Leopard geckos do not consume food during a shed period as their energy is spent producing new skin cells – this behavior is considered normal and healthy.
Force feeding geckos should only be attempted when they have lost significant weight or become dehydrated, such as when their weight has drastically dropped or they become dehydrated. You can do this using a food syringe to create a food slurry and place it into their mouth.
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Insects
Leopard geckos are insectivores and live healthy lives on a diet consisting of insects. Unlike many reptiles that require complex food sources like live feeder insects and supplements for sustenance, leopard geckos can survive on just live feeder insects plus vitamins and supplements for sustenance.
Leopard geckos should feed on insects such as crickets, mealworms, wax worms, superworms and cockroaches; ensure the prey is smaller than the space between their eyes to avoid choking or impaction. Larval feeders may be easier for geckos than fast feeders like crickets or grasshoppers as these have slower feeding speeds and should therefore be preferred over fast feeders such as crickets or grasshoppers and roaches.
If a gecko refuses to eat, seek advice from your veterinarian regarding force feeding instructions. This practice may be necessary when weight decreases rapidly or illness arises in a reptile, and your vet may suggest providing a specific type of feeder insect and crushing it up into a slurry before feeding it through a syringe containing nutrients and vitamins for their reptile’s consumption.
Vegetables
Leopard geckos cannot digest vegetables and therefore don’t benefit from the nutrients found within these types of foods. Without an appropriate cecum to break down plant material like cellulose and cell walls, vegetables pass right through their digestive system without being digested properly.
Though some people do feed their Leopard geckos vegetables like carrots, this practice should not be recommended as carrots contain hard surface areas that could damage a Leo’s mouth when nibbled upon. Furthermore, carrots contain sugars that cause plaque build-up which in turn could cause oral infections like mouth rot.
Veterinarians may suggest adding fruit and vegetables to Leo’s diet when recovering from illness. When doing this, fruits and veggies must first be gut loaded the day prior to being given to Leo then dusted with calcium powder for best results.
Nutrients
Leopard geckos are predominantly insectivores, meaning they do not possess the digestive enzymes to fully break down plant-based foods such as fruits. As a result, this could result in serious health issues for these reptiles.
In order to solve this issue, liquid diets may be necessary. This typically happens when leopard geckos have lost significant weight or are suffering from dehydration.
When feeding leopard geckos food slurry directly, using a syringe is recommended as it allows you to directly inject a small dose into their mouths so they may lick off their lips and begin eating independently.
Assist-feeding is a more gentle form of force-feeding and may also include medically-formulated liquid food products given to leopard geckos that have become seriously ill or lost weight significantly. Veterinarians may offer this approach for sick or starving leopard geckos.
Water
Leopard geckos require water for drinking, bathing and misting plants – whether this means tap water or reverse-osmosis water that does not contain chlorine or other harmful chemicals that could pose risks to reptiles and amphibians.
If your leopard gecko does not eat regularly, it is imperative that they see a veterinarian immediately. Leopard geckos that have stopped eating for too long could die of starvation.
Veterinarians may suggest leopard gecko slurry as a last-resort treatment option for sick or injured lizards. This blend consists of crushed-up insects, nutritional supplements and water. It should only be administered when absolutely necessary.
To create a slurry, select the insects recommended by your veterinarian and combine them in a bowl. Next, add chicken or turkey baby food along with enough pedialyte to thin the mixture further and help rehydrate your leopard gecko. When selecting feeder insects that do not cause choking or impaction such as mealworms, superworms, hornworms, black soldier fly larvae waxworms butterworms they are much easier to work with than crickets grasshoppers or roaches
