My 8 year old leopard gecko, who has been slowly losing her vision, has gone completely blind. I need some advice.
Hello there! I have had a little leopard gecko, whose name is (you're allowed to laugh) Vriska Serket. I bought her from PetSmart in 2019 as my first ever reptile, before knowing that PetSmart is the worst possible place to get an animal from. She was sold to me for $60 as a 'fancy leopard gecko', and upon asking a local breeder and doing my own research, I've found that she's a RADAR leopard gecko. She fits the bill: pale yellow with light brown spots, lots of white, and solid ruby-red eyes.
She's always had trouble seeing, ever since I got her as a baby, and I figured it was because of the eyes (especially since she'd squint/close her eyes in any level of brighter light). I always had to tong-feed her because she could never hit the bugs when biting at them (I tried, so many times, for years), and as the years progressed, I started having to touch the bugs to her face so she knew I was offering insects. She started out in a 20 gallon terrarium, and when I bought and moved her to a forty, she never adjusted to the size and things being in different spots, so after a week of near-constant flinching and tail-waving, I dug up her 20 again, organized it back to how it was, and she was fine.
I did try to mitgate the degeneration of her sight by making sure her overhead lamp (I only used a red bulb once for a week when I got her, since that was what the petsmart employee sold to me. And yes, I was an idiot because I didn't do as much research as I should have. I adjusted my setup as soon as I found out I had bad husbandry) was on a consistent timer and she had plenty of dark, enclosed hides and plants. I did notice she was better at finding her food when there was less light. So when taking her out, I'd do it with the lights off or dimmed, and wouldn't expose her to bright sunlight or lights. But now, at around 8 years old, I'm pretty sure she's completely blind.
I've tested it a few ways: by shaking food dusted with calcium(stark white contrasted against her surroundings) on either side of her head close to her eyes (no reaction until I touch her with it), placing an object in front of her while she's walking (she bumps into it and flinches, sometimes accompanied by a tail wave), and wiggling my finger in front of her face before touching her (she flinches and tries to bite every time these days, despite previously being gentle as a lamb). And I'm heartbroken because of how terrified she is these days. I can't handle her at all really, because she bites, HARD, and has drawn blood every time (she also cracked my index fingernail recently). And I know it might be for the best to just stop handling her. But I want to know if there's any way I can ease her fear in general.
Her terrarium has not changed substrate type or layout since the forty-gallon tank issue, her hides and water and plants have not changed or moved, and she seems just fine in her tank. She's healthy, eats well, sheds flawlessly, and has no health issues otherwise. But whenever I have to take her out to change substrate or anything, she's always terrified (tail waving, flinching, squeaking).
I guess what I wanted to ask is, have any of you had fully-blind leos before? And if so, what are some tips for adjusting my husbandry so she's not so scared when I need to interact with her? I plan to have her until the end of her life, so I'd like to learn as much as I can to ensure she's as happy and comfortable as can be.