Why wont he come out of moist hide?

[Dog Shrink]

I know this may be going against conventional wisdom on the humid hide issue, but....

We do not keep humid hides in any of our setups after doing some pretty extensive monitoring on this. The only time we place humid hides or wet crumpled paper towels inside the hides is at shed time.

The reasons for this are varied, but mainly, the geckos LOVE humid hides because they are very comfy and will stay in there way too long. Since humid hides are not at our prescribed 90-92 degree range, we noticed that leos that constantly hung out in their humid hides had greatly diminished appetites....not good...and of course it very negatively affected their color intensity, particularly with lavender and albino leos. The albino leos will brown out quickly when not spending enough time in their warm hides. Then you also have the potential for respiratory infections with humid hides, especially in already humid areas like the Southeast where mold and fungus spore levels can be quite high.

So, none of our leos have humid hides placed routinely in their enclosures. All thrive, have great color, and are very healthy. If we will be away for any length of time however, we do place humid hides in with leos that are due to shed so they have the humidity they need in case they shed when we are away.

As an aside, being in Colorado, we have low humidity, and yet our leos have all done extremely well with this revised aspect of husbandry regarding humid hides.

Good luck with whatever works for you.

Thank you for the wonderful insight, even if it is considered agasint the norm. I do this with Eros too. The hide is in the tank 24/7 but the paper towels only get misted damp when he starts ghosting up. Aside of that he gets his tank misted every other day when he gets fed, & has a waterbowl 24/7. He does have a natuarl set up so between his bark steps and the lil bit of sphagnum moss it tends to keep his humidity just right now that we lowered his temps down to 88-92 range (mostly stays around 90-91 tho).

I gotta hand it to Designer Geckos... their research and willingness to experiment with things a little outside of the norm has proven invalueable to me and my leo as well as making a big difference in his overall happiness and well being imo.

 

[loislane24]

Tried taking him out before spraying his hide today, and he still freaked out just hearing the noise! So I guess @fl_orchidslave is right that even the noise can scare them. From now on I'm going to pour the water in.

Thanks guys! And the debate about whether humid hides are even necessary during non-shedding times is really interesting!

 

[prettyinpink]

You can just use a cup of water, if that's what you're thinking. My guys go NUTS if they hear spray so I don't do that anymore. One ran so fast she ran into the side of the tank, and there was a loud bang and she's my calmest one...not doing that again.

 

[Designer Geckos]

I gotta hand it to Designer Geckos... their research and willingness to experiment with things a little outside of the norm has proven invalueable to me and my leo as well as making a big difference in his overall happiness and well being imo.

Wow, thanks Dog Shrink. I think this needs to be put on our website.

We're just trying to help. We put a huge amount of time and effort into researching and networking with the experts in the field. I love how everyone is willing to help out in the reptile community. I've been involved with many different groups/types of people through the years, and herp folks are the cream of the crop.

 

[Dog Shrink]

Aw feel free Ray (it is Ray right? I hate that the format doesn't have anyones name anymore ) I would be happy to share just how wonderful I think y'all are with the rest of the world If ya need a name to put with it you can just say Kellee E. Atho you don't have a huge post count (thankfully) I think I've read just about every one of them :main_yes:

 

[fl_orchidslave]

I don't keep mine moist all the time either. They really don't need it 24/7 and still happy with a dry paper towel. There again, experience and being able to read you animal will tell you. As a side note, some things will work well for some people and not others, depending on both setup and geographic location.

 

[RyuuKirin]

ok, so I have to interject, because it's kinda on topic.... why keep the moist hide on the cool end? Mine's sorta in the middle, but more on the warm side. Is that bad?

 

[Designer Geckos]

Aw feel free Ray

OK Kellee, you asked for it! :main_thumbsup:

You've been added to our site....you're part of the machine now. Thanks so much.

Ray

 

[prettyinpink]

ok, so I have to interject, because it's kinda on topic.... why keep the moist hide on the cool end? Mine's sorta in the middle, but more on the warm side. Is that bad?

Usually it's called a 'humid hide' and 'humid' = heat to produce the humid. I don't put my hides in, like I said until they're shedding. But when I do I replace their warm hide with it.

 

[Dog Shrink]

OK Kellee, you asked for it! :main_thumbsup:

You've been added to our site....you're part of the machine now. Thanks so much.

Ray

It's all good brother, I just calls 'em as I sees 'em hon :main_yes:

For Ryuu there's a poll somewhere on the forum about that topic, maybe if you put "poll" into the search bar you can find it. It was pretty interesting results.

 

[RyuuKirin]

cool, thanks both of you I tend to leave mine in there, but don't wet it unless he's shedding... (no point as I see it) ... but I just changed containers to a bigger one (bigger in circumference, smaller in height) so it's a little moist (i hate super dry moss, feels gross putting it in the container)

 

[russe306]

My male had an infected hemiphene soon after i got him and had problems shedding due to how he was housed at the pet store. Now he spends at least 75% of his time in the large humidity hide. He sheds better now. I agree that it is just certain gecko's preference about how much time they spend in each hide. My female spends 50 to 75% of her time in the foam hide.