Questions

[Tommy13b]

Okay i went to petco yesterday after reading about leopard gecko's for about a month. So i got my gecko(think its an albino bell). and the guy that was working there said i should use calcium sand when i thought i should use newspaper. so i bought this leopard gecko kit and it came with an under heater. Ive fed this little thing 6 crickets by hand so far, buy calcium on 2 of em. so that was yesterdays story

is it good if the temp is 84 on the hot side
ill post some pic's of em in when i get the chance

P.S. there was an old lady working the registers, and she forgot to ring my gecko up, so i got an albino bell(i think) for free!!!

LOL

 

[Tommy13b]

Also i wanna know if calcium sand is okay or not

 

[LizMarie]

Sorry but calcium sand is not seen has ok. If you click search and type it in you'll get a bunch of post on the topic. As you can see it is a big debate on any reptile forum. The possibilty of impaction is too high. Even though some breeders have said that adults 6-7inches can be placed on "Fine Play Sand", but even then there is still a chance of impaction.

Solid substrates are better repti-carpet, paper-towel, slate, etc. I'm not sure about newspaper because of the ink that comes off. Petshops would sell you everything in the store if you let them.

As for the temp I think you can bump it up a little more to like 90, on the hot side. For your set-up do you have some pictures? Or a list of everything you have and all your temps? That way we can fill in any gaps you might have missed in the excitment of getting a leo.

And your soo LUCKY you got a gecko for free.
Congrats have fun with your new friend and don't forget to show us some pictures!

P.S. you might want to get a fecal done on your new buddy because petshops are known for having animals with parasites and other things that we might not see and symptoms won't show for a few weeks. not all but many so its better to be on the safe side.

 

[sushikam]

Calcium sand is a big no...if for whatever reason you feel you must use sand, you should use very fine play sand. But it is recommended not to, because of it being too risky. You were right, use newspaper, or paper towels, or tiles, or even repti carpet. I just wouldn't recommend sand.

If you get some pics posted we can try and help you figure out the morph.

And temp wise, you want to try and get it to be 88-94 on the hot side and room temperature on the cool side. I don't know how your set up is, but you should be measuring the temps on the floor of the tank to get the correct measurement, because geckos need belly heat more than air heat. So to measure that you should have a digital thermometer that has a probe on it to put in the tank.

Congrats on your leo!

 

[Tommy13b]

Well i have my thermomiter on the top of the cage, so i think its gudda be a little warmer down on the bottem

 

[Tommy13b]

hmmmm... guess ill put the em on papertowls for afew days till i get some reptial carpet

 

[LizMarie]

Well i have my thermomiter on the top of the cage, so i think its gudda be a little warmer down on the bottem

You should have a cheap $5 digital one with a probe. Yes it can be a little warmer at the bottom because that it where the heat is being dispensed but you don't know. If its too cold and not the temps btw 88-94 your Leo won't be able tot digest their food, on the other hand the temps can sore into the 100's and possibly burn your gecko or stop the gecko from stepping on the warm side once.

 

[Tommy13b]

He was walking around exploring all night, and he's been sleeping for awhile now

 

[Tommy13b]

Okay all changed to paper towl's , thanks

 

[Tommy13b]

i think my leos got bad eye sight, he misses crickets alot, even the frist one i tryed to hand feed em, he misted and niped my thumb lol

 

[Tommy13b]

okay he seems happyer, out alot more, climbing all over