Sherron ~ I love your gecko stories!!! Your "sauna gecko" is one lucky girl! I'll bet she is thinking "What a relief to be free of the skin that was around my neck!" Did you try placing something rough in her sauna? With that much energy perhaps she'd use it to continue her shed? Is she almost ready for an "after" photo?
I wonder whether colonies of the Madagascar day geckos who are becoming scarce could successfully be established on some of the Hawaiian islands? Just a thought. BTW I live in Seattle. I caught my first three geckos --- Lepidodactylus lugubris hatchlings --- in 1988 on Kauai in a condo where I stayed. The rest is history. Mahalo, Elizabeth > Subj:Re: [gecko]Question on hatchling Gold Dust Day Gecko having trouble > shedding ... > Date:6/2/08 3:55:38 PM Pacific Daylight Time > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (Sherron) > Sender: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Reply-to: <A HREF="mailto:[email protected]";>[email protected]</A> > To: [email protected] > > Aloha, Elizabeth > > We have her soaking in the "hot tub" now. The temperature is about 83 F, > which seems to be as warm as we can get it without melting the plastic from > being too close to the lamp. She really doesn't like being there, whether it > is > because of the dampness or just not being in her familiar surroundings with > her leaves and things, I'm not sure. Maybe she doesn't like the texture of > the > washcloth. > > She went straight for the walls and tried to crawl up them, and has > continued to do so. Much of the time, she just moves her arms and legs (which > she can > actually now do in the increased moisture level) without moving her body, > but she has managed to crawl about half-way up the wall before sliding back > down. I worry about the energy she is expending, but she is determined. > > Update: my husband tried the tweezers again (my hands shake too much) and we > managed to get the skin off her head! Also part of it off one arm and a big > hunk off her stomach. We had to keep wetting her and she ran all over the > place -- we can't actually "hold" her as I think we would break her arms if > we > tried, so we just try to corral her between our fingers! And after being in > the sauna, she is really active!! But we are so happy to have some success, > just wish it had gone faster. We put her back in the sauna to help loosen up > the > skin as it had started to harden again. This time she isn't even trying to > crawl the walls. Smart cookie -- she is just sitting in the middle where we > put her. She already has learned the drill. Maybe the next tweezer session > will > go easier. Ha, ha. ;) > > Having "wild" geckos all over is one of the things I love most about living > in Hawaii! We have geckos everywhere! Most prominently the day geckos, but a > fair number of house geckos and a surprising number of mourning geckos, too. > When the day geckos were first introduced into Hawaii a few years back they > thought it might be the end of the some of the original varieties. However, > we have found that the mourning geckos are making a bit of a comeback, even > though they are at a distinct physical disadvantage. But they are much > smarter > -- very quick witted, fast, determined and will stand up to someone twice > their size! I was so amazed when I saw them down in the bananas arch up their > backs like cats and stare down big old day geckos thrice their size over > papaya! And they quickly learn that I mean them no harm and will take > mealworms > out of my hand, even the ones that don't live in the house! They are really > fun > to watch! > > But that doesn't mean I don't love the day geckos, too. They are so > endearing because they look at you & interact with you so much. As I sit and > type > this, I have a little one named Sneaker Girl who is sitting between some > papers > on the table next to my laptop watching me. I have water & papaya out for her > and give her an occasional mealworm. She used to live outside on the lanai, > but decided to come in one day and staked out my table. She sits here for a > few hours and then goes off and does other things. She's called Sneaker Girl > because we had a friend over who wore bright green sneakers and the gecko was > attracted to them so much (I have no idea why) that she climbed up on the > lanai table leg and jumped over onto the sneakers. Luckily our friend likes > geckos, too. ;) > > We are really keeping our fingers crossed!! ;) > > Mahalo, Sherron > > <A HREF="mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]">[EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> wrote: > >> And Aloha Sherron ~ >> >> Thanks for these details. Please try the humidity chamber near a lamp for >> a few hours. Use a wet washcloth that has been wrung out and place it in >> the vented, plastic container. Watch the water droplets form. After only a >> few hours I imagine her skin might be loose enough to start a split. >> >> Another idea! Have something like a twig, small branch, or a section of >> choya wood --- something rough that she could snuggle up against to assist >> in >> the shed. >> >> I hope the skin shed helps her right leg work more efficiently! >> >> Keep us posted! >> >> Wish I lived near the beach in a place warm enough where geckos roamed >> freely ;-] >> >> Elizabeth >> >> >>> Aloha, Elizabeth >>> >>> She is about 3/4" from nose to vent -- she is the smallest day gecko >>> hatchling we have ever seen, although some of our mourning gecko hatchlings >>> are >>> even tinier. >>> >>> This sounds like it might work! If it would just soften enough to pull >>> off her or get a split started, I think we could get the neck skin off. We >>> have been misting her little cage and putting a heating pad next to it, but >>> that only helps a little and wasn't keeping the humidity up high enough. >>> >>> She has never seemed to be able to fully control her right leg, and her >>> right foot is smaller than her left and the toes kind of clumped together. >>> She often tends to move the joint and leg together as a unit, so there may >>> be >>> something wrong with the joint, too. Although in watching her with the >>> skin problem, some of that may just be the skin being so tight it restricts >>> her movement. >>> >>> Usually when we find the hatchlings, most of that first skin has already >>> been shed, but she was fully covered with it and it has only recently >>> started splitting. We do think it hinders her use of her limbs -- her arms >>> are >>> only about the size of thin pencil lead, and the skin seems to fully coat >>> those. >>> >>> She has been doing okay up until the last couple of days, though, when the >>> skin (I hope that it isn't something else, too) started really becoming a >>> problem. She now gets around by lurching her body back and forth because >>> her little arms & legs are still encased in the skin, although it has come >>> off some of the back. And she is green underneath, not gray! >>> >>> We haven't ever actually kept any of the geckos before, as they run all >>> around our house, lanai and garden (Phelsuma laticauda, house - >>> Hemidactylus >>> frenatus, & Mourning - Lepidodactylus lugubris). But we had to make an >>> exception in her case, since she couldn't fend for herself. Usually we just >>> take the hatchlings outside so they have a better chance of survival -- we >>> have lots of big geckos running around inside and they don't last long if >>> we >>> don't get to them first. :( >>> >>> Mahalo, Sherron >>> >>> >>> >>> <A HREF="mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]">[EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> wrote: >>> >>>> Hello Sherron ~ >>>> >>>> Try the humidity chamber trick. I can't view your photos at home because >>>> my laptop is really memory-challenged, so I don't know how big this gecko >>>> is! However, my mourning geckos are 1" 3/8" at hatching. Try placing >>>> your gecko in a vented plastic container with a damp washcloth inside. >>>> Place this near a light. Almost immediately you will notice beads of >>>> water >>>> accumulate on the sides/top of the container. After a few hours or so >>>> perhaps you can remove the rings of old skin around her neck gently with a >>>> tweezers or small scissors. >>>> >>>> What is the problem with her right leg? Might you have a new pet here? >>>> >>>> Elizabeth >>>> >>>> >>>> Subj:[gecko]Question on hatchling Gold Dust Day Gecko having trouble >>>> shedding "egg skin" >>>> Date:6/1/08 4:16:39 PM Pacific Daylight Time >>>> From: <A HREF="mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]">[EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> >>>> (Sherron) >>>> Sender: <A HREF="mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]">[EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> >>>> Reply-to: <A >>>> HREF="mailto:[email protected]";>[email protected]</A> >>>> To: <A >>>> HREF="mailto:[email protected]";>[email protected]</A> >>>> >>>> >>> We found a tiny hatchling on May 13 that was a little underdeveloped and >>> was still in that grayish skin they have when they first come out of the shell. She was dehydrated and has a problem with her right leg, but is spunky. We haven't been able to release her outside like we do the rest of the hatchings we find, as her bad leg has kept her from being very mobile, but she has been doing pretty well eating tiny bugs & aphids I collect for her. She has also shown a real interest in the fruit flies around her papaya, but I don't think she has managed to catch any yet. But she started having trouble yesterday and was real cold & clammy, so we put a heating pad near her cage to help warm her up. It seems to have started her molting her "egg skin", but she has a bunch of it around her neck that she can't get off. Is there anything we can do to help her? She is so tiny we don't see how we could try to cut it off! The rest of the skin except for around her neck should slough off okay, but the stuff around her neck is several layers and is a ring, so it may be another matter. :( Any help would be greatly appreciated as she is really a spunky little girl. Mahalo, Sherron -----Original Message----- From: Gecko <A HREF="mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]"><[EMAIL PROTECTED]></A> To: <A HREF="mailto:[email protected]";>[email protected]</A> Sent: Mon, 2 Jun 2008 11:21 am Subject: Re: [gecko]Question on hatchling Gold Dust Day Gecko having trouble shedding ... Aloha, Elizabeth She is about 3/4" from nose to vent -- she is the smallest day gecko hatchling we have ever seen, although some of our mourning gecko hatchlings are even tinier. This sounds like it might work! If it would just soften enough to pull off her or get a split started, I think we could get the neck skin off. We have been misting her little cage and putting a heating pad next to it, but that only helps a little and wasn't keeping the humidity up high enough. She has never seemed to be able to fully control her right leg, and her right foot is smaller than her left and the toes kind of clumped together. She often tends to move the joint and leg together as a unit, so there may be something wrong with the joint, too. Although in watching her with the skin problem, some of that may just be the skin being so tight it restricts her movement. Usually when we find the hatchlings, most of that first skin has already been shed, but she was fully covered with it and it has only recently started splitting. We do think it hinders her use of her limbs -- her arms are only about the size of thin pencil lead, and the skin seems to fully coat those. She has been doing okay up until the last couple of days, though, when the skin (I hope that it isn't something else, too) started really becoming a problem. She now gets around by lurching her body back and forth because her little arms & legs are still encased in the skin, although it has come off some of the back. And she is green underneath, not gray! We haven't ever actually kept any of the geckos before, as they run all around our house, lanai and garden (Phelsuma laticauda, house - Hemidactylus frenatus, & Mourning - Lepidodactylus lugubris). But we had to make an exception in her case, since she couldn't fend for herself. Usually we just take the hatchlings outside so they have a better chance of survival -- we have lots of big geckos running around inside and they don't last long if we don't get to them first. :( Mahalo, Sherron <A HREF="mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]">[EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> wrote: > Hello Sherron ~ > > Try the humidity chamber trick. I can't view your photos at home because my > laptop is really memory-challenged, so I don't know how big this gecko is! > However, my mourning geckos are 1" 3/8" at hatching. Try placing your gecko > in a vented plastic container with a damp washcloth inside. Place this near > a light. Almost immediately you will notice beads of water accumulate on the > sides/top of the container. After a few hours or so perhaps you can remove > the rings of old skin around her neck gently with a tweezers or small > scissors. > > What is the problem with her right leg? Might you have a new pet here? > > Elizabeth > > > >> Subj:[gecko]Question on hatchling Gold Dust Day Gecko having trouble >> shedding "egg skin" >> Date:6/1/08 4:16:39 PM Pacific Daylight Time >> From: <A HREF="mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]">[EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> (Sherron) >> Sender: <A HREF="mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]">[EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> >> Reply-to: <A >> HREF="mailto:[email protected]";>[email protected]</A> >> To: <A HREF="mailto:[email protected]";>[email protected]</A> >> >> > We found a tiny hatchling on May 13 that was a little underdeveloped and was still in that grayish skin they have when they first come out of the shell. She was dehydrated and has a problem with her right leg, but is spunky. We haven't been able to release her outside like we do the rest of the hatchings we find, as her bad leg has kept her from being very mobile, but she has been doing pretty well eating tiny bugs & aphids I collect for her. She has also shown a real interest in the fruit flies around her papaya, but I don't think she has managed to catch any yet. But she started having trouble yesterday and was real cold & clammy, so we put a heating pad near her cage to help warm her up. It seems to have started her molting her "egg skin", but she has a bunch of it around her neck that she can't get off. Is there anything we can do to help her? She is so tiny we don't see how we could try to cut it off! The rest of the skin except for around her neck should slough off okay, but the stuff around her neck is several layers and is a ring, so it may be another matter. :( Any help would be greatly appreciated as she is really a spunky little girl. Mahalo, Sherron Elizabeth ~~~geckos make my heart sing (and dance)~~~ l l l ^^ /..\ ^^ /..\ ^^ ^^ /..\ ^^ l l ^^ llll \\\ l l llll /// l l llll \\\ l l ~~ llll /// ~~ ( ~~ ) ~~ ~~ ( ~~ ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) lappert(a) robert(a) hubert(a) 17.50 yo r.i.p. r.i.p. (All Lepidodactylus lugubris!) <BR><BR>**************<BR>Get trade secrets for amazing burgers. Watch "Cooking with Tyler Florence" on AOL Food.<BR> (http://food.aol.com/tyler-florence?video=4?& NCID=aolfod00030000000002)</HTML>
