RE: Egg bound gecko?

grumpyoldman — Fri, 20 Nov 2015 00:35:33 GMT

you could ultrasound it eggs with shells keep their shape those without tend to be rounder and change shape when you put pressure on them .

RE: Egg bound gecko?

Gillian Mostyn — Thu, 19 Nov 2015 20:22:06 GMT

Honestly - if the owner wants the gecko treated (and is prepared to pay for it) then ideally it would be best going to a vet who is used to exotics. Best for you too!

If not a possibility, then there are two things to do - treat the dystocia but also the underlying cause of the dystocia.

You shouldn't really need xrays to tell whether shelled eggs or follicles - should be apparent on examination but DONT palpate the body too much - you'll pop follicles and that makes surgery much harder! Xrays are helpful tho at showing any other issues (general bone density, pathological fractures, malformed shelled eggs etc) so are a good idea.

Everyone does their own thing, but, personally, whether shelled eggs or follicles, I tend to go for ovariectomy +/-salpingectomy. I tend to give zolcal po and s/c fluids for a day or so first (with appropriate hospitalisation facilities), and I don't use injectable calcium (really irritant stuff) unless they are actually having seizures!

Don't forget analgesia throughout - I use metacam but you have to dilute it to get the dose low enough.

Good luck!