hi all, I got a leopard gecko for my birthday last saturday.(10 days ago) I wanted 2 but they only had one left. Is it ok to put another one or two in after this length of time? Im worried how he will react. Zeus is a baby but the new ones they have in are smaller. I love my gecko (zeus) but the bearded dragons look cool too, they seem to come out more and play. what do people think is better?
The thing is, I want to know if im doing everything right for zeus. Ive been told so much conflicting information. I put sand in as recommended by the centre i bought him in. 2 days later i went in again and another member of staff said never use sand. So i use chipped bark, but he pushes it away and sits on the bare floor. Is it because he is too cold? Im struggling to keep the temp above 73, and it drops at night. I have a heat mat and a lamp shining on the cage, im not sure what else i can do-any advice? plus i dont know what to do about the humidity. Some say use damp moss in a pot, but another website said not to use it.
Now he has this white flaky thing over one of hs eyes-is he starting to shed? I cant see anything similar on the rest of his body. What should i put in to give him humidity?
He has erratic eating patterns. one night he gobbled up 6 crickets. Now today they are all still in there bar one and he doesnt seem interested in them. Some say take them out immediately, others say leave them till he eats them. What do I do!! I love my little guy and want to give him the best start. Seasoned gecko owners, I would appreciate your input. thanks
You should wait to put another gecko in with Zeus until you determine if it male or female. You usually can't determine their sex until they are at least six months old. If you just got him, chances are that he's still young and your going to have to wait awhile.
Males can only be housed with other females, and even then you must introduce them to eachother slowly because they still may not even like eachother.
Also, you have to at least have a large tank for two of them to live in. You can't keep two geckos in a small enviroment.
For a subtrate, sand and bark are both bad. There's a sand subtrate that has calcium in it, some may reccommend it, but I've heard varing things on it.
The best thing to use for leopard geckos in coconut subtrate.
If you have a heat mat, he's keeping himself at the right tempature, no need to worry about the temp inside the cage if you've got a mat and a heat light.
As far as humitity. I keep half of my geckos subrate moist. I also have a moist hide on the other side of the cage with moss in it. I spary the moss and hide daily with water, as well as the subtrate. I also spray the entire habitat occasionally to add moisture to everything (rain).
The white flakey thing could be the start of shedding. While they shed it's important to provide them with a moist hide so they can shed properly.
Geckos are really sensitive and their eating patterns vary by their mood. If he's shedding as you think he is, he might not eat for awhile. If you change their enviroment, they might not eat for awhile.
I leave the crickets in the enviroment, but I also give them apple slices to eat while their in there, and I dust them with calcium powder occasionally. The crickets have to be gut loaded in order to provide nutition for the gecko, so you have to "feed the feed".
These are really things that are basic in care and you should have researched BEFORE getting the leo.
NEVER EVER house two leos together males will fight, females will fight and you should NOT keep males and females together because they will breed. I house my male and female together but I breed them and know how to care for the eggs and babies.
You need repti carpet, not sand, not bark or any other loose substrate, they can swallow it and get impacted.Leos live in rocky deserts and so don't encounter a lot of loose substrates like sand or wood chips. (IF you want to use sand read the second care sheet I've provided) http://www.zoomed.com/html/repti_cage_carpet.php
While many people use loose substrates and there is no harm, many more get impacted and die. Repti-carpet is cheap and can be re-used it's also the easiest thing to clean.
A humid hide is best for a leo when shedding. Which it appears your leo is doing, they will eat their skin.
I need to know more about your leo:
How old is it you didn't specify?
What are you keeping it in? (a 20 long is good for full grown adults they don't need a lot of height to their enclosure they prefer the ground so longs are better)
Glass aquariums are best, never buy the plastic ones as they conduct heat terribly, make sure your heat mat is the appropriate size for the tank.
my leo is a baby. I bought him 10 days ago and the woman at the centre said he would probably be about 10 weeks old. I do want another one tho-my stepMum has two and keeps them together and they dont fight. Although she bought them together. The ones at the garden centre are kept in twos.
My tank is I think 17' X 8'. a similar sort of size to the laptop Im writing on, but not as tall. It is a plastic one. We always meant it to be temporary though. We've seen a lovely wooden one with glass sliding doors thats huge. We are planning on buying him that at the weekend. Ive put a wet piece of sponge in there this afternoon, and now Zeus has come out of the cave and is lying under the lamp. Is that because he's shedding? The flaky thing has come off his eye now.
I think I will get a repti-carpet. It sounds like the best option, I dont want him to ingest anything as the crickets will pick it up. Thanku for all your advice! I feel like a new Mother lol. At least I know where to come to if I need help or advice with Zeus.
No wonder he's cold, plastic does not conduct heat well at all and you would need a heat mat twice the size your using (if you're using the appropriate size) to heat it. Wood may cause a problem if you want to heat it as well.
Just because a pet shop or even your mother does it doesn't mean it's the proper thing to do, i stick by my statement that leos should never be housed together unless it's males and females in use for breeding.
You may not see it but even breeding males and females will nip at each other, they are nocturnal so i doubt you would see or hear it when they get in fights at 2 in the morning.
If you have yet to buy your proper enclosure I would suggest either a 10 gallon or a 20 long. a 10 gallon you can get from wal-mart for 10 dollars.
So far neither of my leos have lost any tails toes etc with how I keep them. Regrown tails looks icky I've even had a nightmare where Syna dropped hers >_>
I stopped feeding crickets because they were too noisy. By the time your leo is an adult you'll need large crickets which chirp till you go crazy. I feed them mealworms in the feeder exoterra makes for mealworms.
It's the best each pack comes with 2 one gets dirty you take it out and put the other one in while your cleaning the other and then rotate like so. Grissom was on sand so fine it was like powder when i first got him and I still took him off of it.
I will admit I also made the mistake of getting a plastic cage first but quickly changed it when I got home (bought him in South Carolina) http://badkittyamy.myphotoalbum.com/view_photo.php?set_...ame=album12&id=1_jpg they too told me to get sand (i swear these people hear desert and that's the only thing they can think of)
Tank liner sucks. It stretches and wears out fast, aswell as their little claws get stuck in it. My leo was housed on that crap before i got him. Reptiles HAVE become impacted on the felt liner before, such as beardies and iguanas because they think its greens.
I stick by eco earth coconut fiber, its digestible if swallowed and my leo loves it.
Mealworms are a bad diet, they are high in chitin and hard to digest, aswell as not very nutritious.
badkittyamy your tank looks really good. Thats the size we are looking to get at the weekend. And the carpet looks good. So are your geckos male and female then? I take it thats a 20 gallon. Unfortunately, they are more expensive here in little ol england. That sort of tank ur looking at 100 pounds ($200). I might have a look on the internet to see if I can get one cheaper. Thankyou for all your help guys!!
I guess you guys don't have a petsmart? Try your local pet supply store (if you have one) and look for used fish aquariums because that didn't even cost me 60 i don't think, it was just the tank (just the glass bottom bit by itself) though I bought the screen separately at the same petsmart. If you buy a fish aquarium with the light and all it's going to be a lot more expensive.
You most likely won't see glass aquariums for sale online because they won't take the risk of shipping glass.
Also Yes but it's a 20 gallon long not a normal 20 gallon, again they don't need the height so a long whatever size you get is best. And yes Syna and Grissom are a female and a male I have and I breed them.
Meal worms are a horrible diet. They are high in chitin and hard to digest. Leos need a variety.
That reptile carpet has been known to cause impactions in iguanas and beardies because they think its greens and try to eat it. Also lizards nails gets caught in it and after a while it distorts and becomes stretched and doesnt fit the tank anymore.
I'm sorry I have to disagree entirely. I have had my reptile carpet for several years and it ha not done any of those things. Plus leos don't eat greens so this isn't a problems in this case. we aren't talking about iggies or beardies we're talking about leos.
And on the meal worms many people would disagree with that statement as well, mealworms can be fine if provided in the proper amount to your leo just like any food item. I have never seen any thing saying that appropriate sized worms would be hard for a leo to digest as mine do just fine.
Crickets are far too noisy and not only that but then you have to have a separate enclosure just for storing, feeding and taking care of them and then the separate costs of feeding the crickets it's like having to have a whole nother pet.
I never suggested they feed mealworms either simply stating what I use to feed mine. And I can tell you he passes urates just as often and as well as he did when i used to feed grissom crickets.
Now waxworms are something I could understand an argument over. Those are like feeding your leo chocolate bars.
Originally posted by badkittyamy: I'm sorry I have to disagree entirely. I have had my reptile carpet for several years and it ha not done any of those things. Plus leos don't eat greens so this isn't a problems in this case. we aren't talking about iggies or beardies we're talking about leos.
And on the meal worms many people would disagree with that statement as well, mealworms can be fine if provided in the proper amount to your leo just like any food item. I have never seen any thing saying that appropriate sized worms would be hard for a leo to digest as mine do just fine.
Crickets are far too noisy and not only that but then you have to have a separate enclosure just for storing, feeding and taking care of them and then the separate costs of feeding the crickets it's like having to have a whole nother pet.
I never suggested they feed mealworms either simply stating what I use to feed mine. And I can tell you he passes urates just as often and as well as he did when i used to feed grissom crickets.
Now waxworms are something I could understand an argument over. Those are like feeding your leo chocolate bars.
Your statement was that the carpet was totally safe, i brought up beardies and iggies eating it to show that its not safe. My leo was on that horrible carpet and his nails kept getting stuck, and the brand was ESU.
Info taken from various sites
"Mealworms specifically have a poor calciumhosphorous ratio which is why it is often recommended to offer them as part of a varied diet." http://www.drgecko.com/mealworms/nutrition.htm
There also an article in the newest reptiles magazine that says that mealworms whould be fed in moderation.
So what if crickets chirp, it comes with the responsibility of owning reptiles that eat crickets. Leos need a varied diet PERIOD. Ive seen leos that are fed just mealworms and it was so horrible looking. I feed my leo, a staple of crickets and he gets pinkies about once a month aswell as butterworms and waxworms whenever i come across some wich isnt often because they are hard to come by up here.
Ball pythons live in burrows made by other animals in the wild. My ball python is perfectly content on coconut fiber, he likes to crawl around in it, its easy to spot clean and cheap to totally replace. Aswell as it keeps the humidity at 60 percent where it should be. Balls are not desert animals and the ball that i have was kept that way on liner for her full 14 yrs, she has permanent crinkles on her eyecaps because of the lack of humidity.
That's why if you feed mealworms you use calcium supplements, it's not really that hard. Lol you fed mealworms and it looked terrible? Well mine certainly doesn't.
Yes I can see how he's lacking in all those nutrients there. Again i never told them to feed mealworms so it's a moot point. I said I feed mealworms. I also make sure my gutloader mixture has tons of calcium boosters I didn't go into what I do with the mealworms because I never suggested it as a feeder. http://www.thegeckospot.com/leocareindex2.html "Mealworms can also be used, there are lots of scare stories about how these mealworms can eat their way through your geckos inside, however there are also many people (including well known breeders) who use these as a staple food for their leos and have not had problems and state that these stories are untrue. Personally I like to err on the side of caution, by using only newly moulted (the white squishy ones) mealworms to my geckos. Feeding only newly moulted mealworms will also allow the gecko to get the maximum goodness from them since non-moulted mealworms are very high in chitin (which is not digestible)."
While pinkies are great for protein those bones are not.
As for the repti-carpet, (which is a zoo med brand name NOT ESU, notice i specifically put repti-carpet NOT reptile carpet) again I have never had any problem with them catching anything on it. Yes I said it was safe because were were talking about leo's I don't see where anywhere in the topic we diverged to other reptiles till you brought it up. In a conversation about leos generally people with sense will assume that statements within that thread would be about leos no? And the complaints from that vs the rate of complaints I see on leos on loose substrate is far minimal. Maybe because you used ESU and the pretty much make the worst commercial reptile products out there? I use zoo meds brand and it does not shrink, it does not warp, I've washed them a million times and they have not changed a bit in reference to no longer fitting the cage. I never buy stuff from ESU because their products are almost always shoddy from their heat matts to their light bulbs.
I have no problem whatsoever keeping my humidity at 60 with the repti-carpet if you have a humidity problem sure change to suit you but I don't. Everyone should have a digital reader to check these anyway. You should always check to make sure a reptile has the optimum humidity they need every day.
This message has been edited. Last edited by: badkittyamy,
Crickets dont need a separate tank or much care atall. Mine are in the same plastic tub i bought them in over 2 weeks ago. I put a few chunks of apple and carott in there, and there was a bit of egg carton in it for them to run around. They have doubled in size since then. Plus Zeus is getting the nutrients from the carotts inside the crickets. Since I have put a damp bit of sponge in Zeus' cage, he has been coming out of his cave in the day and lying either next to his water dish, like so far against it hes nearly under it lol , or hes resting his two front feet on the cushion. Is it because he's now more relaxed with his situation, as Ive caught him dozing, or could it be another reason, i thought they were nocturnal. He only eats at night tho.
Crickets should NEVER be left overnight in a leo's tank because they can and WILL bite them. So yes you DO need a separate cage for crickets especially if you are properly gut loading them before feeding them to your leos.
Well first off I work in a reptile pet store. Ok leopard geckos are from africa so they need to be at least 75 on the cool side of the tank and 80 or 82 on the hot side. About the question of which is better bearded dragons or leopard geckos? Well bearded dragons are a lot of fun they do require a variety of different foods such as crickets, mealworms, cut greens, and an adult can have 2 or 3 pinkie mice a week. Where as a Leopard gecko will only need crickets and mealworms and maybe a pinkie mouse when it is an adult. Now a bearded dragon can be a lot more fun than a leopard just because the are more interactive and have funnier personalities. So as far as that goes it depends on your preference. As for the temperature thing goes, you might not have a high enough watt bulb in you lamp. I can't really help you with that without knowing what size tank he is in. But make sure that you are getting your reading on the thermometer from the inside and on the bottom of the tank because that is the only place that will give you an accurate reading. DO NOT get the reading from the outside that is only telling you the temperature of the room the tank is in. Ok yes he is shedding to create more humdity move his water bowl underneath of his light. Also you can give him a warm bath. that might help loosen the shed. About the crickets you must take them out if you leave them in the crickets will start chewing on him. DO NOT leave them in there overnight. Take them out. Also someone said in a reply that you can't sex a leopard until they are 6 months old. that is not true. You can take a spray bottle and spray them. If he freaks out and makes a noise then he is a male. If he doesn't react much it is a female. Hopefully I helped
hosphorous ratio which is why it is often recommended to offer them as part of a varied diet." 
