Random Question

[stephanieluffsu]

Okay well i have 2 juvenile leopard geckos, that are in a 10 gallon tank, with a UTH under one side with the substrate being tile. I feed them mealworms, and i have calcium available to them at all times, and fresh water, with 2 hides on the warm side, a hide in the middle, and a moist hide.
Well when i first got them, i didn't have a lid for the 10 gallon. so i cut a piece of cardboard and punched a bunch of holes into it. I thought that i would need to keep it on there. It worked fine when i just had one (fluffy) in there. When i got the second one(Fluffita), everything went fine.
I was going to type out the full story but i am lazy. so.
lately whenever i open the lid there has been a strong smell, and they had stopped eating. i figured they were in hibernation, so i kept food in there, and didn't worry much. But then, after a few weeks i started to get a bit worried
so i completly cleaned out the tank, and left the lid off( i have no small children or cats or dogs in the house) and they have become more active and eating more.
I was wondering if maybe the lid i made didn't give enough ventaliation or something and their feces made the air foul, making them ill??

 

[ks7777]

Okay well i have 2 juvenile leopard geckos, that are in a 10 gallon tank, with a UTH under one side with the substrate being tile. I feed them mealworms, and i have calcium available to them at all times, and fresh water, with 2 hides on the warm side, a hide in the middle, and a moist hide.
Well when i first got them, i didn't have a lid for the 10 gallon. so i cut a piece of cardboard and punched a bunch of holes into it. I thought that i would need to keep it on there. It worked fine when i just had one (fluffy) in there. When i got the second one(Fluffita), everything went fine.
I was going to type out the full story but i am lazy. so.
lately whenever i open the lid there has been a strong smell, and they had stopped eating. i figured they were in hibernation, so i kept food in there, and didn't worry much. But then, after a few weeks i started to get a bit worried
so i completly cleaned out the tank, and left the lid off( i have no small children or cats or dogs in the house) and they have become more active and eating more.
I was wondering if maybe the lid i made didn't give enough ventaliation or something and their feces made the air foul, making them ill??

I think that it is from not having enough ventaliation, but if you don't have any pets besides the lizards, then I don't see anything wrong with having the top off, just hang the light if you use one or not and just make sure nothing falls into the cage that can cause harm. Then when you have enough money saved up invest in a vented lid.

 

[IslaReina]

You might want to invest in a 20 gallon tank because a ten gallon is too small for two adult geckos and they will outgrow it soon. It would also allow for more air flow

 

[Pinky81]

Question...what were your temps running...ambient and floor. I would think that with cardboard its not the smell that would cause an issue but the fact that air flow would effect heat escape or lack there of. cardboard holds heat decently depending on how thick..just a thought. but I +1 on the 20gal long, it will ensure your leo's don't develop issues from such a small tank living together. So instead of spending money on a screen top, I would just go for the upgrade, and remember Craigslist is a AWESOME place to find used tanks!!

 

[stephanieluffsu]

lol thanks everyone but i'm already ahead of ya'll. i have a 35 gallon tank already, and they were in there, but i didnt want them getting stressed with such a big tank and i didnt have a big enough heating pad. and they are still pretty small.
and the temps are about 88 90 on the hot side, and idk the air temp

 

[fl_orchidslave]

They're fine in a 10 until they're bigger. If you want to use a cardboard lid, you can make some big holes away from the sides to get better air exchange.

 

[Pinky81]

ahhhh gotcha! Yea I agree with Laney just make bigger holes in the cardboard!