New to Leos, good supply list?

[nerys]

Hi!
I don't have a leo, but i am very interested in getting one. I was wondering if these products would be good for setup. I have a 30 gallon aquarium that I plan to turn on it's side because using the side as the bottom has more floor space than the actual bottom (the right way up). I did this because I've read that leos don't climb much, but I've also seen pictures of diy hides that have levels and ways to climb. Do leos climb much? My tank (on its side) is 30 inches long, 19 inches wide, and 12 inches high. Is 12 inches enough for climbing space (if they need it)? Anyway, here is what i plan on buying for my tank:



Leopard gecko- $120

Is this a reasonable price for a leopard gecko? Im not sure what type I want yet. Also I'm thinking of getting it from a reptile convention rather than a pet store.

UTH-$28.34 (w/tax)
Amazon.com : Fluker's Ultra Deluxe Premium Heat Mat, Large (17 x 11 inches) : Aquarium Heaters : Pet Supplies

This UTH would cover 0.3 less than 1/3 of my tank. (I used a area calculator to find the area of my tank in square inches, then used math to find out what one third of that was. I found this UTH and used the area calculator to find its area in square inches)

Heat gun-$19.74 (w/tax)
Amazon.com : Zoo Med ReptiTemp Digital Infrared Thermometer : Pet Thermometers : Pet Supplies

Do I still need to buy thermometers with probes if i get this?

D3 supplement (8 oz)-$11.56 (w/tax)
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002GC4B6O/ref=twister_B0057V3G26?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002GC4B6O/ref=twister_B0057V3G26?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

Is this a good brand? How long will will this last?

Calcium supplement (6 oz)-$19.64 (w/tax & shipping)
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00K6ZDF4W/ref=twister_B00P2WUNU8?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00K6ZDF4W/ref=twister_B00P2WUNU8?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

How long will this last? Also, I read that a calcium dish should be provided at all times. Is this true?

Thermostat (for UTH)-$34.93 (w/tax)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...N=B000NZZG3S&linkCode=as2&tag=onlinegeckos-20http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...N=B000NZZG3S&linkCode=as2&tag=onlinegeckos-20

Mealworms (1000 ct)-$14.20 (w/tax)
http://www.amazon.com/1000ct-Mealwo...Medium/dp/B00CQMTP56/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_tophttp://www.amazon.com/1000ct-Mealwo...Medium/dp/B00CQMTP56/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

How long will these last? What size do I need? How do I gut load them?

Slate tile (need 3 [12x12 inch])-$3.08 (w/tax)
http://www.lowes.com/pd_16286-43276-L301123_0__?productId=3773513&Ntt=slate+tile&pl=1http://www.lowes.com/pd_16286-43276-L301123_0__?productId=3773513&Ntt=slate+tile&pl=1

I read that slate disperses heat instead of keeping it in just one place, is this good? If not, what type of tile should I get?

Ziploc containers for diy hides (Medium size)-$6.00 (approximately)
http://www.target.com/p/ziploc-medi...8#prodSlot=large_1_7&term=Zip+lock+containershttp://www.target.com/p/ziploc-medi...8#prodSlot=large_1_7&term=Zip+lock+containers

Im planing on making my own diy temporary hides out of tupperware. I read that males prefer wet paper towels, and females like damp coconut fiber in the moist hide. Also, do i need any substrate in the warm and cool hides? I eventually want to make some out of floral foam, like this:

DIY: Handmade Reptile Hide brandonheyer.com - A blog of design, development and photography

DIY: Handmade Reptile Hide II, Painting brandonheyer.com - A blog of design, development and photography

I was wondering how to contain the substrate for the hides since there is no bottom.

 

[acpart]

Welcome to GF! I can see you've done a lot of research and I'll give some level of response, but I've just returned from a reptile show and I'm pretty wiped.

In general, you seem to have good ideas about what to get. The heat mat size is fine. If you have a temp gun, you don't need a digital thermometer.

If the slate tile is truly made of slate, it can be pretty heavy (though people use them). I use ceramic tile from Home Depot but try to avoid the really smooth ones since they can be slippery to the gecko.

I use Repashy Calcium Plus which contains calcium, D3 and vitamins/minerals. I dust my feeders every other feeding. There is a division of opinion about whether to keep calcium in the cage. Some people say the geckos somehow know how much calcium they need and others say that the geckos will overdose on calcium and/or D3. I have found in my (10 year) experience breeding geckos that the adults generally don't seem to need additional calcium in the cage, but the hatchlings do. I give my young hatchlings a small bottle cap of calcium without D3.

Hides: For the hatchlings I use paper towel as humid hide substrate and I mist daily. For the adults I use coco fiber since the hides double as humid hides and lay boxes.
In general, the hides without the bottom are dry hides and just sit on top of the cage floor. Obviously, the humid hides need bottoms (mine are glad ware)

Climbing: Leopard geckos are fine without a place to climb. Some of mine like a low ledge. I increase my "floor space" in some of my cages by making a second level which is about 6" above the bottom. I put the laybox/humid hide near it so the geckos can stand on the hide (about 2" off the ground) and climb up to the second level from there. They seem to have no problem doing that. Other people fashion a ramp, but that takes up too much space for my purposes.

Getting a gecko: I definitely recommend getting one from a breeder rather than a pet store. You can go to a reptile show. Avoid vendors that have big enclosures full of tiny geckos for a low price or vendors that can't answer your questions about care or the genetic background of their geckos.
It would be helpful for breeders on this forum to know where you live, because there may be forum member breeders (like me) who live near you. You should also check out the breeders advertising at the top of the page.

Hope that's helpful. I think I got to just about everything.

ALiza

 

[nerys]

thanks!

 

[cowana]

It is great to see someone who has really done there research before jumping into pet ownership! Great job and it looks like you have covered your basics.

Aliza is a great source of information and is spot on as far as care. As far as gut loading goes it is really pretty easy for mealworms. There are some informative threads under Feeding/Feeders. Here is one to get you started:

http://www.geckoforums.net/showthread.php?t=102753

Indyana shared a good site that knows foods to avoid that is on a thread in that category, also.