my kids new leo

[purpleblockhead]

hi every1 this is my kids 1st leo, i bought it because they kept asking 2 hold our other gecko, we bought her full grown i have no idea what kind she is, shes light brown/white with almost all red eyes, she has a great personality she dosnt run from my hands at all and im almost scared shes going 2 pounce on me cuz she walks after my hand when its in the cage, and she eats like a horse, she eats 5 big crickets a day and wants more i feed her crickets with no legs in a dish and she pounces on the dish all day long hoping there food in it, shes looks small in the pic but shes pretty big i would say 7-8 inchs

 

[Allee Toler]

She's a lovely little RAPTOR. Looks on the skinny side, but I'm sure you'll fatten her up. 5 crickets a day isn't much food, so give her all she'll eat in 15-30 minutes. If the sand you're using is "repti-sand" or "calci-sand" I'd suggest removing it, and if you want to use sand get some fine grand play sand (rather cheap from what I've heard) from a lowes or home depot.

Good luck.

 

[purpleblockhead]

i was told its jurassic sand i bought it from a reptile shop they said it was quartz with smooth edges so they could digest it, he had 50 gallon garbage cans of it, i thought i only bought 3 pounds but it turns out i bought 30 pounds for $15, he had 2 kinds red and white i bought both,, the the red was contanimated with wood,rocks and other junk so i threw it away, i dont want her gettn impacted will jurassic sand work for leos?

 

[Allee Toler]

I don't know about jurassic sand. I personally don't use sand. I have bed-a-beast dried out in two of my 20 longs, and I use wash cloths in my rack since I got a ton of them for $5 (nearly 200 washcloths).

On a side note, sand cannot be digested it can simply be passed through the system. I'm sure someone who's used it will post on here.

 

[Angi]

She is beautiful =)

 

[purpleblockhead]

thank you shes growing on me i wanted a orange 1 but they were out i think im going 2 get a orange male 2 go with her

 

[killuminati]

thank you shes growing on me i wanted a orange 1 but they were out i think im going 2 get a orange male 2 go with her

that isnt a good idea unless ur gonna be breeding. but u can get another orange female

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Jurassic Reptile Playsand---quartz crystals only

Hi All ~

This is not the place for a substrate debate...see forum substrate thread. However, since the topic has come up, Jurassic Reptile Playsand collected by geologist Jerry Bergosh from the Utah deserts is the only sand I know of which is composed entirely of rounded quartz crystals. It is exceptionally clean. All other known sands, no matter how fine they may be, are composed of sharply pointed silica crystals. (Just examine any sand in question with a magnifier or under a microspcope.) It is those silica crystals which accumulate in a gecko's gut and ultimately cause impaction. Different genuses of geckos are at different risk levels. Some folks use the silica-based sand (Home Depot playsand) with no problem at all. Beginners should be especially cautious. I even recommend Jerry's sand for the experienced geckophile even though it is more expensive. JRP can always be sifted, washed, dried, and baked, if one wants to reuse it---a bit of a hassle, but--- Calcisand is never recommended.

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Darren ~

Nice leopard! I could see her being name "Sprinkles"!

 

[purpleblockhead]

elizabeth, LOL!!! yea they tried that 1!! i think im might let them get away with 1 more girlie name, sprinkles it is!!

 

[geckofactory]

Since you're keeping her on sand only, please mix it with bricked earth to prevend her ankles from getting harmed. They sink in when they're kept on loose sand only, they avoid it in the wild as well. Bricked earth mixed with sand gives a much harder substrate, and you don't have the problem of her eating it while hunting.

Other than that, I wouldn't say she's on the skinny side at all, this is one healthy and fit looking girl, fattening her up wouldn't be much of a good idea.

yours,
Fabrizio

 

[purpleblockhead]

thanks but i took all the sand out and put her on carpet, i also upped her crickets to 8 a day i have noticed that her tail has gotten a little biger, im not sure how much 2 feeed her everybody says something different

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Hi Fabrizio ~

What is Bricked Earth?

Thanks.

Since you're keeping her on sand only, please mix it with bricked earth to prevend her ankles from getting harmed. They sink in when they're kept on loose sand only, they avoid it in the wild as well. Bricked earth mixed with sand gives a much harder substrate, and you don't have the problem of her eating it while hunting.

Other than that, I wouldn't say she's on the skinny side at all, this is one healthy and fit looking girl, fattening her up wouldn't be much of a good idea.

yours,
Fabrizio

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Hi Darren ~

Different opinions are part of the joys of a forum . I agree that it would be good to have some more fat on her tail. Sounds like she is really hungry! What size are those crickets?

thanks but i took all the sand out and put her on carpet, i also upped her crickets to 8 a day i have noticed that her tail has gotten a little biger, im not sure how much 2 feeed her everybody says something different

 

[killuminati]

thanks but i took all the sand out and put her on carpet, i also upped her crickets to 8 a day i have noticed that her tail has gotten a little biger, im not sure how much 2 feeed her everybody says something different

I usually feed her as much crickets as she will eat then a super worm and a couple mealies

 

[purpleblockhead]

elizabeth there the big crickets from petco, there about a inch long and pretty fat, the funny thing about sprinkles is she potty trained she only goes behind her hide on the hot side.

im afraid 2 pick her up know when ever i put my hand in the cage she starts shakn her tail like when she pounces on a cricket, i want 2 check if shes gravid but looks lie shes going 2 strike when i put my hand in there, i think im going 2 just put a lay box in there

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Darren ~

I would say Sprinkles is very hungry if she eats eight one inch crickets every day! My female leopard has never overeaten.

Yes, leopards are naturally potty-trained .

If she is gravid, maybe that is why she seems to be eating alot.

 

[geckofactory]

Eight crickets a day are too much in my opinion. This will cause overweight problems in quite some time soon, I'd suggest throwing in some big crickets every two to four days. This is by far enough. And every two or three weeks some meal- or waxworms, or superworms, whatever you like.

Brickearth is just another word for clay from what I can tell, since english is not my main language it is difficult to find descriptions for what I mean. Brickearth was just a word that sounded more accurate.

yours,
Fabrizio

PS.: Repti carpet will sooner or later cause bacterial or viral problems. Also your gecko can get stuck with it's mouth or feet in it.

 

[Allee Toler]

Eight crickets a day are too much in my opinion. This will cause overweight problems in quite some time soon, I'd suggest throwing in some big crickets every two to four days. This is by far enough. And every two or three weeks some meal- or waxworms, or superworms, whatever you like.

I'd have to disagree. I have one who eats 10 large crickets a night and is quite skinny- not gaining weight. There is no "5 crickets a night" rule. Each gecko is different. Her gecko is skinny, and needs to gain weight. Extra feeding is what it needs. I personally feed each gecko for 15 minutes a day. They only get fed what they can eat in 15 minutes. I have healthy weight animals. Be it 3 crickets every other day (one of my adult females) or 15 every night (my 7 month old firewater). To feed only two times a week seems way too few feedings. I feed every other night for my adults, and every night for those under 45g.

 

[geckofactory]

Honestly, if your gecko doesn't gain any weight, it can be because of parasites, have you ever had a scat sample seen by the vet?
Just because your gecko eats that much, doesn't mean that it's good for them. I'm pretty sure you won't find any Eublepharis macularius macularius over 40 grams in the wild at all. They need to be a bit slender to be able to hunt and flee in case of an attack as fast as they can get, being too heavy is a problem for that. And her gecko is by far NOT too skinny, this is a totally normal built leopard gecko, fattening a gecko up just to get it to a breeding weight or something like that is definitely the WRONG way to go. For a female gecko, this looks quite good.

yours,
Fabrizio