Looking to get a leopard gecko as a pet. Some questions if that's alright

[Naile]

Hi guys,


Graduate student here, looking to get a pet for myself. I was considering a leopard gecko.

Just hoping to ask some questions from owners here because I have a couple of concerns before I even look about where to buy one (though I know they're available here).

I understand that a lot of these are pretty common questions but I don't know how often #1 is asked (and it's a pretty important thing for me to consider) so I thought I might as well toss in the others while I'm at it. If it's against the rules, I'm sorry. Please let me know and I'll delete the topic.


1. My parents and grandparents have suppressed immune systems. Are there any health concerns I need to know about?


2. We have an extra 10-gallon aquarium tank that I could use. Are there any specific equipment that I would need to buy, considering I live in the tropics but with an air-conditioning unit on at night?(Are they expensive?)


3. My brother (lives in a separate room) owns a friendly female cocker spaniel. I plan to have the gecko in the aforementioned tank and cover the top (probably with wire) so it can't escape. The door to my room will always be closed. Would it be a concern for the dog to eat/fight the gecko if ever they meet?


4. How are their feeding habits? I read that crickets are an option and someone else suggested roaches (but I would like to avoid the roaches because it would be much more difficult to deal with if they manage to escape). Are worms an option?


5. Are their feces/urine something to be concerned about? (sanitary/disease-wise)


6. Any helpful tips/guides you can offer for me to look at?


7. What age of gecko do you recommend I buy?


Thank you for any advice or words you can offer!

 

[acpart]

Hi,

Welcome to GF. Here are my answers to your questions:
1. immunosuppressed: reptiles and small mammals as well can carry salmonella. It's generally recommended that anyone who handles them wash their hands afterwards. You should also check with their doctors (pregnant women, for example, shouldn't handle kitty litter due to danger of toxoplasmosis and some pregnant women give away their cats but others, including me, just don't change the litter and do fine).

2. Enclosure: a 10 gallon can be used, though most people recommend a 20 gallon in order to provide a good heat gradient. In an environment where it's frequently pretty warm, this may be more important. Consider seeing if you can sell the 10 gallon and get a 20. See below for additional equipment needs.

3. If the gecko gets out near the dog it will probably kill it. It's possible to get a mesh cover for tanks. As long as the gecko stays in the tank and it's covered, it should be no problem (I have many geckos and 2 cats)

4. Feeding: many people feed their geckos mealworms. I find that most of my adult geckos get bored with mealworms and do better with crickets or superworms. Superworms are nice because they're bigger and livlier than mealworms but slower than crickets. If you have access to inexpensive silkworms where you live that's another great option.

5. Leopard geckos choose one area of the tank and poop there. Since they are desert creatures, the feces dry up pretty quickly. If you put a paper towel or piece of tile in their "poop spot" you can just lift it out and brush it off into the garbage.

6. Helpful hints: Read caresheets. Click on the tab at the top of this page where it says "articles" and read some. I think my caresheet is there, but, if not, you can read it here: Geckcessories | Leopard Geckos and Ceramic Gecko Accessories

7. I'd recommend a juvenile past hatchling age. That way it will still be young but not seem so fragile. I don't know what country you're from, but we have a number of members from Asia. If you post in the "wanted" section here and mention where you live, one of the Asian breeders may be able to contact you.

Aliza

 

[Naile]

Hi Aliza!


1. Thank you! My parents don't really like reptiles so it's unlikely they'll be handling them at all. Would that be able to mitigate the risks?


2. Will do, thank you! I'm not sure I'll be able to sell the 10-gallon but I think if I get one that isn't so big yet, I could use it temporarily and move it into a bigger tank in the future if needed.


3. Excellent. I thought the mesh would be sufficient. I don't think it could eat through it anyway.


4. Would crickets be er.. noisy to keep around? Or is there a way of storing them to keep it to a minimum?


5. That sounds perfect. Thank you!


6. Thank you!


7. Would this be a couple of months? The ones for sale that I"m finding are about 3-5 months old. I didn't realize there were breeders from Asia here. I'll try and see. (edit: Whoops, tried looking for the Wanted section. Couldn't find it. Sorry, a little pointer? )


I've said it plenty of times, but thank you so much!

 

[JasonO80]

Check out some of this guys stuff he gives pretty good info on most things you should be considering sasobek11's channel - YouTube I would also get this book Leopard Geckos: the Next Generations: Ron Tremper: 9780615610535: Amazon.com: Books

 

[acpart]

1. as long as anyone who handles the reptiles washes their hands before touching your immunosuppressed relatives (or their food) I imagine it would be OK.
2. in my opinion, a baby or juvenile could start out in a 10 gallon tank
4. If you get immature crickets (below 3/4") they are not yet chirping. Of course, inevitably crickets get out and come to loud maturity behind the couch. That's when you start pretending you're in a lovely campground.
7. 3-5 months sounds good. The "wanted" section is part of the classifieds.

Aliza

 

[Naile]

Check out some of this guys stuff he gives pretty good info on most things you should be considering sasobek11's channel - YouTube I would also get this book Leopard Geckos: the Next Generations: Ron Tremper: 9780615610535: Amazon.com: Books

Thanks! I'll see if the book is anywhere available here.

1. as long as anyone who handles the reptiles washes their hands before touching your immunosuppressed relatives (or their food) I imagine it would be OK.
2. in my opinion, a baby or juvenile could start out in a 10 gallon tank
4. If you get immature crickets (below 3/4") they are not yet chirping. Of course, inevitably crickets get out and come to loud maturity behind the couch. That's when you start pretending you're in a lovely campground.
7. 3-5 months sounds good. The "wanted" section is part of the classifieds.

Aliza

1. Got it! I'll let them know.
4. Okay, thank you! I'll look into the caresheets for more advice about the diets. I'm getting confused as to what I should actually buy (that won't kill the gecko or burn a hole in my pocket) haha.
7. Thanks! A friend actually contacted me recently that her friend is willing to let me adopt his one year old HTCT. He says it's tame and friendly. Hopefully it doesn't freak out at the change in ownership!

Regarding temperature, is the UTH required? The standard temperature here is about 86 F during the day. Not sure how cold it gets at night with the AC though. Maybe around 70? Is that er, bad?

 

[LepoInc]

Under tank heater is necessary. They need the belly heat more than ambient air temperature to properly digest food. I personally use roaches as escaping isnt going to happen and they make no noise and literally 7x "better" than crickets. The book is probably the best thing I ever purchased but you will only find it online

 

[Naile]

Under tank heater is necessary. They need the belly heat more than ambient air temperature to properly digest food.

Figured. Not a problem for me, though I don't know where I could find a store that sells it. Not many reptile-centric shops here. Most of the gecko sources are individuals who imported.

I personally use roaches as escaping isnt going to happen and they make no noise and literally 7x "better" than crickets. The book is probably the best thing I ever purchased but you will only find it online

What makes them better than the crickets? I have found a place that offers these for $5 each:- 1000 superworms
- 200gm mealworms
- 500 pinhead crickets
- 350 small juvie crickets
- 300 medium juvie crickets
- 250 large juvie crickets

I would think that a worm diet would be the most efficient but have been warned about impaction. However, I've also heard that some people feed their geckos exclusively only worms?

 

[Ozy]

My gecko eats pretty much exclusively worms and she is fine. She gets mealworms, supers, phoenix worms and all the other worms (except Waxworms) I gutload them with repashy bug burger and dust every worm she eats with repashy calcium plus. Occasionally she will eat a couple of crickets or roaches....

 

[mörten]

Figured. Not a problem for me, though I don't know where I could find a store that sells it. Not many reptile-centric shops here. Most of the gecko sources are individuals who imported.



What makes them better than the crickets? I have found a place that offers these for $5 each:- 1000 superworms
- 200gm mealworms
- 500 pinhead crickets
- 350 small juvie crickets
- 300 medium juvie crickets
- 250 large juvie crickets

I would think that a worm diet would be the most efficient but have been warned about impaction. However, I've also heard that some people feed their geckos exclusively only worms?

You can order heat mats and thermostats online. I live in Sweden and reptiles are not so popular here either. You just have to make sure that the socket on the heat mat fits into the socket of the wall in your country

 

[Naile]

My gecko eats pretty much exclusively worms and she is fine. She gets mealworms, supers, phoenix worms and all the other worms (except Waxworms) I gutload them with repashy bug burger and dust every worm she eats with repashy calcium plus. Occasionally she will eat a couple of crickets or roaches....

'

Thanks! Not sure if we have that repashy here (short of having it shipped internationally...) so I read that fruits are an alright alternative as a substitute.

You can order heat mats and thermostats online. I live in Sweden and reptiles are not so popular here either. You just have to make sure that the socket on the heat mat fits into the socket of the wall in your country

Just worried about shipping costs. I found some online listings somewhat near to my area but I've never seen a heating mat for geckos before. The photos I saw online are usually big rectangular ones. Is this the same as those? It's described as a gecko heat mat size: 6 x 5.5 inches and 220 volts / 5 watts.

 

[mörten]

Yeah the heat mat is rectangular and quite thin. The size of the heat mat should be 1/3 of the size of the tank. It should cover 1/3 of the tank to provide a heat gradient. You need to have an under tank heater (uth) and thermostat .The termostat is important as it regulates the temperature so that it does not get too hot or too cold. The heat mat on the picture looks fine. What brand is it?

Having experience from ordering from abroad, a tip is to do all the research on the tank setup, gecko health etc and make a list of things you will need. The shipping can sometimes be expensive so that's why it is important to have a list that covers everything your gecko needs. You can order several calcium supplements, multivitamins (VERY important) and reptile cage disinfectants while you are at it so that you get as much value as possible compared to the shipping costs.

I know that there are some professional breeders in Asia, but i can't remember their names. I am sure you can find them on Google or Facebook. They could give you some good advice on good and cheap places to buy the gecko products and can give you tips on how to give proper care to your gecko when living in a rather warm and humid climate

 

[LepoInc]

What makes them better is the nutritional value. It would take about 7 crickets to compare to a roach

 

[Naile]

Yeah the heat mat is rectangular and quite thin. The size of the heat mat should be 1/3 of the size of the tank. It should cover 1/3 of the tank to provide a heat gradient. You need to have an under tank heater (uth) and thermostat .The termostat is important as it regulates the temperature so that it does not get too hot or too cold. The heat mat on the picture looks fine. What brand is it?

Having experience from ordering from abroad, a tip is to do all the research on the tank setup, gecko health etc and make a list of things you will need. The shipping can sometimes be expensive so that's why it is important to have a list that covers everything your gecko needs. You can order several calcium supplements, multivitamins (VERY important) and reptile cage disinfectants while you are at it so that you get as much value as possible compared to the shipping costs.

I know that there are some professional breeders in Asia, but i can't remember their names. I am sure you can find them on Google or Facebook. They could give you some good advice on good and cheap places to buy the gecko products and can give you tips on how to give proper care to your gecko when living in a rather warm and humid climate

The listing doesn't seem to give a brand. Which means it's most likely a cheap brandless one.

I recently found a local group for geckos, so hopefully I could ask them where they buy their gear and feed. I would like to avoid international shipping because I found that that often costs more than what I'm actually buying! (That, and the customs/importation taxes here are crazy).

What makes them better is the nutritional value. It would take about 7 crickets to compare to a roach

Wow, that's... crazy. I wouldn't have expected that. How are mealworms in comparison to crickets/roaches?

 

[mörten]

Were in Asia do you live? I have a recently added friend on facebook that breeds geckos in Manila, Philippines!

 

[Naile]

Were in Asia do you live? I have a recently added friend on facebook that breeds geckos in Manila, Philippines!

That is actually where I am Any chance he'd have info where I could buy the necessary equipment?