Food/Nutrients Question / Help Required - Crested Gecko

[Buttons]

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i attempted to post a photo of what i have in my cart so far but the image isn't uploading for some reason so i guess ill have to type it haha.

So far i have this.

Pangea Complete with Insects 8oz - 29.99
ZM Repticalcium with D3 8oz - 14.99
Exo Terra Jungle Bendable Vine - 10.99

After taxes and shipping 78.76 Canadian which i think is more or less fair so far. I did look at the Clark's diet although that website doesn't have to many options in regards to purchasing additional items so i would end up paying 2 shipping fee's right now which i only have a 100 dollar budget left until probably next week Weds which then i am planning to purchase some other things from the local Vivarium Reptile place in Lasalle Ontario. If there is at all anything else i should pickup from Allreptiles that anyone here recommends i will get it right now as again my main concern is health ^_^

-.- Grrr and as i hit post reply the file uploaded oh my lord....

[Elizabeth Freer]

Because Zoo Med's Repti Calcium with D3 expires about 2 years after purchase, I highly recommend the 3 ounce/85 gram container instead. You will be lightly dusting Buttons' crickets with that on a 1x per week basis. The 3 ounce container lasts me beyond the expiration date, but I get a new container once it has expired.

I have about 30 smallish geckos right now.

[Buttons]

Oh okay then i will do that for sure thank you so much for your input.

That brings me down to 69.72 after taxes and shipping Awesome!
If there is anything else tho i should pick up let me know like any type of little homes for him or branches etc. I'm looking for a good lower cost feeding dish to put on the glass i would prefer a magnetic one because i don't trust the sucky cup ones :P

[Elizabeth Freer]

Oh okay then i will do that for sure thank you so much for your input.

That brings me down to 69.72 after taxes and shipping Awesome!
If there is anything else tho i should pick up let me know like any type of little homes for him or branches etc. I'm looking for a good lower cost feeding dish to put on the glass i would prefer a magnetic one because i don't trust the sucky cup ones :P

Since he's a hatchling, you might keep him on paper towels for a while.

How about some sphagnum moss for the substrate on top the paper towels, a cork bark tunnel, and a digital thermometer with a probe?

Can you include some food for your crickets? Otherwise it's just like feeding Buttons an empty pasta shell. Ya know, "We are what we eat!"

Magnetic food dish for sure! I don't know of one.

[Buttons]

Okay awesome! Thats really helpful. Also i have digital and analog one haha. I want to make sure i can double check everything so best to have 2 then 1 right?

[Elizabeth Freer]

Okay awesome! Thats really helpful. Also i have digital and analog one haha. I want to make sure i can double check everything so best to have 2 then 1 right?

How about a ~1.5 inch diameter section of bamboo that you lean diagonally against one side, if you can't find a cork bark tunnel? My crestie uses his bamboo for a "sleeping bag" just about every day!

You may find that analog thermometers only give "ballpark" readings.

[Buttons]

They have the Cork Bark tunnels at the petsmart so im going to pick that up when the new enclosure finally arrives. (latest monday) also yeah i know analogs only give a "ballpark" reading thats why i have both in there so if one is way off i know there is an issue with the product. but they generally stay around 5f of each other so far and the same with the humidity readings its about 3 to 5% different from the digital and the analog one.

Right now i have him on papertowel and i plan to keep it that way for awhile until he gets bigger then i might look into a bioactive setup or just using the bedding you can buy commercially. Don't know yet honestly but i know one thing due to how much i have to keep the fogger on right now i have to change out his papertowel a lot and i have the fogger on a low setting to keep the humidity between 50/60% durring the day but at night i do have to turn it up a bit to keep it at like 70% so again as i was saying the papertowel lol thats the expensive bit right now especially with COVID and such its also hard to get my hands on it where i live they keep not having any at any of the shops ive been going to such as Rexall, FoodBasics and a few other places near my house. Walmart seems to be the only place that have constant papertowel but then again thats out of the way of course so when i do go i just buy whatever im allowed to buy and bring that home haha.

[Elizabeth Freer]

They have the Cork Bark tunnels at the petsmart so im going to pick that up when the new enclosure finally arrives. (latest monday) also yeah i know analogs only give a "ballpark" reading thats why i have both in there so if one is way off i know there is an issue with the product. but they generally stay around 5f of each other so far and the same with the humidity readings its about 3 to 5% different from the digital and the analog one.

Right now i have him on papertowel and i plan to keep it that way for awhile until he gets bigger then i might look into a bioactive setup or just using the bedding you can buy commercially. Don't know yet honestly but i know one thing due to how much i have to keep the fogger on right now i have to change out his papertowel a lot and i have the fogger on a low setting to keep the humidity between 50/60% durring the day but at night i do have to turn it up a bit to keep it at like 70% so again as i was saying the papertowel lol thats the expensive bit right now especially with COVID and such its also hard to get my hands on it where i live they keep not having any at any of the shops ive been going to such as Rexall, FoodBasics and a few other places near my house. Walmart seems to be the only place that have constant papertowel but then again thats out of the way of course so when i do go i just buy whatever im allowed to buy and bring that home haha.

Your fogger has me worried. Crested geckos really don't thrive in such constant humidity! The constant humidity that's causing you to change out paper towels frequently is unhealthy for Buttons.

What are your RH readings without any fogging?

40-60% RH during the day is fine for crested geckos. Spray significantly in the evening and then let the humidity fall throughout the rest of the night and day. A hand sprayer works quite well. Spraymaster misters carry a 5 year warrantee.

[Buttons]

Well, the heat is fine but due to winter slowly creeping up the humidity is just gone completely as in ill wake up and it'll read 20% humidity and such. I've only had to change the paper towel once in about 40 hours and such. Uhm... Other then that yeah the humidity is a questionable thing and i can't seem to keep it are the temps that Crested Geckos seem to need unless i run a fogger constantly. Also from the research i did most places recommend these humidity levels.

Humidity:
Normal->50-60%
Random Spikes->70-80%

So i've been doing my best to keep it that way which is slightly difficult right now but i keep my eye on it constantly so when i see a drop going below 45% i instantly make changes so it goes back to around 50/60%.

Generally speaking i do clean his enclosure a lot to keep it nice and clean and if i see the paper towel is wet or even a bit to damp i will change it out. although from what i've noticed is about 40 hours or so the papertowel sometimes will get a bit to moist and i have to change it out.

[Elizabeth Freer]

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Adequate crested gecko temperatures can be anywhere within these ranges.

Temperatures

• Days: 70-80ish+ *F (21.1-26.7ish+ *C) Sometimes I catch my crestie basking on his chill bar right beneath either a 15 watt or a 25 watt incandescent bulb. Bulb wattage depends upon the season. The temperature right there is low to mid-80s*F (26.7-28.9*C).
• Nights: lows to ~67*F (~19.4*C)