A Consensus on Calcium

[philthegecko]

Hi. I'm hoping you guys can give me some advice. So many different people say different things. I currently have Exo Terra Multi Vitamin Exo Terra : Multi Vitamin / Multi Vitamin Powder Supplement and I have Fluker's Calcium + D3. Taking advice of others in the past, I am dusting crickets every day with the multi-vitamin. Every meal. I also am keeping a small cap of the calcium with D3 in the tank at all times. Does this sound right or am I missing something? Do I need to add calcium without D3 to the mix? Thanks very much. Had a bad experience with our first leo and I desperately want to get everything right this time.

 

[DrCarrotTail]

Being nocturnal animals that do not get a lot of exposure to the sun, Leos do not need a lot of D3 and I've heard that they can overdose on it. IMO it is best to give them access to calcium WITHOUT D3 in their tanks. There is some evidence that they may benefit from a bit of D3 in their diet and so using it occasionally may be a good idea.

I feed my geckos 3x a week. Two of those feedings I dust with plain calcium and the other with vitamins. Once every 2-3 weeks I use calcium with D3 instead of the plain calcium. They always have access to a soda cap filled with plain calcium in their tanks as well.

 

[philthegecko]

Thanks a lot. Very helpful information.

 

[acpart]

There are differing opinions because there is more than one way to do things. I feel there is consensus about the following:
Leopard geckos need calcium
Leopard geckos need vitamin D3
Leopard geckos don't need as much D3 as diurnal reptiles

I don't think there is clear consensus on the following:
Is it possible for leopard geckos to overdose on D3, how much is an overdose and what are the symptoms?
How to deliver supplements the best way (if there is a single best way).

I have used 2 methods, currently preferring the second:
1. Keep a dish of calcium without D3 in the cage. Dust alternate feedings with Calcium with D3 and vitamins (I was using Repcal calcium and Reptivite vitamins)

2. Don't keep calcium in the cage (though I do for the babies) and dust every feeding (or nearly every feeding) with Repashy calcium plus which contains the calcium, D3 and vitamins.

Aliza

 

[philthegecko]

Thank you, Aliza. Answers many questions.

 

[Ozy]

+1 for Repashy Calcium Plus. I have dusted every single insect my leo eats with it since I brought her home. She has never had a single health problem. She's just as strong and healthy as she can be! I've never kept calcium in her tank, although her mealworm dish has some Repashy in it along with the mealworms.

 

[philthegecko]

Thanks Ozy. Just picked up the Calcium Plus. Do you feed your leo every day? Also, with mealworms, do you leave them in the dish for a while? How do you gut load the mealworms? Can I use the orange cubes I use for the crickets? Last question. Our leo is just a little guy. When is good time to introduce mealworms?

 

[acpart]

You can leave mealworms in the dish. If you put a little gutload (see below) in the dish with them it gives them something to eat and keeps them somewhat from crawling out. You could always switch out the mealworms that don't get eaten to make sure the food is optimally gutloaded.
Using those water cubes for mealworms leads to trouble because the shed skins start sticking to the cubes and it all gets soggy and gross. Most people use powdered grains so it's easier to sift out the mealworms (and more nutritious than what they come in from the petstore). You could buy the Flukers (or other brand) powdered gutload. I order in bulk (20 lb. at a time) from progeckos.com but he has smaller amounts.
I bring my baby leopard geckos up on mealworms, so any time is fine for introducing mealworms.

Aliza

 

[Ozy]

When my leo was little I fed her everyday. She has always been hand fed. What I would do is take some mealworms out that I was going to feed the next day and toss them in a little container with some Repashy Bug Burger and let them eat for 24 hours. then I would take them out, dust them and feed her. what she didn't eat got put back in the container with the repashy bug burger for the next day and I would add more mealworms if needed. That is how I did it. Ozy eats mostly mealworms with crickets 3 or so times a week, because right now my Dubia colony doesn't feel like making babies apparently >.<

 

[KTyne]

Honestly, it depends on what supplements you're using and how old your Gecko is and also whether or not they are Female or breeding at the time. Many factors depend on how much you should be supplementing and in what form. For example, a breeding Female I would always leave a dish of plain calcium in their enclosure PLUS supplement every feeding with Calcium with D3 and then sub in Multivitamin once a week or so.

Right now I dust my Leo's feeders every feeding with Calcium with D3 and then once every couple of weeks with the Multivitamin. They eat every 2-3 days and are 1.5 and 5 years old. The supplementing was the same with Gaia when she was 8 months although she ate more often.

Also another thing that should affect how you supplement your Leos is how well you're gutloading their bugs. If you are gutloading their feeders with a really well balanced, nutritious (for the Leo) gutload then you shouldn't have to use a Multivitamin supplement at all because the Gecko will be getting all the nutrition it needs from the gutloaded feeder.

Sooo, pretty much you have to use your best judgement on this subject and just know your animals and know signs of calcium deficiency or problems absorbing calcium (such as shakiness when walking). The signs BEFORE MBD.

 

[JasonO80]

+1 for Repashy Calcium Plus. I have dusted every single insect my leo eats with it since I brought her home. She has never had a single health problem. She's just as strong and healthy as she can be! I've never kept calcium in her tank, although her mealworm dish has some Repashy in it along with the mealworms.

+1 on this!

 

[philthegecko]

Thank you, Aliza, Ozy and Kayla. I really do appreciate your feedback. This is very basic question, but our baby leo is sleeping a lot. That normal? When it comes to feeding, we feel like we have to remove some of the hides, to wake him up and get him up and about so that he'll go for the crickets. Is this necessary or will he just find the food if he wants it? We got him on Thursday. He had a couple crickets thursday, none friday, couple saturday and none last night. This normal because he's a scared baby? Should I be feeding him outside the tank? In the carrier? Or just leave him be? We never did the mealworm dish thing before. Will leo just know worms are there or do you need to sort of show the leo where they are. Thanks. Sorry for all the questions.

 

[DrCarrotTail]

IMO when they're hungry they'll hunt and find the worms. I would not leave crickets in the cage for more than an hour or so as they become demons who will chew up your leo when they get hungry.

Geckos do spend a lot of time hiding and it may not be unusual for him to "sleep" a lot. As long as he looks healthy, is eating every other day or so, pooping normally, and not losing weight (I would invest in cheap gram scale to be sure - they're only like $8) I would not be concerned about his behavior.

 

[KTyne]

Thank you, Aliza, Ozy and Kayla. I really do appreciate your feedback. This is very basic question, but our baby leo is sleeping a lot. That normal? When it comes to feeding, we feel like we have to remove some of the hides, to wake him up and get him up and about so that he'll go for the crickets. Is this necessary or will he just find the food if he wants it? We got him on Thursday. He had a couple crickets thursday, none friday, couple saturday and none last night. This normal because he's a scared baby? Should I be feeding him outside the tank? In the carrier? Or just leave him be? We never did the mealworm dish thing before. Will leo just know worms are there or do you need to sort of show the leo where they are. Thanks. Sorry for all the questions.

What time of day are you attempting to feed him? Leos are noctural and if you are trying to feed him during the day he is not likely to be awake or interested. Try feeding in te evening or after dark if you aren't already and see if his feeding response is the same or better.

 

[philthegecko]

Thanks, Kayla. Yes, we feed him at night. He just might not be ready yet.

 

[KTyne]

Thank you, Aliza, Ozy and Kayla. I really do appreciate your feedback. This is very basic question, but our baby leo is sleeping a lot. That normal? When it comes to feeding, we feel like we have to remove some of the hides, to wake him up and get him up and about so that he'll go for the crickets. Is this necessary or will he just find the food if he wants it? We got him on Thursday. He had a couple crickets thursday, none friday, couple saturday and none last night. This normal because he's a scared baby? Should I be feeding him outside the tank? In the carrier? Or just leave him be? We never did the mealworm dish thing before. Will leo just know worms are there or do you need to sort of show the leo where they are. Thanks. Sorry for all the questions.

Thanks, Kayla. Yes, we feed him at night. He just might not be ready yet.

Ahhh ok, then yes he might just need more time to settle. Also keep an eye on his weight and such because if he is acting lethargic all of the time he may have parasites or something.