Newbie gecko

[JpLeoGecko14]

I have recently acquired a Adult Gecko without much knowledge of how to care and attend its needs. The previous owner was a college student, and the only information he has given me is that he thinks it may be dying and it is an adult. I've had the Gecko for 4 days now and it has yet to eaten any of the mealworms that I also received to feed him with. He is not vary active and dose not come out of his rock hiding place. Any advice our comments will be extremely helpful.

 

[Jellybean]

Read the forums, and do some searching on google. You should be able to get a good grasp of raising these animals fairly quickly. Also make sure you do not keep him on sand and a lot of times crickets tend to be a much better choice when you are not sure of the diet the gecko previously had.

 

[im faster]

I need to copy and paste this..

ok first google search a care sheet that will give you most of the info you need..

as for it dieing.. post a picture and we can tell you how healthy he looks as far as you can with a picture..

if you even REMOTELY think he is possibly dieing.. TAKE TO A QUALIFIED HERP VET.

as for eating.. he may not eat for up to a couple weeks due to the change of environment.

 

[JpLeoGecko14]

The cage came with sand in it ive read several times this is no good. But I have yet to see what is a good substitute any suggestions?

 

[Holly12]

Oh no here we go again sand being use for substrate not a good idea sand is so bad for leos. Reptile crapet tile papper towels will do good for leos.

 

[JpLeoGecko14]

View attachment 38782

 

[ks7777]

View attachment 38782

He doesn't look unhealthy by the picture his tail looks nice and fat, I would suggest.. reading these.. http://www.leopardgeckocare.net/housing-cage/leopard-gecko-terrarium-vivarium-setup.html

http://www.leopardgeckocare.net/leopard-gecko-vivarium-lighting-and-temperature-setting.html

Hope everything works out I will find my reptile book, and post more stuff

 

[subjectivereality]

I've had the Gecko for 4 days now and it has yet to eaten any of the mealworms that I also received to feed him with. He is not vary active and dose not come out of his rock hiding place. Any advice our comments will be extremely helpful.

This is normal, changes in environment will stress a gecko out. Unlike warm blooded animals, for reptiles 4 days without food is not that big of a deal. When I first got my leo he didn't eat for almost a solid week. The fact that he has not come out of his hide means that he is stressed, it may take him a bit to get comfortable with his surroundings before he comes out. My advice to you is to dust some meal-worms and put them in a shallow dish right outside of his hide, he might be too scared to come out, however he may feel comfortable with eating from the safety of his rock.

Things you need to have in order to properly care for a leo:

Food: Crickets, Mealworms, Superworms, Roaches, Waxworms (only as a treat, they can be addictive). Be sure to dust them with calcium dust before you give them to your leo.

Tank: 10 gallons for each leo. You have 1 so you need something the size of a 10 gallon tank.

Substrate: Reptile Carpet, Slate, Paper towel (possibly the easiest).

Heating: Heat pad on one side of tank is best, they need belly warmth, use a thermometer to test the temperature at the floor, it should be in the 90's.

Hides: 1 hide on the warm side, 1 hide on the cool side, 1 moist hide which is misted with water for shedding (it doesn't have to be in there all the time, only when you notice your gecko starting to look chalky).

Water: Provide your gecko with a water dish, and buy some water purifier from a pet store, use that on any tap water you give to your gecko. You can also use most bottled water.

Vitamins: A bottle cap full of calcium dust should be made available in the tank for your leo, if they need it.

That's all I can think of at the moment.