[rockchalk17]

Hello everyone! I am a proud 1st time owner of a leopard gecko, and I have a few basic questions! Thanks for reading!
I was recommended by the pet store to keep a substrate of calci-sand in his vivarium. However, since getting him (Sat. the 19th) I have been reading EVERYTHING on the internet and most of it says no sand. I did notice today his dropping was the exact color of the sand, in addition it was hard and looked to have the same texture as the sand. Should I switch him off sand? If so, where can I find some of these slate tiles I've read about?

I also am concerned about tank heating: I have a small UTH and also a heat lamp overhead, but the sand does not feel that warm to me. There are some rocks for the geck to lay on, but he stays in the hide on the cool side all day. He hasn't ever been in the moist hide I got for him, unless he climbed in at night when I was sleeping.

Thanks so much for any help! I already love my little guy (still nameless: if you have ideas, let me know) and want to give him the best life possible!

[Ozymandias]

yes you should defiantly switch to slate, you can usually find it at a hardware store like homedepo or lowes. the the temp do you know what the actual ground temp is? if not i would recommend you pick up a digital thermometer with a probe so you can monitor temp on the warm side again it's cheaper to pick them up at a hardware store or even a place like target than getting them from a pet store. Good luck

[lauraleellbp]

Welcome to GU!

Take a few minutes to read through the Leopard Gecko caresheet in our Caresheets forum- it should answer tons of questions.

[Yoshi'smom]

Hi! Welcome to Gu! I second everything Roy and Laura said here.
Here's the care sheet that Laura's referring too. It's the best one out there in my opinion.
http://www.geckosunlimited.com/commu...11-update.html
Good luck with your new one! You should post a picture!

[Elizabeth Freer]

Originally Posted by rockchalk17

Hello everyone! I am a proud 1st time owner of a leopard gecko, and I have a few basic questions! Thanks for reading!
I was recommended by the pet store to keep a substrate of calci-sand in his vivarium. However, since getting him (Sat. the 19th) I have been reading EVERYTHING on the internet and most of it says no sand. I did notice today his dropping was the exact color of the sand, in addition it was hard and looked to have the same texture as the sand. Should I switch him off sand? If so, where can I find some of these slate tiles I've read about?

I also am concerned about tank heating: I have a small UTH and also a heat lamp overhead, but the sand does not feel that warm to me. There are some rocks for the geck to lay on, but he stays in the hide on the cool side all day. He hasn't ever been in the moist hide I got for him, unless he climbed in at night when I was sleeping.

Thanks so much for any help! I already love my little guy (still nameless: if you have ideas, let me know) and want to give him the best life possible!

Hi rockchalk17 ~

A hearty welcome to Geckos Unlimited! Please refer to the leo caresheet that Kelly has linked above ^. We've got leos covered .

What size is your UTH? It should be 1/3 the length of your tank and nearly the same width. Be sure to get a digital thermometer to measure the surface temp. Radio Shack has these too.

[rockchalk17]

Thanks everyone for the kind welcome
The UTH that I have is 4" x 5". And it's just a 10-gallon tank. I did go out and pick up a digital thermometer. With the heat lamp on, the warm side gets up to about 83 and the cool side is about 70. Is this an OK temp gradient for daytime?
I also got slate tile for most of the warm side, with a layer of paper towels throughout the whole vivarium as well. Looks much better, less messy and I don't have to worry about him eating sand! Yay!!

I am working on getting him acclimated to my voice and also leaving my hand in his eyesight for a few moments a day. I'm worried about handling him if his 1st shed doesn't get all the skin off his toes. I have not handled him at all as of yet, but I know he's a pretty quick little guy from seeing him scuttle around. Is there a good (safe - I'm scared he'll try to jump out of my hands) way to help him get all the skin off when he sheds? I have a moist hide for him which I check everyday and spray if it feels dry.

Thanks so much! I'm looking forward to soaking up all of your wonderful knowledge

PS: I've decided to name him Wesley, even though I'm not sure if "he" is actually a male or female. Wesley the Amazing Dinosaur, to be exact.
Thanks again, and happy Thanksgiving!

[Elizabeth Freer]

Originally Posted by rockchalk17

Thanks everyone for the kind welcome
The UTH that I have is 4" x 5". And it's just a 10-gallon tank. I did go out and pick up a digital thermometer. With the heat lamp on, the warm side gets up to about 83 and the cool side is about 70. Is this an OK temp gradient for daytime?
I also got slate tile for most of the warm side, with a layer of paper towels throughout the whole vivarium as well. Looks much better, less messy and I don't have to worry about him eating sand! Yay!!

I am working on getting him acclimated to my voice and also leaving my hand in his eyesight for a few moments a day. I'm worried about handling him if his 1st shed doesn't get all the skin off his toes. I have not handled him at all as of yet, but I know he's a pretty quick little guy from seeing him scuttle around. Is there a good (safe - I'm scared he'll try to jump out of my hands) way to help him get all the skin off when he sheds? I have a moist hide for him which I check everyday and spray if it feels dry.

Thanks so much! I'm looking forward to soaking up all of your wonderful knowledge

PS: I've decided to name him Wesley, even though I'm not sure if "he" is actually a male or female. Wesley the Amazing Dinosaur, to be exact.
Thanks again, and happy Thanksgiving!

Hey ~

I'm really happy you chose slate tile for Wesley. Some Home Depots might cut the tile to fit the rest of your tank, but if you upgrade to a 20 gallon long you'll need more.

83 F on the warm side at the floor level is way too cool The temps you want there range from 90-95 F and low 70s on the cool side. The moist hide goes on the warm side.

Got his phosphorus-free calcium with D3 yet and the 100% pure calcium?

Check for the subsequent posts right following my care sheet for 3 different ways you can assist Wesley with problematic sheds.

[rockchalk17]

Thanks again everyone for the help,

I purchased a different overhead lamp which has a higher-watt bulb, so the floor temp on the warm side is warmer! Everything has been going okay, got Rep-Cal brand Calcium + Vitamin D and have some in a dish in the vivarium as well as dusting food EOD... However, I haven't found any droppings in in about 5 days. I have fed 4 crickets/day since his last poop, but he hasn't pooped and I'm starting to get worried. Is it possible that for the few days he was on a sand substrate, he ingested enough to still be having problems almost 2 weeks later? He hasn't shown any decrease in activity level, and he has been gaining weight consistently (his tail has been steadily getting thicker!).
Could he possibly be impacted? If so, is there anything I can do about it without the help of a vet?

Thanks!
Ari

[Elizabeth Freer]

Originally Posted by rockchalk17

Thanks again everyone for the help,

I purchased a different overhead lamp which has a higher-watt bulb, so the floor temp on the warm side is warmer! Everything has been going okay, got Rep-Cal brand Calcium + Vitamin D and have some in a dish in the vivarium as well as dusting food EOD... However, I haven't found any droppings in in about 5 days. I have fed 4 crickets/day since his last poop, but he hasn't pooped and I'm starting to get worried. Is it possible that for the few days he was on a sand substrate, he ingested enough to still be having problems almost 2 weeks later? He hasn't shown any decrease in activity level, and he has been gaining weight consistently (his tail has been steadily getting thicker!).
Could he possibly be impacted? If so, is there anything I can do about it without the help of a vet?

Thanks!
Ari

Ari ~

The Rep-Cal calcium with D3 is just what you need to lightly dust the prey with 2-3x per week. That is NOT the right kind of calcium for the dish inside the tank 24/7. For the latter you need 100% pure calcium. Otherwise there is a chance of D3 overdose.

What is the floor temperature on the warm side of the tank?

Had you been placing the food directly on the sand...not using a feeding dish? Do you see or feel any hard mass in his belly?

Earlier you mention the UTH you have is 4" x 5". I just happen to have bought an UTH today and that size of a ZooMed UTH is recommended for 1-5 gallon tanks. For 10-20 gallon tanks, a 6" x 8" UTH is recommended. Sounds as if you'd be better off with the larger one.

Have you seen my leo recs: http://www.geckosunlimited.com/commu...11-update.html

[rockchalk17]

With the new overhead lamp that I got, the floor on the warm side during the day is pretty consistently 88-90 degrees. My roommates and I keep the apartment pretty cool, so I definitely will pick up a larger UTH in order to counteract that and keep his area warm enough. Is there a brand that offers some control over the temperature setting? For instance, one that could be "turned up" as needed? I seem to be having trouble getting enough heat from the UTH alone. I saw from your caresheet that you can buy a separate thermostat to have some temp control; is there a brand that has this feature built-in?

In addition, after I posted last, Wesley used the restroom in his usual corner! Before going to bed, I did gently feel his abdominal region and couldn't feel any hard lumps or masses, but he did seem to have some darker coloration in his belly than usual.

In response to the feeding question, I have switched to a tile/paper towel combination, so he wouldn't have ingested any sand since then. That was November 23rd (I think) that I switched over. Since he's been on the tile, I have not used a feeding dish - I've actually been feeding him by hand just so I can make sure the crickets don't hide somewhere and die or have to fish them out myself, causing stress to the little guy by my clumsiness.

Thanks!
Ari