Give me Leopard Gecko Knowledge!

[jhk30]

oh ok so dont breed them? well maybe ill see how much he/she eats once getting him/her.

 

[Lady_Kiya]

For 1 leo, I don't think you necessarily need to breed. But if you want to the option is there.

You will need:

Under tank heater (Suggest this rather than a heat lamp)
water dish
food dish (optional but can double as a dish for calcium)
reptivite
calcium with D3
Calcium without D3
at least 2 hides (1 moist, and one cool)
Scale that reads in grams (As to keep track of weight. Weight can tell alot about a geckos health)
Tiles (If that is what you are using for flooring)
Thermometer with probe (used to make sure the temperatures are correct)
Rheostat (Used to adjust the temperature of the Under tank heater, making sure if stays at the right temperature)

 

[jhk30]

For 1 leo, I don't think you necessarily need to breed. But if you want to the option is there.

You will need:

Under tank heater (Suggest this rather than a heat lamp)
water dish
food dish (optional but can double as a dish for calcium)
reptivite
calcium with D3
Calcium without D3
at least 2 hides (1 moist, and one cool)
Scale that reads in grams (As to keep track of weight. Weight can tell alot about a geckos health)
Tiles (If that is what you are using for flooring)
Thermometer with probe (used to make sure the temperatures are correct)
Rheostat (Used to adjust the temperature of the Under tank heater, making sure if stays at the right temperature)

few questions..
whats a reptivite
calcium with D3 for what?
Calcium without D3 for what?
at least 2 hides (1 moist, and one cool) how do I make one moist and one cool?

 

[Khrysty]

few questions..
whats a reptivite
calcium with D3 for what?
Calcium without D3 for what?
at least 2 hides (1 moist, and one cool) how do I make one moist and one cool?

Reptivite is a vitamin supplement. You use this to "dust" your mealies (or whatever feeders) a couple times a week. You "dust" right before a feeding to ensure that the feeders have all of the nutrients/vitamins your gecko needs. You don't do this until you're ready to feed your gecko.

To "dust' your feeders, you put them ina bag with a little Reptivite, seal the bag, and shake it. Alternatively, you could just put some of the powder in the feed bowl and let them crawl around in it before your gecko eats them.

Calcium with D3 should also be used for dusting, but about twice a month.

Calcium without D3 goes in a dish in the cage (some people use a food dish, I use a milk or pop bottle cap) so that when your gecko needs calcium he/she can lick it up.

The moist hide can be a tupperware container (preferably a dark color, not clear). Cut a circle out of the lid and fill the container with moss, vermaculite, or even just paper towels. Make sure that whatever you put in it is moist/damp and not soaking wet. Snap the cap onto the container, and vuella--a moist hide. That hide goes on the warm side of your tank.

The cool hide is just a regular place to hide that goes on the cool side of the tank

 

[jhk30]

Ok thanks! very good information. I can't belive how fast you guys are replying.. I know I have more questions but I forget them.

heres one. How do you know if your leopard gecko is hungry or full? and when they poop and pee do I just take out that tile and clean it?

 

[Lady_Kiya]

few questions..
whats a reptivite
calcium with D3 for what?
Calcium without D3 for what?
at least 2 hides (1 moist, and one cool) how do I make one moist and one cool?

Reptivite is a supplement the has all the necessary vitamins your leo will need. You will dust your feeders with this twice a week to give your leo their vitamins. XD

Calcium with D3 is another supplement you will give your leo twice a month. They need it for bone health. It is not something that should be given everyday however. Which is why you get regular calcium.

If you get a baby gecko, you should dust your feeders 5 days out of the week with calcium without D3. The other two days you dust with your reptivite and your Calcium with D3.
Once the gecko is older, you won't need to dust with the calcium 5 days out of the week. You will cut it down to 2-3 times a week. ALSO, always leave a little bowl of calcium in your leos environment. When they need calcium they will also eat it out of that bowl. You can even use a lid from a glass ice tea bottle for the calcium.

Calcium as a whole is very important for your leos health. It helps their bones stay strong.

 

[Khrysty]

Ok thanks! very good information. I can't belive how fast you guys are replying.. I know I have more questions but I forget them.

heres one. How do you know if your leopard gecko is hungry or full? and when they poop and pee do I just take out that tile and clean it?

Depending on the age, you feed the gecko every day or every other day. The younger ones will eat more often. When they refuse food, they're not hungry. When they scarf it all down, they're really hungry.

They sort of poop and pee at the same time...they have a fecal with something called "urates" which is a white chalky substance attached to the brown/black part. It should be mostly or entirely solid and not messy at all. Just take a damp towel or reptile wipe (sometimes I use Orange wipes) and clean the tile really well. They'll go in the same spot all the time, so you won't need to hunt for poop. Take the tiles out for a deep, thorough cleaning about once a month

 

[jhk30]

ok great!

will they poop/pee on me?

 

[Lady_Kiya]

It is very easy to get a temperature gradient with the hides. You place the undertank heater on one side of your leos tank. To make a moist hide you can take a tupperware container and cut a hole into the top of the lid (making sure the hole is big enough for your leo to get into, and also make sure there are no sharp edges around the hole that can harm your leo). You can place some sphagnum moss (Which I found at home depot) or paper towel inside and lightly dampen it. Do not drench it. Just make sure it is dampened. Then place half of this hide over the Under tank heater, and the other half not over it. The moist hide is especially important when it comes to shedding. It will help ensure that the shed goes well, although some problems can still occur. This is just a way to help and not to totally prevent.

And the cool hide you place no where near the under tank heater in the environment.

 

[2bacop]

ok great!

will they poop/pee on me?

I've never had mine poop or pee on me, but I guess its possible if you hold them for very long periods of time.

 

[Riyo]

ok great!

will they poop/pee on me?

It happens, but it isn't that bad.

 

[Lady_Kiya]

I have never had it happen. Thank god... cause Ares is a little stinky one. XD

 

[berthegecko]

Meal Worm

How many meal worms would I feed per day? I want a leopard gecko.. just one. Whats the average I would need to feed?

Okay, when it comes to Meal Worms just keep around a dozen in a deep dish. It needs to be deep so that they can't get out, hide,
and then turn into beetles which are the adult meal worms. This is why you need to keep the ones waiting to be eaten :main_rolleyes: so that they won't
grow and turn into beetles before you want.

Now, my Leopard gecko, Bert, although young, won't eat meal worms in any
way shape or form. He will only eat his crickets. I've tried meal worms and he
won't even turn his head at them. Hope this helps. Now you do realize that
Leopard Gecko's need vitamin and calcium supplements, right? If not just ask
about it and I'll explain that too. Hehe, oh the joys of learning how to care
for a new pet.

 

[berthegecko]

Everyone just ignore my last post. I didn't realize that there were extra pages. Sorry.