General leopard gecko questions (a lot of them!)

[ellahammond]

Hi, I'm completely new to reptile keeping, but I am very interested in adopting a leopard gecko some time soon.
I know there is lots of great information on this forum, but I wanted to ask all of my questions in one post so it's easy to come back to at any point.
(Sorry if any of these questions are silly or seem obvious, I really don't know much about them at all)

Food
1. What would be the healthiest food for them?
2. Are supplements needed?
3. Do the insects need to be coated in calcium?
4. How often do they need feeding?
5. Do they ever eat springtails/isopods?

Heat
1. What temperature does the warm/cold side need to be?
2. What temperature should the tank be at night?
3. When handling, the room will be colder than 30°c, is this okay for them?
4. Can the temperature on a basking lamp be changed? If so what temp should it be?
5. 30-40% humidity?

Bio-active
1. Would 1/3 sand and 2/3 eco earth be good for a bio-active setup?
2. Should it ever need to be cleaned/completely removed?
3. Are spider plants safe?
4. Do they ever need misting? How often?
5. Best grow light? (not planning on having too many plants)

General Behaviour
1. Do males and females behave differently?
2. Do they often jump when being handled and/or in the tank?
3. Is handling mandatory?
4. How to tell if they are stressed/unhappy?
5. Do they climb? If so what is there preferred item to climb?
6. Common illnesses/diseases?

 

[acpart]

The questions you ask are usually answered in care sheets. I recommend that you google "leopard gecko care" and read a bunch of care sheets. The information will be a little different in each care sheet, but a lot of it will be the same from sheet to sheet. Figure out what advice seems to be universal and then come back here and ask about the things that seem to contradict.

Aliza