Leo Emergency!!!

[aretwodetwo]

ok... so this is the post on her cage description.

cage: 20 gallon long

Dimensions:

Length: 2 ft. or 24 inches

Height: 1 ft. or 12 inches

Depth: 1 ft. or 12 inches

Level(s): 2

Heat lamp wattage: 100watts

Heat lamp type: Ceramic Reflector lamp hehe Fancy... hehe

Wattage bulb: 100watts

Bulb type: Red glass 100 watt bulb

Bottom level substrate: Paper towel

top level substrate: sanded plastic with repti turf over it.

Ok so the bottom level will have a rock hide to the right where the heating pad is.

Then in the back of the rock hut will be the two bowls of the calcium and vitamins.

Then next to the two bowls will be the thermometer that has a probe connected to it.

in the center, moderate temperature side will have the branch thing that i showed a

picture of

to the left on the cool side will be the water in the far corner with tropical plants in the

front of the water.

And the thermometer will go to the side of the water next to the ground.

Ok so for the top level will be some STRONG! plastic sanded so there are no sharp

edges with repti turf covering it.

Then it will be suspended about a little over half way up the cage then I will drill holes

through the repti turf and through the plastic.

Then I will put metal clips that hook onto suction cups and throught the holes in the

plastic and the repti turf

Then I will press the suction cups onto the glass holding the reti turf and the plastic up.

6 suction cups in the front of the cage

6 suction cups in the back

3-4 suction cups on the sides.

Then on the right side which has the heat lamp I will place a lot desert plants.

Then in the back of the desert plants i will put a little light weight hut aginst the far

right corner.

Then in the middle, the moderate temperature I will cut out a hole in the middle so the

branch thingy can come through cause it is too tall.

She can also get up to the second floor by climbing up the "branch thingy"

on the left side, the cool side will be a lot of tropical plants and vines.

Then i will put a hide behind the tropical plants and vines if she wants to go in their

I might be able to even hook some vines to the mesh wire on the top of the cage.

Then to measure the temperature i can take the probe and place it on the top level of

the cage to get an accurate temperature.

Then once the temperature is read then i can place it on the bottom of the cage to

measure the temp on the bottom level.

Whooo!...

Any one tired... faint

Was that enough for you

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Lizzy

Umm-mm-mm ~

I just came to after my faint. What kind of gecko did you get? Many of our recommendations have been particular to leopard geckos. At least the dry environment and the temperature range, so if you decided upon another gecko, please let us know right away!

Your 100 w lights are probably way too hot for a 20 gallon long. Maybe you bought a gecko that climbs? Did you get a flying gecko?

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

I hate to say this, but if you bought a flying gecko or other arboreal gecko that loves to climb, you need a tall tank. A ten gallon would do, but a 24 gallon tall would be even better. A 24 tall has the same dimensions as a 20 gallon, just taller.

 

[aretwodetwo]

ok... but is the setup is fine?

I'm going to use a dimmer so...

i'l adjust it

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

I would say that 60 watts would be max for a 20 long. You'd be heating the height more than the length.

Before I make any other suggestions, I need to know what kind of gecko Lizzy is? That's only fair to Lizzy.

 

[aretwodetwo]

oh and i know i bought a leopard gecko but she loves to climb

And this is almost exagtly what she looks like except a little fatter :

http://88petsmart.com/reptiles/pictures/lizard/leopard_gecko.jpg

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Aretwodetwo ~

What did you mean by the following:

And i did not know what you meant about "what did you name her"... im guessing that

you think i got a leopard gecko? no i did not.

 

[aretwodetwo]

Oh well heres you

Hi ~

Happy Belated Birthday! (September 6 is only two weeks ago.)

Have you named your leo? How old is she?

By that i thought you meant that i got a new gecko.

No i did not but her name is lizzy and she is 2 years oldand her birthday is on the 25th of

september.

 

[aretwodetwo]

Come on people Comment! :biggrin:

 

[Topaz]

Aretwo
It may be possible that she "loves" to climb... not because she actually loves it but because she is stressed for one reason or another.

I have 2 leos here, on over a year and the other pushing 3 yrs. I was given them by a friend and they thought the female loved to climb as well. Turns out they did not realize that frequent moving around the tank, including climbing, can be a sign of stress.

Stress can be brought on by several things not always just inappropriate handling but by the tank environment as well. If her temps are not correct, she will "cruise/climb" in effort to get to a place where she feels the temp is right. If she has a cage mate and they do not get along as well as the owner thinks they do, again this behavior is seen, if she feels her tank is to wide open and not enough places to hide and feel safe...again the same type of behavior is seen. Even if she is new to you or the tank she is in, again during the settle in period this can be seen, as they are stressed due to the new environment. I think you get the idea.

I have no idea of how long you have had her but the female I have now hardly ever climbs at all, now that I have her in a tank by herself, with proper temps, proper hides, a moist hide/box (which she did not have before), a clean cage, and regular feedings (with properly gut loaded and hydrated prey items). Now the I observe the typical behavior you would expect of a nocturnal terrestrial (ground dwelling) lizard.

Just something to think about.

 

[aretwodetwo]

oh well when i meant she climbs alot i meant at night. during the day she just sleeps away in her rock hide then comes out during the night.

But my real question is the setup. is it fine!

READ THE LONG DESCRIPTION!

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Feedback

Aretwodetwo:

Here are my suggestions in green:

ok... so this is the post on her cage description.

cage: 20 gallon long

Dimensions:

Length: 2 ft. or 24 inches

Height: 1 ft. or 12 inches

Depth: 1 ft. or 12 inches

Level(s): 2

Heat lamp wattage: 100watts You really only need two heat sources at most, one being the under-the-tank kind. None of them should really be over 60 watts, maybe maximum 75 watts (but probably not). Even though you have the bulbs on dimmers, there is always the chance of accidents. You don't want to bake Lizzy or cause a fire! Please listen.

Heat lamp type: Ceramic Reflector lamp hehe Fancy... hehe

Wattage bulb: 100watts

Bulb type: Red glass 100 watt bulb

Bottom level substrate: Paper towel Fine!

top level substrate: sanded plastic with repti turf over it. Sounds OK. If she likes it, she will explore.

Ok so the bottom level will have a rock hide to the right where the heating pad is.

Then in the back of the rock hut will be the two bowls of the calcium and vitamins. The calcium and the vitamins should be on the cool side---maybe just a calcium dish will be fine. The vitamins can be overdone. Maybe dust with vitamins 2x per month.

Then next to the two bowls will be the thermometer that has a probe connected to it.

in the center, moderate temperature side will have the branch thing that i showed a

picture of

to the left on the cool side will be the water in the far corner with tropical plants in the

front of the water. You do NOT want any tropical plants in this tank and only a 3" diameter water dish. The plants will die and may promote more than the wee bit of humidity that Lizzy needs to help her shed. Living in Seattle, my female leopard gecko does not even have a humid hide and she sheds fine!! You can just place some moss or moist cocopeat fiber substrate in Lizzy's humid hide.

And the thermometer will go to the side of the water next to the ground.

Ok so for the top level will be some STRONG! plastic sanded so there are no sharp

edges with repti turf covering it. Good to have taken care of any rough edges. Lizzy thanks you :yahoo:.

Then it will be suspended about a little over half way up the cage then I will drill holes

through the repti turf and through the plastic.

Then I will put metal clips that hook onto suction cups and throught the holes in the

plastic and the repti turf

Then I will press the suction cups onto the glass holding the reti turf and the plastic up. If I am still with you, seems like you would need to silicone this layer to the tank. If so, keep Lizzy out till the fumes dissipate. It sounds as if you are talking about a "suspended plastic 2nd layer like a solid "hammock"? One thing about suction cups is that they don't seem to hold for good. Sometimes putting some vegetable oil on the suction cups helps them hold longer, but it seems like you have a bit of weight at this layer?

6 suction cups in the front of the cage

6 suction cups in the back

3-4 suction cups on the sides.

Then on the right side which has the heat lamp I will place a lot desert plants.

Then in the back of the desert plants i will put a little light weight hut aginst the far

right corner.

Then in the middle, the moderate temperature I will cut out a hole in the middle so the

branch thingy can come through cause it is too tall. What about a ramp leading to the 2nd level?

She can also get up to the second floor by climbing up the "branch thingy"

on the left side, the cool side will be a lot of tropical plants and vines. Lizzy needs a TOTAL DESERT ENVIRONMENT---no tropical plants. You don't find tropical plants in her native habitat!

Then i will put a hide behind the tropical plants and vines if she wants to go in their

I might be able to even hook some vines to the mesh wire on the top of the cage.

Then to measure the temperature i can take the probe and place it on the top level of

the cage to get an accurate temperature.

Then once the temperature is read then i can place it on the bottom of the cage to

measure the temp on the bottom level.

Whooo!...

Any one tired... faint

Was that enough for you Yes, it was for this morning. Need to go back to bed! :lol:

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

PS

Is that Lizzy in your avatar peeking out of her hide? She is very cute :biggrin:

And if, as you have said, she is 8 inches long, and nearly 3 years old on Sept 25, 2009, she seems to be well fed. How long have you had her?

 

[aretwodetwo]

Well... I wanted to comment on the silicone thing. how do I do that.

And the plants i will be using are fake. And misted. And i just picked that picture as my

avatar thingy cause it looks almost exactly like her!

And the picture i showed you is not her either but looks like her... as i said i dont have

a camera. And she is a little plumpers. She also shedded perfectly yesterday without a

humid hide! Thats probably cuz i live near the coast and we get a lot of fog and

moisture.

And i forgot to add that i was

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Suction cup spots on glass

Hi "R2D2" ~

Can that be your nickname?

Sometimes the plastic suction cups I use leave big spots on the glass of the tank. Don't really like that much, but I "try" to ignore them and I'm certain the geckos don't mind :biggrin:. Let me know whether you find a way to remove them. Thought about trying white vinegar, but am out right now.