May get a Crested Gecko?

[clouded_leopard]

Hello! I have recently gotten interested in Crested geckos and I have quite a few questions.

Heating
1. Is 70-80 degrees all the time okay or do they need a warm and cool side?
2. Do they require day and night cycles with day and night bulbs?
3. Which is better: Heat lamps or heat pads?
4. Do they require a heat source?

Humidity
5. Is 50% humidity for most of the time okay? I will mist the enclosure at least twice a day to get the humidity up to 80% for several hours.

Feeding
6. Do they need insects like crickets or can they be fed only CGD?
7. If I feed CGD, do I need to feed other fruits such as blueberries and mangos?
8. Where do I place the food dish? On the ground or half way up?

Supplements
9. What kind of calcium and vitamin supplements do they need?
10. How often do I dust with the calcium and vitamin supplements?

Cleaning
11. How often should I clean the enclosure?

Cage
12. Is a 18" x 18" x 24" okay for one crested gecko?

Health
13. What is a healthy size and weight for a adult crested?

Thanks!

Edit: Also, what supplies will I need?

 

[Nick D.]

Crested Geckos are great. 70-80degrees all the time is fine. It's best to have day night cycles, but this can be provided simply by being in a naturally well lit room, no fancy bulbs needed since they are nocturnal. They dont need a heat source provided the temps dont fall far below 70, ever. 50% humidity is fine throughout the day, but it should be raised to around 80% at night.
They do not need insects as cgd is a complete diet, a bonus for those that dont like bugs, but many people provide insects weekly or bi-weekly to entice the geckos instinct to hunt, as well as give it some excercise. When feeding cgd, only give fresh fruit as a treat, it is definitely not needed, and can throw off the balance of the diet, not to say they can never be offered. Placing of the food dish is up to you and the gecko. Some dont like to come down from the foliage often so they dont eat much, while some dont care at all, like my crested. The mushroom ledges do look nice though, but you can do certain DIYs to raise the dish if you would like.If you intend to feed insects then dust with calcium everytime, if no insects then no dust.
You should change paper towel once a week, if you used coco fiber or something like that i suppose you could mix it around every week and completely change it once a month. That cage is big enough for one, two if they were both females, but you cant tell until they are adults.
A healthy adult will weigh between 30-40 grams, and reach about 8in. As far as what you will need you can check out a bunch of different caresheets, but the most important thing would be lots of plants, real or fake, to utilize the height of the cage as well as provide places to hide.
Hopes this helps, take care.

 

[clouded_leopard]

Thank you so much for the reply!

 

[clouded_leopard]

I have one more question: do they require temperature drops at night? Thanks!

 

[clouded_leopard]

Is this what I need?

• Cage
• Substrate
• Hygrometer
• Thermometer
• Plants
• Vines & Branches
• Food dish
• Water dish
• CGD
• Spray bottle

What kind of supplements do I need?

 

[Nick D.]

They do not require temp drops. I believe they come from a region where the night/day temp differential isnt very large, i may be wrong on that. I cant think of anything else off the top of my head that you would need. You dont need any supplements if you just use cgd. If you use insects they will need to be dusted with calcium. The cgd takes care of their vitamins, as long as theyre eating it. If you plan on getting a juvenile it would probably appreciate a few crickets a week, but if not it will go to the cgd after a few days most likely.

And paper towel works great as a substrate for juveniles, it also helps you make sure theyre eating (poo around). They can be easily switched to something more appealing when they reach adulthood, but then ingestion of the substrate has to be a concern, only if your feeding insects.

 

[ice gecko]

most people do drop the temps at night if there keeping there gecko at around 76 during the day. it seems to be a sweet spot temp for them and then dropping to around 70 at night. you can have it go lower. but lower then 65 will cause the gecko stress and will be to cold. anything above 85 will also stress and kill your gecko faster then a colder drop.

 

[jb62]

Could a automatic sprayer be used?
I used these with chameleons and set the timer and duration so they always had water.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

 

[katie_]

I always keep my cresties betweet 70-75, higher than that I believe gets a bit dangerous. I believe 74 is ideal.

 

[Nick D.]

An automatic sprayer would work, but you would probably have to put it on the longest duration of spray; they need it pretty humid at night. I would also agree that 74 would be ideal. I suppose i should have put 70-76, instead of 70-80.