DAS ZWERGGECKO-FORUM

Hi folks,

just wonder if you have had a similar experience with a dwarf gecko serious injury my vittatus female sustained during her mating approx in mid October 2010. I found her staying listless on terrarium side cork wall with nearly completely torn off forefoot that time. I practically foreclose the possibility of sliding doors closing accident or injury sustained by oversized cricket. Therefore the only one possibility which cross my mind since then is the mating misfortune which could happen while the male tried to catch her to start the mating. My colleague has noted similar case with his Phelsuma madagascariensis grandis female years ago.

After two months my wittatus female seems to be fully recovered, her wound is healed up now. The female runs around her terrarium using her three remaining feet, she even successfully preys insects in terrarium. I would say that her chance to survive this serious injury, unlike in the nature, is pretty high now. What is your opinion, have you ever noticed such or similar case?

Regards,
Radim

A friend of me has a female Lygodactylus williamsi with missing eye from a bad mating experience. For a few weeks after this she hid behind a cork slab and did not hunt much. Eventually she returned to normal behavior, but she still gets nervous when my friend places his hand in.

_________________
Maureen Winter
---
Viele verschiedene Paroedura, Ebenavia, Phelsuma, Lygodactylus & Sphaerodactylus Arten

Deutsch ist nicht meine Muttersprache, seid bitte nett! : P

Hello Radim,
A friend lost G. ceciliae females because the male seems to be very agressive and killed them after one week in the same tank. So sometimes this could happen and two animals of different sexes aren´t always a pair..
Great to hear, that your female survived!
Greetings
Dennis

Hi Maureen and Dennis,

thank you both for sharing your experiences. It is always interesting to know about another breeder experience as really serious injuries are not so frequent.

I can easy imagine that one eye Lygodactylus can have even more complicated living as his worse depth perception can limit him a lot while hunting chosen prey. My vittatus female, despite her handicap, seems to be pretty quick and still first attack effective.

Yes, a pair disharmony can result in female death though the observing breeder has the relative chance to separate the pair before the definitive attack of the male. My vittatus female has been living in full harmony with the discussed vittatus male for 27 months, but I can understand well that such things are part of every breeding.

For your information - my colleague’s grandis female, mentioned in my previous post, died even if her forefoot was just heavily bitten and broken in the middle of its length. In my view such kind of injury can be even more danger than the completed amputation of the whole forefoot.

Regards,
Radim

Hi folks,

making a regular terrarium cleaning of my G. vittatus pair this weekend I found first and quite freshly laid egg in herbal stem . It seems to be the definite answer to my internal doubts about three limbs handicapped female potentiality to lay some more fertile eggs in the future. I have had such doubts though she is fully recovered and hunts offered insects intransigently now.

Regards,
Radim

Great news! Congratulations on the females continued health despite her handicap and your new eggs!

_________________
Maureen Winter
---
Viele verschiedene Paroedura, Ebenavia, Phelsuma, Lygodactylus & Sphaerodactylus Arten

Deutsch ist nicht meine Muttersprache, seid bitte nett! : P

Hello Maureen,

it is really interesting how small day geckos can survive such serious injuries and after their full recovery they are even ready to mate and lay eggs again.

I posted this short breeder story with “happy-end” just to inform other breeders about the situation they can be also faced some time or other.

Regards,
Radim