New gecko mom, housing questions

[sandyvern]

Hi...I am a relatively new gecko mom. I had been given a 'sickly' leopard gecko a year or 2 ago (kid lost interest in it and they were looking for someone to take it) and I tried unsuccessfully to nurse him back to health...sadly Leo did not make it. At the time I was saddened that I couldn't get him back to health and decided leopard geckos were way high maintenance. My only other personal reptile experience is with my 3 bearded dragons and after taking care of poor little Leo, my beardies seemed so much easier. Anyway...this weekend I fell in love with a little guy at our local reptile show and decided to give geckos another chance So now I am hoping to have a better experience with my new little friend (haven't decided on a name yet).

Onto the housing question...currently he is in a 10 gallon aquarium that I already had but been researching some other housing options and just happened to come across the Exo Terra Breeding box (large) and wondering does anyone use them for a permanent housing situation? I am not doing any breeding...but thinking I would like to have more than one in the future and have some what limited space if I decided to get a 2nd gecko. But these look like they might work well and are stackable. And if anyone has any experience using them how does the system work?

Other question is...I know males can't be housed together...but those that have many geckos...do you keep all of them in their own house or do you keep some of the females housed together?

Thanks for any info you experts can share

 

[Music City Geckos]

The large breeder boxes look like they would be big enough. You would have to get some heat tape for a series of them. But after about 5 of them w/ heat tape it would be cheaper just to build/buy a rack.

Female leos can be housed together. There are some issues with this that I have personally run into though. Quarantine newly purchased females from females you already have to make sure there is no crypto, parasites, etc. they would need to be seperated for this. Also I have had females in the past compete for food. You would have to seperate them for that. Lastly, not all females get along, humans and leos.

In the long run I have just found it easier to keep them seperate.

 

[acpart]

The large breeder boxes are 16"x10". A 10 gallon aquarium is 20"x10". Many people now seem to feel that the best minimum size for an adult leopard gecko is a 20 gallon long (30"x12") so I feel that the large breeder boxes are somewhat on the small side for an adult leopard gecko. I have over 50 leopard geckos at the moment because most of my eggs have hatched and most of my leopard geckos haven't sold yet. I keep them in small groups of up to 3 and generally have not had problems, though I'm prepared to separate anyone who is having a problem. As mentioned above, quarantine is essential.

I keep very few of my geckos in racks. For the most part, I buy front opening tanks that are the dimensions of 20 gallon longs but half the height (glasscages.com - stackable tanks --the "half 29's" aren't pictured but are available). I put them on shelves of a book shelf and this works fine.

Aliza

 

[cornsnakegirl]

Hm.... the Exo Terra large box is only 16 by 10, where a 10g is 20 by 10. He's better off in the 10g unless you can give him a 20g long as is the recommended min. housing size.

Some keep females together with success, but it needs to be 10g PER gecko, so in something like a 20g long you could have just two females. Co-habitated gals need to be around the same size though, and in case they don't get along after the initial meeting period you need an extra full setup for one of them.

Hope I helped!

 

[sandyvern]

Lastly, not all females get along, humans and leos.

LOL!!! Oh how true!!! It seems that with a lot of animals females can have attitudes Lots of experience with horses and ferrets and with both I have run into mares that just don't get along with any other horses. And even ferrets...one tiny little girl will throw the whole business (business=group of ferrets) into chaos!!

 

[sandyvern]

I keep very few of my geckos in racks. For the most part, I buy front opening tanks that are the dimensions of 20 gallon longs but half the height (glasscages.com - stackable tanks --the "half 29's" aren't pictured but are available). I put them on shelves of a book shelf and this works fine.

I like the sound of those...for future reference!! I have gotten my beardie tanks from glasscages.com...will have to look into them when the time comes

Over 50?? Do you have a room devoted to them? We have a wall of reptile cages...my bf had a friend build like an "entertainment/reptile unit" for his reptiles....course we have almost grown out of that particular unit. It has space for 3 snakes...4 beardies....and 5 tarantula and scorpion cages. Looks nice but puts a bit of a limit on the amount of animals (which is probably a good thing). One of my beardies died last summer and so I have an empty space to fill

 

[sandyvern]

Hm.... the Exo Terra large box is only 16 by 10, where a 10g is 20 by 10. He's better off in the 10g unless you can give him a 20g long as is the recommended min. housing size.

Some keep females together with success, but it needs to be 10g PER gecko, so in something like a 20g long you could have just two females. Co-habitated gals need to be around the same size though, and in case they don't get along after the initial meeting period you need an extra full setup for one of them.

Hope I helped!

Thanks!! Very helpful...was wondering what the space/gecko would be For the time being my one little guy will be in his 10 gallon...at least until I rearrange my beardies...I have one that I can move from a 20 gal to my extra 36x18x18 tank....so then my new guy can have a 20 gal.

Just researching for the future....

 

[acpart]

I like the sound of those...for future reference!! I have gotten my beardie tanks from glasscages.com...will have to look into them when the time comes

Over 50?? Do you have a room devoted to them? We have a wall of reptile cages...my bf had a friend build like an "entertainment/reptile unit" for his reptiles....course we have almost grown out of that particular unit. It has space for 3 snakes...4 beardies....and 5 tarantula and scorpion cages. Looks nice but puts a bit of a limit on the amount of animals (which is probably a good thing). One of my beardies died last summer and so I have an empty space to fill

My geckos are in my living room and dining room. At this point in the season, there are probably over 90 geckos in residence (plus 2 beardies and a steppe runner). There's a thread on here somewhere where I posted pictures of the 30 (!) enclosures in my living and dining rooms.

Aliza