Sick/Rescued Tokay

[Pogaf]

I was in Petco doing my Crestie hunting routine when I noticed they had Tokay geckos. I've never seen them at a Petco and I've been wanting one, so I asked the girl to take it out for me. The one they had didn't look good; she (I'm not great at sexing them, but I'm pretty sure it's a girl) had dark, muted colors and a very very very kinked tail. The girl said she hadn't been eating and proceeded to stick a couple of dusted waxworms into her mouth. She was not a happy gecko.

Of course, I had to get her. They gave me 25% off since she was sick. I have her set up in a 12"x12"x18" ExoTerra with a red heat bulb so she stays warm. I gave her some roaches, though I'm not sure if she ate them or if they crawled out of their cup, and also have her some reptile recovery gel/food/stuff. She has a lot of energy and enjoys gnawing on my skin, but definitely does not take well to eating real food. I have found some droppings in her cage, but they're weird- one literally had a giant bubble in it. I'm going to get her Pedialyte today so I can make sure she's hydrated, but I have been spraying her well otherwise.

I'm not sure if she's wild-caught or just very stressed, but I am concerned about her. Any advice or information I could use to nurse her back to health? She's a feisty little thing and I'd hate for her health to deteriorate more.

[Brian(:]

Awh bless you for taking her in!

[T-ReXx]

Vet visit ASAP. I'd put money on it being a wc and full of parasites. So fecal at the very least, with a full checkup and possibly subcue fluids if necessary. Either way, the gecko needs a qualified reptile vet asap.

[Kita]

Petco gets their animals from Cal Zoo who in an importer so it's WC. Taking her in means they will order more that will be in the same condition. And yes, it needs to go the vet for an exam because in addition to her parasites (internal guaranteed, external very likey so look for tiny red bumps in it's eyes, ears, and toe pads and these will go for your Cresteds and White Lines) she is likey to have MBD if her tail is like that. Stressed Tokays will stay very dark and stay on a hunger strike so when it's not being treated you need to leave it alone as much as possible.

If you don't mind my saying, all the treatment she needs is going to put her price at the same as a CB so I recommend finding a breeder next time.

[T-ReXx]

I agree completely with Kita. Buying sickly animals isn't rescuing them, it just tells the seller they can make money off sickly cheap imports and encourages them to sell more sick animals. Now you will likely have several hundred dollars worth of vet bills to add to the cost. Do yourself and the animals a favor next time and avoid sick wild caughts and get a captive bred healthy animal from a reputable breeder.

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[Kita]

Don't get us wrong though! We think it's great that you want to help them, but we just want you to understand how these things work. It really doesn't work the way we would want it to and many times people can take it wrong when the process is explained to them. We do applaud your intentions.

[T-ReXx]

Yes, your heart is in the right place but buying a sick animal isn't really doing a service to the species as a whole. A friend of mine once put it this way: "when you exchange money for an animal, you are making a purchase, not rescuing it." That's the plain and simple of it. It encourages pet stores to continue to sell subpar animals. And it gives the buyer the headache and potential heart break of possibly having a sick animal die in their care, and inheriting all the expenses associated with treating the animal.

Now in this case, a vet visit is a necessity, and ufortunately those expenses are now your responsibility. Hopefully with proper direction from a qualified reptile vet, the gecko can pull through. Good luck!