Gonzo update and new leo.

[subjectivereality]

It's been maybe a year since I have posted, I figure I should provide an update on my leos.

This is Gonzo (pet store gecko), he's a bit of a monster:

The classic Gonzo evil glare:

Relaxing on my leg, I measured him at just under 11 inches long:

This is my new Leo Krieger (I watch too much Archer), I am still unsure of if he/she is male or female:

I have owned Kreiger for about 3 weeks now and he/she has doubled in size, from 7 grams to 14.

 

[SC Geckos]

Nice! Gonzo look like a monster that's for sure.

 

[subjectivereality]

Thanks! Gonzo is probably the most relaxed gecko I have encountered. He doesn't even bother using his hides most of the time.

I'm a bit interested in his genetics. I got him at a chain pet store, so It is a bit up in the air. Although I am suspecting that he may have some giant in him...I don't think Leos get that big on good nutrition alone.

 

[Phoenix1115]

I thought the same, but I bred two average sized leos, even maybe slightly small ones, two summers ago and held on to one of the babies. He's now 12in long! By far the biggest leo I've ever seen. So maybe eating well (possibly even slightly over eating at times...) can just cause giant leos!

What do you feed yours? Mine is on Fluckers dried medley, and gets the occasional mouse when my snakes refuse. I'd imagine its the mice that have given him his size

 

[subjectivereality]

I feed Gonzo crickets. I have fed him mealworms and superworms from time to time too. He has never touched mice. I actually am limiting his diet because he has developed fat pouches.

He has always been a big eater though...Krieger also seems to be following in those footsteps, it will be interesting to see how big he/she gets.

 

[Kylerbassman]

My female is huge also and she is just a normal. Some Leo's can be huge, but giant is all in the genes. I have seen "giants" that don't reach the size of some "regular" morphs. It's a bit weird and confusing lol. My opinion is that normals are usually more docile (obviously exceptions) but I have a rainwater that is such a pissed off old man. I try so hard to get him to be comfortable with me, but I think it's a lost cause at this point. My normal female will walk right on my hand and up my arm. As far as the pouches go, I have had issues with this before. It's mostly protein and fat build up and not calcium build up as many think. I generally feed 3-4 large supers every 2-3 days and it seems to be a good sustainable diet. It is good to be diverse with your feeders (as you have been doing) but what are you using to gut load?

 

[SC Geckos]

Gonzo looks to be a High Yellow. Some may even consider him a Hypo (depends on who you ask). Of course the actual genetics (any hets) are unknown. He is a very large gecko and could have giant genes in him. Then again he could just be a large gecko.

I thought the same, but I bred two average sized leos, even maybe slightly small ones, two summers ago and held on to one of the babies. He's now 12in long! By far the biggest leo I've ever seen. So maybe eating well (possibly even slightly over eating at times...) can just cause giant leos!

If your gecko is 12" long you may want to get some pictures of his length and weight because I think the largest leo was an animal produced by Ron Tremper (Moose) and he was around 11 1/2". He weighed 140g in the first year and I think was as heavy as 160 ish grams. I am not certain if there have been longer leos than this. I think that there have been some that were heavier.

 

[subjectivereality]

It is good to be diverse with your feeders (as you have been doing) but what are you using to gut load?

I gut load with mostly carrots and apples although I have occasionally thrown in pretty much any other fruit/vegetables I have laying around. I also dust 3/4 of the feeders I feed them with calcium + vitamin d powder. Lately I have been gut loading with some leftover crested gecko diet (my cresty ended up dying in an unfortunate accident and I have some repashy left over).

 

[Kylerbassman]

Sorry to hear about your cresty. I had an incident with a house gecko a few months back and it really upset my entire family. As far as the gut load goes, I doubt the CGD is doing much harm, however, it's pretty high in protein which may be adding to the pouch problem. If you feed supers pretty regularly, they themselves are very high in protein. Maybe use more lettuce, carrots, and apples, and try to stay away from things that could be adding protein to your feeders. Also, are you using Repashy calcium plus? Or did you mean calcium with other additives.

 

[subjectivereality]

Sorry to hear about your cresty. I had an incident with a house gecko a few months back and it really upset my entire family. As far as the gut load goes, I doubt the CGD is doing much harm, however, it's pretty high in protein which may be adding to the pouch problem. If you feed supers pretty regularly, they themselves are very high in protein. Maybe use more lettuce, carrots, and apples, and try to stay away from things that could be adding protein to your feeders. Also, are you using Repashy calcium plus? Or did you mean calcium with other additives.

I did not know that, I have only been gut loading with the crested gecko diet for the past month. Gonzo has had the pouches for much longer than that, they haven't gotten worse. But that could be because I have dropped down to 5 large crickets every 2-3 days. I am not using repashy calcium plus I am using the original Repashy formula for gut loading and then Flucker's Calcium with Vitamin D for dusting.

 

[Kylerbassman]

If you only have been using it for a month, then you're right that its probably not the CGD. Watching diet is good. They can be little gluttons, so once they are adults it's better to regulate intake. The pouches will take some time to go away. It's nothing to be super worried about, it's just good to make adjustments to there food as to not continue the trend. If you see it getting worse, let us know, but you should be good.

 

[Kylerbassman]

Also, I'm not 100 percent familiar with exactly what supplements your giving (I know repashy, just not sure if your using more of a gut load based supplement) I always will recommend repashy calcium plus. I use it every other feeding since I use mostly feeders with high protein and calcium, but many use it on every feeder. It's definitely a lot less guess work and I love the product honestly.

 

[Phoenix1115]

If your gecko is 12" long you may want to get some pictures of his length and weight because I think the largest leo was an animal produced by Ron Tremper (Moose) and he was around 11 1/2". He weighed 140g in the first year and I think was as heavy as 160 ish grams. I am not certain if there have been longer leos than this. I think that there have been some that were heavier.

Oh wow really?? Thats sweet! I have a new scale in the mail that should be arriving this week so I'll definitely be sure to do that when it comes in!

 

[SC Geckos]

it's pretty high in protein which may be adding to the pouch problem. If you feed supers pretty regularly, they themselves are very high in protein. Maybe use more lettuce, carrots, and apples, and try to stay away from things that could be adding protein to your feeders.

These pouches do store protein and calcium but they are nothing to worry about. Some geckos are just prone to having these. They are harmless and sometimes will go away during the egg laying season/breeding season.

 

[Kylerbassman]

^^Agreed ^^ I didn't realize how I said that originally. They can have calcium too, but I know someone on another forum who had them aspirated (maybe spelled wrong lol) but it consisted mostly of protein and less calcium (but still traces), and your right Brad, they really aren't anything to worry about.