New Gecko Owner

[Clover2023]

Hello all. My manager recently gave me her adult leopard gecko. He is very friendly, tolerates being handled, eats well (only crickets) and she said he is pretty easy going. He came with the original set up (a 20 gallon long) with heat lamp, heat pad and UV light.
I know that down the road I will want to change it up a bit. I have also thought about building a wooden terrarium for him as well.

I've never had a leopard gecko before.

What kind of substrate is best for them?
What kind of hides and things do they prefer?
Are there live plants that I can put in there?
What kinds of live food should I try to offer him?

Thanks so much.

 

[Josh]

hello and welcome !
that setup looks pretty nice as it is. coconut husk is a fine bedding. there are some that are less messy and dusty. live foods, try dubia, crickets, and meal worms. Search the forum for humid hide and make sure you have something akin to that.

 

[acpart]

Congrats on your new gecko! I'm a little concerned about the size of the substrate pieces because they are easy to ingest (as opposed to coco fiber which is powdered like dirt). I cared for a gecko once a long time ago that had dropped her tail just before I got her for unknown reasons. A few days after I got her, she pooped out a piece of walnut husk which is what her owner was keeping her on. I think the pain of that in the gut lead to tail drop. I also had another gecko break her jaw (which healed after a vet visit where the vet told me it would heal on its own --he was right) because I had a small container of pebbles for them to dig in.
I recommend you google "leopard gecko care" and read care sheets. Most likely, the ideas that come up over and over again are the correct ones and you can ask about the rest.
As mentioned above, coco fiber works as a substrate. I prefer ceramic tile and I use the coco fiber as a substrate for a humid hide. I feed my leopard geckos crickets and superworms. Other people also feed dubia roaches as well as occasionally hornworms and silkworms (these are really good but more expensive).

Aliza

 

[Clover2023]

What about Reptisand and stuff like that? Is that safe to use?