I am a new leopard gecko owner and i think something is wrong with one of them...help

[tia&chip]

I have reacently purchased 7 leopard geckos and i think one of them might be sick. it seemes a little skinny when i bought it but i figured it was just because it was hungry cuz it was in a tank with a bunch of others. when i bought the first 3 (which the one who i think is sick was in this batch) they were all fine except for the one being a little on the skinnier side. so i bought mealworms. i did what the pet shop said to do when i first bought them which is to mix the reptile vitamin powder with the mealworms but my new little friends didnt seem to be interested. so i went the next morning and bought live crickets...really little ones. It seemed to like them and it plumped up pretty quickly after eating like 6 of them. I noticed last night that it was just as skinny as it was when i bought it but this time it has no interest in the crickets or the mealworms. i have stayed up all night researching on what could possibly be wrong. i have everything set up right. i have them all in a 40 gallon breeder tank cuz i am not sure of the sexes and since they were all in the same tank at the store, i didnt see a problem with it. (i went back the next day and bought 4 more of them which the pet shop said they were from the same batch cuz they didnt add any more to the tank). i have the UTH inder the tank with a small light lamp over top of the tank just to add some extra heat on the one side cuz the tank is so big. i have a tuberware container set up with the damp spagm moss in it and also their container of mealworms. i bought the same house for them that the pet store had for them cuz they seemed to like it. i also have a pretty big water dish in there for them as well. i used newspaper in the bottom of the tank and some like to hide in between the overlapped part over on the warmer heater side. so what do i do to help this little "runt" sort of speak to perk back up to the way he was on the second day at his new home?

desperatly in need of some advice cuz im scared for this little helpless friend of mine and cant sleep knowing that something just doesnt seem right!!!!
:main_no:

 

[acpart]

I know you're trying to do the best for your new pets and I have a variety of things for you to try, but first I'll say that especially if you bought these guys from a large pet store chain, often the geckos are already not in the best shape even before you get them. They have often been kept in too large a group in too small a space and shipped before they are old enough to tolerate it well. That said, here are my suggestions:
--put the sick/skinny one in a separate tank so it doesn't either infect the others if it's contagious, or get bullied by the others
--if you're still within the return period at the pet store, consider returning the sick/skinny one (I know you may want to "save" it, but it's likely that it's at the end of its rope already
--similarly, think seriously about returning some of the others and starting with 2-3 or so instead of 7 for the following reasons:
7 babies in a 40 gallon is marginal; 7 adults is way too many
you don't know yet if you have males or females. What if you end up with
7 males! You'd need 7 different cages.
if you're just starting out, 7 is just too many to start with . It's not like
when you get a fish tank and put a whole lot of different fish in there
geckos are naturally solitary creatures and although they can and do live
in groups in captivity, there is more likelihood for bullying and fighting.
the more geckos, the more chance of this happening; 7 really increases
your chances of a bad outcome
--make sure you have the right floor temperature on the hot side by getting a digital thermometer with a probe, if you don't already have one and be prepared to get a thermostat or rheostat to control your floor temperature
--go to the top of this page, click on "articles/caresheets" and read some more caresheets, if you haven't already done so. While you'll notice some differences in the advice, the things that are the same in all (or most of) the caresheets are probably the most correct

Keeping reptiles is a wonderful hobby which I've enjoyed for the last 8 years. I've learned a tremendous amount. Start small and you'll have a better time.

I know your heart is in the right place, but it's likely that some more experienced people will read this and have a strong reaction because you're probably making some basic mistakes due to inexperience. I'm hoping everyone else who wants to reply can educate through kindness and not scolding.

Aliza

 

[tia&chip]

Thank you...I appreciate your advice. My boyfriend used to breed snakes so he has lots of tanks. I have already put the skinny one in a seperate tank with the UTH in it. Like i said the only reason i have them all together is because thats how they came and when i talked to the pet store they said that would be fine till i determined the sex of them. which from all the research i have done in the last 8 hours or so...it only looks like i might have 2 males which i have already seperated. They are all very friendly and i try to stick my hand in there about 2 times a day so they cant get the sent of me. i dont touch them but i saw that if u stick your finger up to them and let them smell you, that they will get used to you and not feel as tho you are an enemy. is this true?

 

[fl_orchidslave]

It would be best to separate them all and monitor each one individually for any potential issues. They can later be re-introduced if you want to have a community tank. Seven is way too many to start out with and you could easily become overwhelmed. Aliza offered you some good advice above.

Pet shops house them together because looks nice to the consumer, and is both cost effective and efficient to care for, but it's only temporary because they expect the geckos to be selling.

 

[tia&chip]

ok. thanks i will definitly serperate all off them into their own tanks for the time being to see how they are. i do have 2 of them that seem to be really attached to each other. they lay with each other and when when comes out of the hut the other one follows. what would your opinion be as far as seperating these 2? i only wanted three to begin with but then my boyfriend suggested getting a couple more cuz he wants to breed them but from the continuous research i have done....i have hatchlings. how can i tell how old they are? i see that petco is not such a good place to be getting geicos from considering all the negativity i have been reading about them on here. what is your opinion?

 

[lillith]

You may want to consider that you have absolutely NO IDEA what sort of genetics grab bag pet stores carry. They could be hets of different albino strains, they could be anything.

Spend the next year getting to know husbandry really well.

I would consider returning some of them, as mentioned. No one will buy offspring of unknown genetics, including large pet stores. They generally will not buy from small breeders, only wholesalers.

Your enthusiasm is good, but use it to learn first, then maybe consider breeding later...

 

[acpart]

The two that seem to be really attached may actually be a case of one bullying the other. One type of bullying is where the dominant gecko follows the other one around and keeps sitting on it wherever it goes. I'm not saying that's what's happening, but it is a possibility to consider.

Aliza

 

[roger]

Thank you...I appreciate your advice. My boyfriend used to breed snakes so he has lots of tanks. I have already put the skinny one in a seperate tank with the UTH in it. Like i said the only reason i have them all together is because thats how they came and when i talked to the pet store they said that would be fine till i determined the sex of them. which from all the research i have done in the last 8 hours or so...it only looks like i might have 2 males which i have already seperated. They are all very friendly and i try to stick my hand in there about 2 times a day so they cant get the sent of me. i dont touch them but i saw that if u stick your finger up to them and let them smell you, that they will get used to you and not feel as tho you are an enemy. is this true?

Seperate ALL the leos immediately and Stop listening to the pet store !! Secondly if u bought that many leos you should have done research before you bought them and not after.The pet store is giving you bad advice.Better yet , return all the leos and get your money back until your research is done.You obviously bought more than you intended to buy on an impulse.

 

[Pinky81]

+1 to all of Aliza, Laney, and Janece's advice. Its very true if your goal is breeding none of the Leo's you have are good ways to do it, you have no clue what your Leo's are or come from. And I agree with returning all but maybe 1 or 2 to start!

 

[tia&chip]

I want to thank you all for your advice. I did do tons of research on them. i am not wanting to breed at all anytime soon...that was never my intention. That was my boyfriends idea and I told him that wasnt gonna happen any time soon. I wanted them because I like reptiles. Just so everyone knows, the one that I thought was sick, isnt. i seperated all of them into their own little homes in a rack. They are all doing absolutly fantastic and are as healthy and active as (from the research i have done) they are supposed to be.

 

[acpart]

That's great to hear. Sometimes new geckos take some time to start eating when they come to a new place. I hope they continue to do well and bring you much joy.

Aliza