[GypsyKundie]

Hello, I have been slinking around the forums for awhile now and finally registered. This seems to be the only good Cat Gecko forum, so it's my new favorite place

I recently went to a reptile shop and got to handle the cat geckos I have admired on the net. They are seriously the most awesome animals i have ever seen. They are elegant, exotic and kinda creepy! So, obviously, I WANT THEM!

But...I am a poor college student, and not a herp expert (only kept frogs, salamanders, and turtles until my current best friend Leopard Gecko), so I want to be really prepared before I even think about getting one. Sooo...A few questions...

1) Reading through the forums, it seems that Marcus is "the man", and he has only kept them for 4 years, is that right? Is there any record of longer lives in captivity? If so, how long?

2) I have read that they should not be handled much. How often is ok? Does it make a difference if they are raised from babies and are used to handing?

3) What are the common problems people have with them, and how intense/expensive are the treatments?

4) Are there any moral dilemmas with taking them from the wild (does it negatively effect their eco-system, are they endangered, etc.)?

5) Will any vets be able to treat them? What animal is their closest relative that is domestic that vets can compare them to?

6) Lastly for now, having not had too much experience with herps, but if I read every book/source I could on these guys, do yall think I could handle one? Or would you only recommend really experienced owners?

Thanks in advance for any advice you could give me - if I do end up getting one it wont be until next year when I have transferred, settled it, and saved up, but at that time I will be lookin' around for pretty babies to purchase from you guys

[bodom85]

I am new with cat geckos myself. Just got a pair last week. The only question I feel confident to answer for you is your last question. It is up to you to decide if you are ready for one. I've been asked this about snakes alot. Its the same answer. You see the kind of care they need on a daily basis. Do you think you can provide that kind of care for them? If you can provide them with the daily care they need, a home, stable environment and food then I'd say go for it. If you cant spend a few minutes a day to moniter their activity, feed and water them and do clean ups then I'd say no.

[GenAureliano]

I'll only touch the first few ... Marcus has been working with them for much longer than four years, more than a decade if I am correct. They really do not tolerate handling. Keep it to a bare minimum, just when you need to weigh them, clean the cage etc. One raised from a baby may handle it better, but you are running a decent risk by handling it as a baby. Some adults will just deal with it better than others too.

Common risks I have run into is shedding problems especially in animals under 3 months. Others have run into issues when using hard water, but most of us are using DI or RO water so it is kinda a problem of the past.

That being said I do think someone who wants to work with these guys can successfully. They are easier than many think. Major concerns that you may not be able to help are your climate. They do real well in Northern California and on the coast, but San Diego and the Central Valley may just get too hot and would require an AC room, which will be way more expensive than the geckos for a poor college student.

[GypsyKundie]

Thanks guys!
Well northern California is precisely where I am moving, so there's a check on the yes side
There aren't other typical heath problems? Parasites?

In that way they seem easier than Leos, there seems to be SO many things that can go wrong with Leos...and they are supposed to be the easiest! Mine's great though (after getting through petstore impaction)...I'm obsessive about checking her cage/water/skin/poops like 5 times a day, so I don't think that aspect will be a problem (the paranoia left over from her being so sick i guess).
It seems weird to have pets you can't hold, though...the one at the pet store was really chill...looked me straight in the eye, climbed on my shirt and just hung there. I guess I shouldn't confuse "calm" with "happy" though...

Anyway, sorry, I'm a rambler, but that helps a lot, thanks

[bodom85]

I used to think it was odd having pets I cant hold. I have no problem now. I just sorta let them do their thing while I watch and moniter. I do get my stuff out from time to time. Then again I keep venomous snakes so hands off isn't much of a problem for me.

[Riverside Reptiles]

What you really need to do is go through this forum and read as many of the old posts as you can stand to read (ie all of them). There is a huge wealth of knowledge here that will answer most if not all of your questions. When you ask very general questions like, "what can go wrong with them", it's very hard to answer. Because, like any other animal, there's a million and one things that can go wrong. All too often people think that there's some sort of "recipe" for raising different animals.

[GypsyKundie]

Originally Posted by Riverside Reptiles

What you really need to do is go through this forum and read as many of the old posts as you can stand to read (ie all of them). There is a huge wealth of knowledge here that will answer most if not all of your questions. When you ask very general questions like, "what can go wrong with them", it's very hard to answer. Because, like any other animal, there's a million and one things that can go wrong. All too often people think that there's some sort of "recipe" for raising different animals.

Well, I just meant the most common. Like with Leos it would usually be parasites, impaction, stress, and shedding problems, right?

Do Cat Geckos get parasites often?

I have been reading though them, I just wanted some straight answers. These were the questions I felt the old posts weren't clear on - but I haven't looked through ALL of them yet, so I'll go look more...