Leopard Gecko shying away from light all the time

[generalbutton]

I hope this is the right forum.

Okay, so this isn't my leopard gecko, but my sister won't take the time to check up on this behavior, so I'm doing it for her. Her gecko keeps shying away from its light, which I assume is normal with a cool side, but the thing is, I'm not sure the cool side is very cool at all. Correct me if I'm wrong. This behavior is also new and the gecko does it 24/7. Let me give you a rundown of her tank setup:

She has a heat lamp hanging above the "cool" side, and the light lamp on the opposite (so the hot?). The gecko now always sits in the middle between the two. The hot side has a moist hide, but because the gecko never goes in there, my sister gave up keeping it wet and I guess it now just a hide with some moss in it. The temp is almost always around high 70s to high 80s. Right now it's reading 87° with humidity of 36%.

Anyone have more knowledge than me? Should the heat lamp be with the light lamp? Should she continue to moisten the hide anyway? I just don't want to stress out her poor gecko too much. :main_lipsrsealed:

Edit: Also, any idea why she won't go into the moist hide (when it is moist?) She basically only stays in the middle or sits by the cool side

 

[Ruvik]

Okay. So first of all.. Get rid of the heat lamp on the cold side. There is no need for it at all. On the hot side make sure it has a UTH or under tank heater. On the hide side the ground temp should be 87-95F. The cool side should be 75-80F. There should be two hides. One of the cool side and one on the hot side. The water and food dish should be on the cool side. The reason the gecko is shying away from the light is because the light can hurt their eyes and damage their skin depending on how strong it is. Leopard geckos are Nocturnal animals, thus they are used to no sunlight at all. So if you want to look at them during the day with a light, get a low watt bulb for a lamp and use that. make sure no heat comes from the light and make sure it isn't overly fight. During the night don't use a light at all. If by all means you want to use one to see you gecko at night. Use a low watt red or blue light seeing as geckos can't see those colors. The hide on the cool side should be your moist hide and yes that should be sprayed down every day. the humidity is a little higher than what it should be. See if you can get it to be around 20%-30%. Over all, you need to remove the heat lamp.

 

[Neon Aurora]

EDIT: We posted at the same time. I'll just add one question.

How are those temperatures being measured? With a digital thermometer with a probe, a dial, etc?

 

[Ruvik]

I use a laser thermometer that measures the temp of whatever the laser points at. So i can check ground temps and the temps of my geckos.

 

[generalbutton]

Thanks for answering. I will relay all of this advice ASAP. Heat is being measured with a digital thermometer. A probe thingy lays inside which updates the digital reader automatically.

edit: also, any reason that a heat lamp is a no-no?

 

[Ruvik]

Leopard geckos don't bask to it's really really pointless to have and if you air temp is 87 it was WAAAAY too hot for the leopard gecko in there. the ground temp is most likely in the 100s which is why it's not using the hot hide. and the ground temp on the cool side is most likely too hot from the lamp beating down on it. If I were you I would just take the heat lamp off. You can risk harming your leopard gecko if you leave it at too hide of a temp.

 

[generalbutton]

I see... thank you for the advice!!

 

[Neon Aurora]

Wait, if the temperature is measured by with a digital thermometer with a probe, than 87 is not too hot. 87 is likely the ground temp, where the probe is lying.

Leopard geckos are nocturnal and would typically hide away from bright lights in nature and that's why many in captivity don't like being exposed to them, especially if they're albino.

The ground temp should be about 90 on the warm side, heated by an UTH and regulated by a thermostat. Heat lamps tend to make the air very warm, which is not beneficial IMO, especially in the summer. Leopard geckos need belly heat since they evolved to crawl out onto the sun-warmed rocks of the desert once the sun goes down to get heat. Hot air doesn't do them much good.

 

[Ruvik]

Wait, if the temperature is measured by with a digital thermometer with a probe, than 87 is not too hot. 87 is likely the ground temp, where the probe is lying.

Leopard geckos are nocturnal and would typically hide away from bright lights in nature and that's why many in captivity don't like being exposed to them, especially if they're albino.

The ground temp should be about 90 on the warm side, heated by an UTH and regulated by a thermostat. Heat lamps tend to make the air very warm, which is not beneficial IMO, especially in the summer. Leopard geckos need belly heat since they evolved to crawl out onto the sun-warmed rocks of the desert once the sun goes down to get heat. Hot air doesn't do them much good.

The prob isn't always the best way to get the ground temp. Even if you place it on top of the ground you are trying to take them temp of the ground will still be a few degrees warmer than it should be. and 87 on the cool side is still way too hot.

 

[Neon Aurora]

I don't believe the OP specified if the 87 degrees was on the cool or hot side. I interpreted it as being the hot side. And I disagree about the probes. I mostly use my temp gun nowadays, but I do have probes in two of my reptiles tanks and they always register just about the same temperature as my temp gun.

 

[Ruvik]

I use probes and mine always reads 85, yet my temp with the gun is 90-92. I have even had other breeders tell me at reptile shows to get a temp gun cause it's more accurate at telling them temps. Another thing is that they probes can heat up over time and read a whole different temp from what they really are.

 

[Neon Aurora]

I used digital thermometers with probes for years before getting a temp gun. There's nothing wrong with using them. Temp guns are good, but it's not completely necessary that everyone has one. My digital thermometers work just fine, and so does my temp gun. I've never seen the sort of variation you are seeing. OP has a digital thermometer with a probe and that's perfectly fine.

If you only have one gecko, a temp gun is almost impractical. It's more expensive than a simple digital thermometer, and is not entirely necessary to the gecko's health. OP stated that this isn't even her gecko.