using UV as well as all the supplements? Does your multivitamin also contain vitamin d? While I don’t work with geckos, I do know it’s possible to over supplement them, causing symptoms that can mimic MBD. I’ll tag a few of our gecko folks (leopard & crested) who may be better able to help you; @mblaney @ghoulishcresties any suggestions?
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Im using calcium with d3 and vitamins without d3. Thats what breeder recommended. Due to the fact that I have the Albino variety, I do not use UV light.
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If you’re solely supplementing, I suggest getting a calcium supplement without D3 as well, so that calcium + D3 is only given about 2x a week. Since you already plan to go to the vet, I think that covers any possible issues. Other than that, I’ll leave further suggestions to our actual gecko folks.
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This is a very smart move! As much as folks online can help, an exotics vet can do an in-person exam, which is way more useful diagnostically. Your vet might suggest radiographs (x-rays) to look at the bones & check their density, and I suggest doing this as well.
If you’re still looking for some online input, I’d suggest posting a video of your gecko walking around, and several whole-body pictures of it from several angles.
The amount of supplements/vitamins needed & what kind are dependent on what prey items you feed. One way to think of it is that their diet, vitamins & everything included, should result in a 2:1 ratio of calcium:phosphorous.
Leopard geckos don’t ‘need’ UV light, though it is likely beneficial to some degree. I personally don’t provide my leopard geckos UV, but that’s not ideal. They can do fine with careful attention paid to their feed/supplementation. Some morph combos are very light-sensitive (generally Albino +/- ocular traits), and I’d agree that these geckos might do better without bright UV. This is all debated pretty heavily, just my 2¢.
(I hope that made sense, I’m in a bit of a rush.)
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Thank you very much for your reply! Below I am sending some videos that I managed to record today, I hope that on the basis of them you will be able to determine something (of course, on Monday I will find out everything from a specialist).
I’m a bit stressed about the topic so even some indication of where I stand will be helpful. Thank you in advance!
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Videos are very short because the file size was too large
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I’m not an exotics vet, and I’m not watching in person, so I definitely can’t say there’s nothing wrong, but your gecko doesn’t seem to be moving abnormally to me. Make sure you save those videos to show the vet at your appointment, in case your leo doesn’t feel like walking around during the exam. (You run into that problem with cats a lot.) While I can’t palpate his joints/etc., I feel comfortable saying that he appears to be moving around easily and fairly normally.
With vet med, a picture can be worth 1K words, a video can be worth 1K pictures, and an in-person exam is almost always worth 1K videos. There are plenty of exceptions, but that’s how I think about it in general.
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Thank you it has reassured me a little. I keep trying to collect recordings and photos for the specialist (thank you for such a suggestion). Everything will turn out 100% on Monday after the appointment. I hope my little boy will be fine!
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Hi, I was at the vet today and it turned out that there was nothing to worry about (but it was good that I went) it turned out that I may have made subtle mistakes in supplementation and there were slightly unsettling symptoms (the shaking and cramps I wrote about). I got oral medication for it and ordered calcium with magnesium and everything should be back to normal in a couple of weeks! Thanks again to everyone who has been contributing to this thread!
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Glad to know there’s nothing seriously wrong with your boy! He’s super cute by the way, looks like he has great body condition.
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