Alrighty,
well earlier this week I got in a box load of stuff for my future two little leopard gecko girls. What I'm wanting to do is make sure I've got everything headed in the right direction, so if you have any suggestions then please share them.
Okay so here's my setup, or what it will be once I get everything, there are a few things on backorder (I hope they get here soon lol) which are mainly decor and one feeding dish. That and I've still got a few things to get here in this next week but it's not much.
Anyway here goes:
Tank: 48"long x 18"wide x17"tall Acrylic tank from glasscages.com that is split in the middle by a 1/4" piece of plexiglass. It will also have two second level shelves for each girl that should extend about 11" each with a ramp so that the girls can get to the second level. I've also looked into special ordering a Zilla screen top that is 48"x18". I had one for my anole tank and I LOVED it, so I hope to get another.
Substrate: tiles (I've got 30 of them, but I'll probably only need around 24 since they're 6"x6") and the second levels will have green Reptile Carpet as well as the ramps.
Heating: 2 11"x17" Exo Terra Heatwave Desert Vivarium UTHs
Heat control: 2 Zoo Med ReptiTemp 500R and 4 ESU Digital Thermometers with probes (I got two to keep track of the cool temps in each side, and two for the warm sides)
Decor: 2 Large Exo Terra Reptile Caves (their cool hides), 2 Large Exo Terra Reptile Dens with the magnets (their warm hides), 2 Large Repti Shelter 3 in 1 Caves (their humid hides), 2 Large Cave and Feeding Dish hides (this thing http://www.petsmart.com/product/ind...av_dropdown5_link4&parentPage=family&keepsr=1 the top one is the large one) this one will be just and extra hiding spot and will go on the second level as of right now, and then I got each girl their own special decor item - 1 Smalle Zilla Sandstone Bridge and 1 Medium Zilla Shale Rock Den. Then I've got some plastic leafy vines that have the little suction cups so that I can stick them on the sides of the tank and a bendable vine that I can cut in two so each girl will have a piece. Thought those would make their homes a little more colorful and stimulating for them. Plus they can hide under the leaves if they want.
Background: I got two pieces of the 18"x24" Hagen Rock Terrarium Backgrounds that I'll probably have to trim a tiny bit, but they should make things look a little better.
Lighting: one of those Medium Exo-Terra Plastic Light Fixture with two regular ol' house hold coil blubs just to simulate daytime. They're not the reptile UVA or UVB lights, just the kind you use in your house. Then I've got a 5.5" Fluker's Clamp Lamp with a red bulb in it for nightime viewing and I figure it might help keep the ambient temps up at night since my room gets COLD at night for some dang reason. Like literally I'll walk out my bedroom door and can tell it's warmer out there. Crazy house.
Feeding: I've got one of those Exo Terra Worm Dishes (will be their feeding dish obviously) and I've got another on backorder, and I bought some simple ol' glass ashtrays for their water dishes (I do believe an idea spawned by checking out Bret's enclosures on his website - so thanks for the idea Bret saved me some cash), and I ordered a couple of those little blue caps from Bret at BaysideGeckos to be their calcium dishes.
Feeders: right now I've got some mealworms left over from when I had my anole, my dad ordered them and we tried them, but the little guy prefered the faster moving crickets lol, so I'm keeping them, and I have NO idea if they'll pupate or not, I've had them since right after Thanksgiving 2007 and so far all they're doing is growing. Kinda cool to watch them though. I bought some Mealworm substrate from ReptileSupply.com but next time I think I'll be ordering some from cricketfood.com I believe. That and they really enjoy slices of red potatoes and carrots. I also bought a three draw storage container to place the worms in so that I can maybe start breeding my own mealies. I also have some of that JurassiPet Cricket and Insect Gutload that they seem to enjoy too.
Supplements: one 4.1oz container of Rep-Cal Calcium - No vitamin D3, one 3.8oz container of Rep-Cal Herptivite, and two 4.1oz containers of Rep-Cal Calcium - Ultrafine with D3 (I think I accidentally marked down an extra of these, wish it would have been the PURE calcium, but oh well).
Other things I have:
- two 10.5" x 8" x 7.5" Hagen FAUNARIUM Cages for transport to the vet when need be. I've also got two soft clean rags in each as well as a bottle I can put warm water in and place at the side under the rags to help keep them warm while transporting to and from the vet. Since it's around an hour and a half from here.
- one Large Lee's Kricket Keeper (I'll probably order crickets every now and then to provide some variety in their diet - and I'll probably buy other kinds of worms every now and again to add some more variety, but don't worry I know Waxworms are like Gecko ice cream so limit those if at all, I figure they'd be like little Gecko treats lol)
- then I bought a bottle of that Zoo Med Repti Shedding Aid since I figure it might help in case of an emergency or something. It's kind of a precaution I guess.
Other than that I'm putting together a kind of Leopard Gecko First Aid kit, that will include some sterile saline solution, neosporin, tweezers, and some Betadine, as well as other stuff, that I figure might help until I can get them to the vet. Hopefully I won't have anything serious happen, but I figure it pays to be prepared.
I've also bought a digital scale with the tare feature and a container so that I can keep track of their weights and growth progress.
OH and I've also got one of those digital outlets that has two daytime outlets, two nighttime outlets, and four continuous power outlets, so my lights are on a timer and the thermostats are plugged into two of the continuous power outlets.
I also bought a few books including: The Leopard Gecko Manual, The Leopard Gecko in Captivity, The Herpetoculture of Leopard Geckos, Leopard Geckos For Dummies, and The Eyelash Geckos, Care, Breeding and Natural History. So I've got some hopefully helpful material to read over as well.
Umm...I think thats it lol, right now I've only got the UTHs hooked up to the two Thermostats and the thermometers set up, as well as the middle divider. I'm waiting to get the second levels put in before I go ahead and set everything else up I figure it'll be easier that way. That and I'm trying to get the UTHs to warm up and make sure all of that is working properly.
SO I've still got a couple things to buy, and I've got to finish setting things up and get everything running right before I can get the girls, but I've even found them and I've got them on hold. One little Tangerine Rainwater female from Mel & Keith at Concrete Geckos and one little Mack Snow female from Debbie at The Gecko Prince. I hope to be able to buy them by early next month.
I've even found a vet, Dr. Mike Sealock of Rockwall, Texas's Ridge Road Animal Hospital. He's registered with the ARAV (Association of Reptile & Amphibian Veterinarians) and from what I was told by one of his employees he regularly treats leopard geckos, including those that are at the local PetSmart and PetCo stores. Now whether those stores keep their geckos reasonably well is another question, but it helps to know he treats leos as well as many other exotic reptiles and other animals. That and he's just a quick run down Interstate 30 for me. They also sent me a Leopard Gecko Care sheet and it was actually one of the better sheets I've seen, so hopefully he'll work out.
Yes this may seem like a TON to spend on two little geckos, but I plan on keeping them happy and healthy, so it's all good.
Yeesh sorry that was so long lol, lots of info to share. So if anyone has any suggestions, if you can work your way through all of that, please feel free to share, I'm looking for all the help I can get.
well earlier this week I got in a box load of stuff for my future two little leopard gecko girls. What I'm wanting to do is make sure I've got everything headed in the right direction, so if you have any suggestions then please share them.
Okay so here's my setup, or what it will be once I get everything, there are a few things on backorder (I hope they get here soon lol) which are mainly decor and one feeding dish. That and I've still got a few things to get here in this next week but it's not much.
Anyway here goes:
Tank: 48"long x 18"wide x17"tall Acrylic tank from glasscages.com that is split in the middle by a 1/4" piece of plexiglass. It will also have two second level shelves for each girl that should extend about 11" each with a ramp so that the girls can get to the second level. I've also looked into special ordering a Zilla screen top that is 48"x18". I had one for my anole tank and I LOVED it, so I hope to get another.
Substrate: tiles (I've got 30 of them, but I'll probably only need around 24 since they're 6"x6") and the second levels will have green Reptile Carpet as well as the ramps.
Heating: 2 11"x17" Exo Terra Heatwave Desert Vivarium UTHs
Heat control: 2 Zoo Med ReptiTemp 500R and 4 ESU Digital Thermometers with probes (I got two to keep track of the cool temps in each side, and two for the warm sides)
Decor: 2 Large Exo Terra Reptile Caves (their cool hides), 2 Large Exo Terra Reptile Dens with the magnets (their warm hides), 2 Large Repti Shelter 3 in 1 Caves (their humid hides), 2 Large Cave and Feeding Dish hides (this thing http://www.petsmart.com/product/ind...av_dropdown5_link4&parentPage=family&keepsr=1 the top one is the large one) this one will be just and extra hiding spot and will go on the second level as of right now, and then I got each girl their own special decor item - 1 Smalle Zilla Sandstone Bridge and 1 Medium Zilla Shale Rock Den. Then I've got some plastic leafy vines that have the little suction cups so that I can stick them on the sides of the tank and a bendable vine that I can cut in two so each girl will have a piece. Thought those would make their homes a little more colorful and stimulating for them. Plus they can hide under the leaves if they want.
Background: I got two pieces of the 18"x24" Hagen Rock Terrarium Backgrounds that I'll probably have to trim a tiny bit, but they should make things look a little better.
Lighting: one of those Medium Exo-Terra Plastic Light Fixture with two regular ol' house hold coil blubs just to simulate daytime. They're not the reptile UVA or UVB lights, just the kind you use in your house. Then I've got a 5.5" Fluker's Clamp Lamp with a red bulb in it for nightime viewing and I figure it might help keep the ambient temps up at night since my room gets COLD at night for some dang reason. Like literally I'll walk out my bedroom door and can tell it's warmer out there. Crazy house.
Feeding: I've got one of those Exo Terra Worm Dishes (will be their feeding dish obviously) and I've got another on backorder, and I bought some simple ol' glass ashtrays for their water dishes (I do believe an idea spawned by checking out Bret's enclosures on his website - so thanks for the idea Bret saved me some cash), and I ordered a couple of those little blue caps from Bret at BaysideGeckos to be their calcium dishes.
Feeders: right now I've got some mealworms left over from when I had my anole, my dad ordered them and we tried them, but the little guy prefered the faster moving crickets lol, so I'm keeping them, and I have NO idea if they'll pupate or not, I've had them since right after Thanksgiving 2007 and so far all they're doing is growing. Kinda cool to watch them though. I bought some Mealworm substrate from ReptileSupply.com but next time I think I'll be ordering some from cricketfood.com I believe. That and they really enjoy slices of red potatoes and carrots. I also bought a three draw storage container to place the worms in so that I can maybe start breeding my own mealies. I also have some of that JurassiPet Cricket and Insect Gutload that they seem to enjoy too.
Supplements: one 4.1oz container of Rep-Cal Calcium - No vitamin D3, one 3.8oz container of Rep-Cal Herptivite, and two 4.1oz containers of Rep-Cal Calcium - Ultrafine with D3 (I think I accidentally marked down an extra of these, wish it would have been the PURE calcium, but oh well).
Other things I have:
- two 10.5" x 8" x 7.5" Hagen FAUNARIUM Cages for transport to the vet when need be. I've also got two soft clean rags in each as well as a bottle I can put warm water in and place at the side under the rags to help keep them warm while transporting to and from the vet. Since it's around an hour and a half from here.
- one Large Lee's Kricket Keeper (I'll probably order crickets every now and then to provide some variety in their diet - and I'll probably buy other kinds of worms every now and again to add some more variety, but don't worry I know Waxworms are like Gecko ice cream so limit those if at all, I figure they'd be like little Gecko treats lol)
- then I bought a bottle of that Zoo Med Repti Shedding Aid since I figure it might help in case of an emergency or something. It's kind of a precaution I guess.
Other than that I'm putting together a kind of Leopard Gecko First Aid kit, that will include some sterile saline solution, neosporin, tweezers, and some Betadine, as well as other stuff, that I figure might help until I can get them to the vet. Hopefully I won't have anything serious happen, but I figure it pays to be prepared.
I've also bought a digital scale with the tare feature and a container so that I can keep track of their weights and growth progress.
OH and I've also got one of those digital outlets that has two daytime outlets, two nighttime outlets, and four continuous power outlets, so my lights are on a timer and the thermostats are plugged into two of the continuous power outlets.
I also bought a few books including: The Leopard Gecko Manual, The Leopard Gecko in Captivity, The Herpetoculture of Leopard Geckos, Leopard Geckos For Dummies, and The Eyelash Geckos, Care, Breeding and Natural History. So I've got some hopefully helpful material to read over as well.
Umm...I think thats it lol, right now I've only got the UTHs hooked up to the two Thermostats and the thermometers set up, as well as the middle divider. I'm waiting to get the second levels put in before I go ahead and set everything else up I figure it'll be easier that way. That and I'm trying to get the UTHs to warm up and make sure all of that is working properly.
SO I've still got a couple things to buy, and I've got to finish setting things up and get everything running right before I can get the girls, but I've even found them and I've got them on hold. One little Tangerine Rainwater female from Mel & Keith at Concrete Geckos and one little Mack Snow female from Debbie at The Gecko Prince. I hope to be able to buy them by early next month.
I've even found a vet, Dr. Mike Sealock of Rockwall, Texas's Ridge Road Animal Hospital. He's registered with the ARAV (Association of Reptile & Amphibian Veterinarians) and from what I was told by one of his employees he regularly treats leopard geckos, including those that are at the local PetSmart and PetCo stores. Now whether those stores keep their geckos reasonably well is another question, but it helps to know he treats leos as well as many other exotic reptiles and other animals. That and he's just a quick run down Interstate 30 for me. They also sent me a Leopard Gecko Care sheet and it was actually one of the better sheets I've seen, so hopefully he'll work out.
Yes this may seem like a TON to spend on two little geckos, but I plan on keeping them happy and healthy, so it's all good.
Yeesh sorry that was so long lol, lots of info to share. So if anyone has any suggestions, if you can work your way through all of that, please feel free to share, I'm looking for all the help I can get.
