Hello, I'm new here.

[TJ1984]

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Hello Everyone, My name is TJ. I have been an animal lover my whole life, have owned pets since i was a child. Everything from Mice to Dogs. Now I'm into Reptiles,(almost got a tortoise ) I recently bought a leopard Gecko, Havent come up with a name yet(usually takes me a while to name a pet). I am still new to the leopard gecko world so any advice would be welcome and appreciated.

I will now post the stats for my geckos tank.
Size: 10gallon desert set up by Zilla.

Heating: UTH, and a daytime blue bulb.

Substrate: reptile carpet(will be changing soon to prolly tile(i dont like seeing my gecko get stuck when it feeds).

Hides: 1 cave hide from petco on cool side. 1 moist hide on hot side filled with moss(moss? good or bad?). I havent put a 3rd hide in just because i dont think it would fit in the tank...What should i do?

Feeding: Currently feeding 6-8 small crickets daily, with dusting everyday. No cap of calcium in the tank, Gecko wont use it, i left it in there for a week and didnt touch it at all. Again what should i do?

Watering:small clay water dish kept next to the cool side hide.

I also have stack-able rocks, I haven't stacked them to high yet because i want to secure them better. But i dont know what i should use to do so(advice please)

[lisaowens]

10 gallon is not recommend a 20 gallon long is recommend because it is hard to keep the right temps in a 10 and there is not enough room for all three hides. even if he does not use the calcium without d3 still leave it in there are you measuring the temps with a temp gun or thermometer with probe those are the only accurate ways to get a good floor reading. are you dusting with a multi vitamin and calcium with d3? as for the humid hide most people use paper towel it is easy to deal with no chance of mold and you can throw it away and use more without it costing a a lot

[TJ1984]

10 gallon is not recommend a 20 gallon long is recommend because it is hard to keep the right temps in a 10 and there is not enough room for all three hides. even if he does not use the calcium without d3 still leave it in there are you measuring the temps with a temp gun or thermometer with probe those are the only accurate ways to get a good floor reading. are you dusting with a multi vitamin and calcium with d3? as for the humid hide most people use paper towel it is easy to deal with no chance of mold and you can throw it away and use more without it costing a a lot

Thank you. I plan to upgrade to a 20 gallon tank very soon, i had a 30gallon, but i let my little brother borrow it for his spider, and he broke it.

As for the dusting i am using "Repashy superfoods Leopard gecko Calcium plus" which contains calcium, vitamin a, and vitamin d3.

With the moist hide can i still use moss if change it every couple of days? my gecko really seems to like the moss, Since i put the hide in, it hasnt come out except to lay on the heating pad or drink water.

[lisaowens]

i have heard of people using moss you can try and just keep an eye on him and the moss

[thorrshamri]

For stones: You can use silicon sealer/glue from aquarium pet stores. It requires at least 4-5 days to dry up in a well-ventilated place since that glue is NOT toxic to geckos once perfectly dry, but during the drying up process (which takes longer than one could think, as the glue seems dry in its surface but is not inside, if I'm clear). Thus your rocks will be safely sealed, you can even use the same glue to seal them at the bottom of the tank so that your geckos will not dig under them and run the risk to be crushed by collapsing stones.

Water dish: what you have seems perfectly ok.

Feeding: how old are your geckos? Feeding them every day, unless they are small juvies, is not such a good idea. Adults can be fed with more crickets, twice a week. The calcium cap does not harm, it's not within a week yours will get used to it. It does not harm to always leave it in their enclosure.

Hervé

[TJ1984]

Thank you Lisa, I find myself looking at the gecko every 5 minutes or so, i guess just cuz im curios and i think geckos are adorable. so i will definitely keep an eye on both.

Yes Herve, you were very clear. but to make sure, the outer edge of the silicone will be dry before the middle of the silicone? When i do seal the rock i should keep them outside the tank right?

As for age, I'm not sure, petco said they were babies, but they couldnt give me an exact age.

Looks like you have a normal aberrant there the bands on the tail aren't broken, so technically not jungle, s/he doesn't have a full stripe (so not a stripe).

and according to Piranha, i have an Aberrant.

[TJ1984]

Below are some pictures of my gecko Herve.

[TJ1984]

Also i was wondering is it possible to cross breed? Because I think i might have a ghost, It's not everyday but every couple days my gecko gets really pale, But i never find any skin from shedding, then its color returns just as bright if not brighter. So is it possible to have an Aberrant Ghost gecko?

[thorrshamri]

Yes Herve, you were very clear. but to make sure, the outer edge of the silicone will be dry before the middle of the silicone? When i do seal the rock i should keep them outside the tank right?

Absolutely

[Elizabeth Freer]

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"Feeding: Currently feeding 6-8 small crickets daily, with dusting everyday. No cap of calcium in the tank, Gecko wont use it, i left it in there for a week and didnt touch it at all. Again what should i do?"

Crickets make a very good all-around feeder. Important to add variety too. Blaptica dubia (yes roaches) are very easy to breed. Hornworms are a proven leo food, but need to be kept about 55 F to slow their growth. If you already have a wine cooler, you would be set. Mealworms are OK, but only now and then. People do not recommend mealworms as a staple because of their chitinous exterior.

Best to keep a 100% pure calcium carbonate in the tank in a small bottlecap 24/7. The human-grade NOW brand of calcium carbonate is fine. You may be able to find that at health foods stores.

About licking the calcium carbonate: Perhaps your leo is doing it while you're asleep. Maybe he does not have a need for it, because he's getting enough calcium otherwise. Better be safe than sorry.

Leos often shed at night when we are not watching.

About moss in the hide: The real caution to me is how you feed. If you toss in loose feeders, there is some chance the feeders will go into the humid hide. A leo could ingest moss when he goes after the cricket. However, I have even heard of leos eating paper towels! Some people like layers of paper towels in the hide that have been soaked in water and squeezed out prior to placing in the hide. Some of us like to use feeding dishes for this and other reasons.

Perhaps you might reshare the picture of your leo nestled in the moss?

Comes down to Repashy Superfoods Leopard Gecko Calcium Plus. It is hard to control the amounts when we dust daily. The fear is OD, though the Repashy products are supposed to be balanced.

The keys are: pure calcium carbonate in the tank, and light dustings of phosphorus-free calcium with vitamin D3, vitamin A acetate, and a good multivitamin---just 2x weekly in total. The Leo Guidelines linked in my signature below has always given 3 different alternatives for supplementation. We can help you tweak this further.