Is this a normal Tangerine?

[LeoFan]

This is a rescue Tangerine that came from a mom and pop pet store that took very poor care of thier animals.
She obviously had a missing tip tail, but she was a light, normal tangerine.
Now (As photo shows) has gotten really dark.
Is this okay? She eats healthy and I can't see any other problems.
I have heard of "Choclate Tangs" but she used to be normal.
Any suggestions?

(Also she does have some shed on her, she seems to shed very normally. She had very bad stuck shed on her toes when I first got her but she seems fine now, besides from the missing toe tips you can see in the photos)

(Before, about 2 months ago)

Now

 

[robin]

what temps are you keeping her on and do you offer her a humid hide? also what kind of supplementation are you using

 

[LeoFan]

Hot side is about 95-99 degress, but she is never over there. She is always on the cool side, which is about 78
She has the container humid hide on the hot and another humid hide on the cool, and she get calcium in the dish in her cage and about once a month crickets dusted with calcium with d3.

 

[robin]

well to start off her warm, side is too hot, she needs to be 90-95 since its 95-99 it may be too hot for her and thats why she is staying on the cool side. also do you give her an vitamins like herptivite or anything?

 

[LeoFan]

I looked at my heat pad and put a timer on it and now its about a constant 92, only getting to 94 at the end of the timer. She sure enough was over at the heat pad and has lightened up, still a bit muddy looking but a lot better.

I don't give her anything but calcium now, but when I first got her she was on antibiotics and a vitamin powder that came from the vet. I was told after she got better I didn't have to give her anything extra.

 

[robin]

a vitamin supplement like herptivite once a week is a good idea i am glad she is over there. her color should go back to somewhat "normal". you also may notice an increase in the amount she is eating as well

 

[727geckokid]

well to start off her warm, side is too hot, she needs to be 90-95 since its 95-99 it may be too hot for her and thats why she is staying on the cool side. also do you give her an vitamins like herptivite or anything?

I keep all my geckos hot side at 97-98 and i have never seen any ill effects from it. On the contrary thanks to Gregg M or Paulnj (cant remember which) for bringing it to my attention my geckos are actually doing better. My females hardly loose any weight during breeding and never stop eating. Sorry dont know whats going on with your gecko but i think she looks cool :main_thumbsup:

 

[GeckoNub]

What color substrate do you use?

I know it may seem like a weird question but when i keep my geckos on white paper towel most of the time they are bright.

When i put them on reptile carpet, i got sent brown and grey, they seem to darken up especially Yoshi who goes almost brown when most of the time he is a nice yellow color.

Not sure if i read that they can change color depending on how light or dark the substrate is but it seems to ring a bell in my head :idea2:

 

[robin]

I keep all my geckos hot side at 97-98 and i have never seen any ill effects from it. On the contrary thanks to Gregg M or Paulnj (cant remember which) for bringing it to my attention my geckos are actually doing better. My females hardly loose any weight during breeding and never stop eating. Sorry dont know whats going on with your gecko but i think she looks cool :main_thumbsup:

thing is if you notice she is ONLY staying on the cold side, something is not right so start with the basics. MAYBE it is too hot for individual gecko. turn the temps down a bit and see if anything changes (like her color, eating habits etc).

so many people rush to start thinking the worst right off the bat. start basic (basic leo keeping) and work up. process of elimination and common sense are some of the best things you can do to figure out a situation.

 

[LeoFan]

What color substrate do you use?

I know it may seem like a weird question but when i keep my geckos on white paper towel most of the time they are bright.

When i put them on reptile carpet, i got sent brown and grey, they seem to darken up especially Yoshi who goes almost brown when most of the time he is a nice yellow color.

Not sure if i read that they can change color depending on how light or dark the substrate is but it seems to ring a bell in my head :idea2:

That is wierd! They are on green reptile carpet, but I am doing a transition to tile

 

[Deko Gecko]

you have the answer for your question!
Wen leopards doesent have a constant 85 - 92 deg. they tend to get darker!!!
I recomend to take temps. to a constant minimum of 85 deg. in the cold side and turn
the hot side to a constant 90 deg... you will notice your tangerine will transform into a tang. again!!
Your hotside of your tank is to hot!!!!! turn it a dit lower....97,98,99 degr... is to hot thats why your leopard is staying away!!

 

[Deko Gecko]

Actualy the problem is not the temp. of the hot side!
Is the diference betwen the cold/hot sides... the cold side is very cold and the hot side is hot theres no balance in the temps....

 

[Riyo]

you have the answer for your question!
Wen leopards doesent have a constant 85 - 92 deg. they tend to get darker!!!
I recomend to take temps. to a constant minimum of 85 deg. in the cold side and turn
the hot side to a constant 90 deg... you will notice your tangerine will transform into a tang. again!!
Your hotside of your tank is to hot!!!!! turn it a dit lower....97,98,99 degr... is to hot thats why your leopard is staying away!!

I have to disagree with this, personally. All of my animals are kept between 94-97F (including my tangs) and they are both usually very bright (unless going into the shed cycle). I have noticed that a tang's color can vary wildly from day to day.

I have seen substrate color make a difference, as well. Good luck!

 

[Deko Gecko]

what exactly you are disagreen in? I just want to clear that high temps (90-97) actually makes leo brighter and lower temps makes your leo to darken up!
And in my personal opinion 97 deg... is to hot!!!!....

 

[LizMarie]

I've kept my Leos at 97 with no ill effects if anything she got brighter and hungrier after her ovulation period passed. But if your noticing that she's shying away from the warm side try bringing down the temps. Mine seems to enjoy 94 the same way I do .

As a "rule" I don't like my warm and cold side to vary more than like 10 degrees or so degrees, so I like my cool side to be 82-ish or so something around there.

 

[Gregg M]

I dont think the hot side is too hot but she might not have the proper heat gradient... Ambient air temps are just as important as basking temps... I can not stress this enough...

I have been keeping a pair of leos in a natural set up for quite some time... The hot spot is a heat light... Temps under the light get over 110 degrees and they do infact utilize the high temps and bask under it for a few minutes and then either go and hide out for a while or go hunting for food... They do this several times a day...

 

[Sandyballs]

soooooooooooo......any update?