My lizard is skinny, not eating, and lost its tail. What can I do?

Have her examined by your veterinarian or a vet experienced in treating reptiles to diagnose illness or injury. Submit a stool sample to diagnose intestinal parasites or bacterial overgrowth. Confirm proper environmental parameters. Low temps can affect appetite and digestion in reptiles. Be sure to feed appropriately sized prey, nothing bigger than the space between her eyes.

Make sure any prey is appropriately sized, no bigger than the space between his eyes. They should be gut loaded for at least 24 hours prior to offering to maximize nutritional value. Consider adding LaFeber’s Emeraid for Carnivores, Oxbow’s Carnivore Critical Care or Fluker's Repti-Boost to get weight on him. Submit a stool sample to your herp veterinarian to diagnose intestinal parasites. If there are cryptosporidium in his stool, they may be responsible for his condition.

Check the temperature in his enclosure. Low temps can affect appetite in reptiles. If he isn't eating or not exposed to high quality UVB lighting, he can become calcium deficient which could account for the tremors. If he is less than 30 inches long, confirm a basking temp of around 115 F. If he is bigger, bump basking temp to between 125 F and 135 F. Multiple lower wattage lights over a larger area are recommended over one high intensity light source. Try to get him to eat and offer a calcium supplement. If you can get a liquid supplement, that would be best right now. Zoo Med and Fluker's offer such a supplement.Soak him in a warm 50/50 solution of water and unflavored PediaLyte to treat or prevent minor dehydration. if he doesn't eat or if the tremors worsen, have him examined by your veterinarian or a vet experienced in treating reptiles as soon as possible.

The easiest thing to do is to check tank temperature. Low temps can affect appetite in reptiles. Next, look in and around the mouth for signs of infection or injury. This may include redness, swelling, bruising, bleeding or discharge. If you see anything suspicious, you'll need to have your lizard physically examined by your veterinarian or a vet experienced in treating reptiles. For now, soak in a warm 50/50 solution of water and unflavored PediaLyte for 15-20 minutes daily. This will provide warmth and hydration. Be sure to feed appropriately sized prey, no bigger than the space between the eyes.

By "stick-tail" I'm assuming that you mean the tail has become skinny. This means that he has been losing weight over a long period of time. This usually happens because of a disease process or incorrect care. Since this has been happening for a long time, it's not an emergency, but it's definitely wise to visit the vet tomorrow. Without knowing what caused this, I cannot recommend anything in the short-term to make him feel better. I can only recommend that you ensure that he is being kept at the optimum temperature and environment. I've given a link below to a website that has great information about proper care of Leopard geckos. http://www.anapsid.org/leopardgek.html I hope this helps and Garbanzo gets better soon.

A dehydrated or cold anole will not eat. Make sure ambient and basking temps in the enclosure are species appropriate. Soak him in a warm 50/50 solution of water and unflavored PediaLyte to warm him up and rehydrate him. Offer appropriate sized prey (crickets, mealworms, dubia roaches, silk worms). Nothing bigger than the space between his eyes. Gut load them for 24 hours prior to offering to maximize nutritional value. Have him examined by your veterinarian or a vet experienced in treating reptiles if he does not regain his appetite. Frequently, these little guys are infected with intestinal parasites. Follow the link below for more information regarding care. http://www.anapsid.org/anole.html

There are a few things that can cause anorexia and a small tail in leopard geckos, but one concerning and common cause is called stick tail disease. This disease is caused by a parasite called cryptosporidium, and can cause wasting and death in geckos without treatment. I highly recommend that you bring Rufus to a herp vet as soon as you can to determine a diagnosis and treatment plan. Cryptosporidium can't be cured, but it can be managed with medication. There is a vet in Dallas that sees reptiles - here is the information in case you don't have a regular herp vet: Summertree Animal and Bird Clinic 12300 Inwood Rd #102, Dallas, TX 75244 (972) 387-4168 The vet will probably collect a stool sample from Rufus as the crypto parasite lives in the intestines. They may also recommend bloodwork to check for other conditions as well. Good luck, and I hope that Rufus recovers!