New Leo help!!

**maddy5150** · 08-20-2021, 11:25 PM

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Hi everyone I’m new here! My name is Maddy and I just adopted a 3 gram leopard gecko who looks to be a chocolate albino but an albino for sure! Their name is Ozzy! I have ozzy in a 10 gallon and as he gets bigger I will put him in a 20 as of right now I’ve had him for 24 hours and I’ve gotten so many different lighting and heating accoutrements and I don’t know which one is the best I have a heat pad and thermostat some people say that’s all they need I have a 60 W daytime heat lamp bulb and a dimmer and they say that’s all you need but he is albino so I am worried about the harsh light what do you think is best for him? I’m really stressing out here Ha ha ha he also still hasn’t eaten anything but dipped into his calcium powder that I have left for him when do you think he’ll start eating? Thank you guys so much for the help I’m super nervous he’s my first leopard gecko I have three crestie‘s and a bearded dragon and apparently my beard is the hardest one but so far this little Leo has taken the cake LOL any information and help is greatly appreciated I also really need help with temps please please please so many mixed information also heat at night to that’s super mixed as well and when should I feed him I promise I’m a good reptile owner he’s just my first Leo and I really want to make sure I’m doing everything correctly but there’s so much mixed information out there!

**panthergecko** · 08-21-2021, 01:12 AM

Welcome to the Leo keeping world!

New Geckos can take a while to get acclimated. Especially a younger hatchling / juvenile. One of the most important things with a gecko that small and young is to just let it get acclimated. Try to not handle as much as possible.

I would put a meal worm dish for them with 5 mealworms there. Just check in the afternoons what is missing, and you can see if theyre eating.

**maddy5150** · 08-21-2021, 01:18 AM

Originally Posted by panthergecko

Welcome to the Leo keeping world!

New Geckos can take a while to get acclimated. Especially a younger hatchling / juvenile. One of the most important things with a gecko that small and young is to just let it get acclimated. Try to not handle as much as possible.

I would put a meal worm dish for them with 5 mealworms there. Just check in the afternoons what is missing, and you can see if theyre eating.

Thank you for the response!!! I really appreciate it! I’m most stressed about heating😩 what do you do?

**panthergecko** · 08-21-2021, 10:36 AM

UTH with a thermostat to regulate temps

**Elizabeth Freer** · 08-21-2021, 04:22 PM

It's perfectly fine to set up your young leo Ozzy in a 20 gallon long (30 x 12.5 x 12.5 inches) right now. Then "he'll" be set.

Floor/ground temperatures underneath Ozzy's warm DRY hide should range between 88-92*F.

For a 20 long enclosure I highly recommend using an 11 x 17 inch Ultratherm to cover 1/2 the floor. Ultratherm heat mats are tops in this industry. They are reusable because they are stuck undernneath the enclosure's floor with tape. An 11 x 17 Ultratherm covers the floor much better than a Zoo Med 8 x 18 inch mat.

Use this Ultratherm heat mat with a thermostat just like panthergecko recommends.

Zoo Med heat mats are NOT reusable!

Ultratherm heat mats can be ordered from these 2 sources:

Reptile Basics: (336-308-5767)
Reptile Supply Company (Lodi, California): 916-226-4089 https://www.reptilesupplyco.com/8-products
Use e-mail for customer service ---> info@ReptileSupplyCo.com

**panthergecko** · 08-21-2021, 04:36 PM

Originally Posted by Elizabeth Freer

It's perfectly fine to set up your young leo Ozzy in a 20 gallon long (30 x 12.5 x 12.5 inches) right now. Then "he'll" be set.

For a 20 long enclosure I highly recommend using an 11 x 17 inch Ultratherm to cover 1/2 the floor. Ultratherm heat mats are tops in this industry. They are reusable because they are stuck undernneath the enclosure's floor with tape. An 11 x 17 Ultratherm covers the floor much better than a Zoo Med 8 x 18 inch mat.

Use this Ultratherm heat mat with a thermostat just like panthergecko recommends.

Zoo Med heat mats are NOT reusable!

Ultratherm heat mats can be ordered from these 2 sources:

Reptile Basics: (336-308-5767)
Reptile Supply Company (Lodi, California): 916-226-4089 https://www.reptilesupplyco.com/8-products
Use e-mail for customer service ---> info@ReptileSupplyCo.com

Reptile Basics is faster from my experience. I would consider ordering from them if you want it sooner! Just my opinion and exp.

**acpart** · 08-21-2021, 08:53 PM

In my opinion, an under tank heater with a thermostat set to 90F is the best heat. If there's ambient light in the room, there's no need for additional lights and I think too much heating (i.e. under tank plus overhead lights) can dry out the air too much.
Where did you get your gecko from? When I was breeding geckos, they usually hatched at 3-4 grams and most of the time I didn't sell them until they reached 15 grams. I'm only mentioning this because while your gecko may do fine, 3 grams is (in my opinion) pretty early and hard to assure that the gecko is going to thrive. Please don't get me wrong; I'm not saying your gecko won't do well, it's just a bit early for a breeder to sell it and I'm hoping for the best.

Aliza