Leopard Gecko: good care check, general ?s

K

Kreuniclus

New member
These are the new temperatures:
Floor temperatures:
Cool end:
Around 75.0
Warm end:
MAX: 80.10
MIN: 78.1

Air temperatures:
Cool end:
MAX:

I HAVE to go NOW so i will have to record the other temperatures when i get back tomorrow night.

I will probably look for a thermostat anyway. The temperatures are looking pretty good at the moment.
 
cricket4u

cricket4u

New member
Kreuniclus said:
Air temperatures:
Cool end:
MAX: 80.4
MIN: 79.6
Warm end:
MAX: 90.1
MIN: 91.0

How are they? Should i buy a thermostat?
Click to expand...

I suggest you aim for these temps.
Daytime Temp: Temp right above heat mat floor 90-95 F (observe gecko for comfort level) If they spend too much time in the cool hide chances are it's too hot or the hide is not as secure as the other.
Air temp: 77 cool side- 85 warmest end max unless a large enclosure with various temps is provided. Most people need an overhead heat source to achieve temp.
Nightime Temp: 70's is fine for air temp. Heat mat stays on.

yes, you should have a thermostat.
 
K

Kreuniclus

New member
I've looked everywhere i can and nothing seems to be suitable so i will take some temperatures with the light box off.
 
cricket4u

cricket4u

New member
Kreuniclus said:
I can't find anywhere that sells thermostats. Can he do without or is it way too hot?
Click to expand...

It's a must have especially in wooden enclosures due to less ventilation. Your gecko can overheat and it can lead to serious consequences. If I am not mistaken your thermometer is for outdoor use?
 
Last edited:
K

Kreuniclus

New member
I found a thermostat for vivariums in a shop but i wasn't allowed to buy it because the reptile specialist in that shop said he is good enough without it. I told him the temperatures and he said that i definately shouldn't buy it because it's too hot in there and i said that i needed it to turn the temperature down. Everyone still objected against it. What am i gonna do if i can't buy a thermostat?
 
lisaowens

lisaowens

New member
Kreuniclus said:
I found a thermostat for vivariums in a shop but i wasn't allowed to buy it because the reptile specialist in that shop said he is good enough without it. I told him the temperatures and he said that i definately shouldn't buy it because it's too hot in there and i said that i needed it to turn the temperature down. Everyone still objected against it. What am i gonna do if i can't buy a thermostat?
Click to expand...

you go buy it anyways they are just giving you their opinion and let me tell you some of the so called reptile specialist are not specialist i have a thermostat on mine and if i didn't some day my leo would be cooking and others freezing you need the thermostat.
 
K

Kreuniclus

New member
It's just come to me... The bulbs i am using came from the other vivarium. You know how tall that is. The reason these bulbs are so hot is because they're meant to be far away from the ground. These are as close as they can get right now. I explained that to my mum and she said that she would take me to a shop and get a different bulb and see if that would work. Hopefully it should. Also, a few days ago, i caught a little spider in the vivarium. I know how harmful they can be to leopard geckos (they pass on mites, right?) so i immediately rushed and got it out (sadly killing it in the process by accident). Since then his eyes have become a strange colour so i will do what i read i should do to check for mites. I will get a feaces sample and take it to be examined. Is all this i'm doing right?
 
K

Kreuniclus

New member
Also, my gecko never uses his moss. One day i caught him shedding in his hide and put him in fresh moss but he just walked back into his hide. Is it ok for him to do that? He doesn't seem to struggle getting his skin off.
 
K

Kreuniclus

New member
I think i might just be able to get away with buying a thermostat soon because being as i live with my sister and my mum and they are moving far away, i have to stay here because the exam boards are different so i am going to live with my dad and grandparents. They know not 1 thing about lizards. They will probably buy one for me...
 
cricket4u

cricket4u

New member
Kreuniclus said:
It's just come to me... The bulbs i am using came from the other vivarium. You know how tall that is. The reason these bulbs are so hot is because they're meant to be far away from the ground. These are as close as they can get right now. I explained that to my mum and she said that she would take me to a shop and get a different bulb and see if that would work. Hopefully it should. Also, a few days ago, i caught a little spider in the vivarium. I know how harmful they can be to leopard geckos (they pass on mites, right?) so i immediately rushed and got it out (sadly killing it in the process by accident). Since then his eyes have become a strange colour so i will do what i read i should do to check for mites. I will get a feaces sample and take it to be examined. Is all this i'm doing right?
Click to expand...

An exam is always a good idea.
 
cricket4u

cricket4u

New member
Kreuniclus said:
Also, my gecko never uses his moss. One day i caught him shedding in his hide and put him in fresh moss but he just walked back into his hide. Is it ok for him to do that? He doesn't seem to struggle getting his skin off.
Click to expand...

Maybe there's enough humidity in the enclosure. If he is not having shedding problems, don't worry.
 
Last edited:
K

Kreuniclus

New member
Ok, so, the bulbs i use are 25watts, and i used to use 2 of those but 1 died and i've kept it like that ever since. I use a 12watt heat mat. The vivarium is 17cm tall and roughly 35cm wide.

I went into the shop today and they said that the lowest wattage of bulbs they do is 25. I saw a smaller heat mat in there that was 7watts. They say i shouldn't buy it for my vivarium because it's too big. I'll buy it if you think it'll make a difference. The thermostat is still there. My mum said that tomorrow she'll take me to a different shop and she said that if they agree with you then she'll buy the thermostat for me.
 
K

Kreuniclus

New member
Sorry about not posting for ages. Our internet company took it off out house too early and then took ages putting it on the new one. Now i've moved out of there to my Dad's. I only moved today and have set everything up. I had a 4 1/2 hour journey with him. I put him in a small carrier meant for small mammals (it wasn't that small) and put hay in there (my mum thought it would be a good idea). Then i put something over it to keep him warm and dark. I am using the other vivarium. The tall one. I only stopped using that because of the cats. There aren't any other animals here. The long one is too small to fit proper lighting onto. He can also easily escape from that viv when i open it. It's also easy for bugs to get into.

So i set the other one up and put him in. He seemed to like it. I check back on him in about 20 minutes. The temperature has risen back up to 76f. I have yet to record proper temperatures. I'll do that tomorrow. But when i checked back on him, he was kinda rubbing himself against the glass. He just leaned his body up against it. I never seen or heard anything like it before. He's stopped now but what did he do that for?

Also, i still have yet to have his feaces examined. Now that i'm with clueless people, i can do a lot more. I'll have an examination done when i can. First, i'll have to find a vet...
 
panthergecko

panthergecko

Active member
Whats the dimensions of your terrarium?

Some pics would be nice.

Also seemed that your old viv-the wooden one was good, why not look for possible entry points for the bugs and block them?
 
Elizabeth Freer

Elizabeth Freer

Well-known member
Kreuniclus said:
I have a under-substrate heat mat with my new vivarium and he often goes and sits on top of it so that is ok. I will find a thermometer to measure the heat with because i don't know the heat in the new one, the old one's temperature was pretty low. As i (think) i said before, i do have a moist hide for him to go into filled with moss but he just wouldn't go in it. Now that it's empty he has started exploring it. The moist hide is just next to the under-substrate heat mat so that can be a warmer hide for him. Maybe i should switch those around? So the moss won't dry as quick and he can be warmer as he sleeps. His colours are getting darker, indicating he is about to shed so i will put some moss in when his old skin comes loose.

Even if i did get a thermometer and the heat was still to low (which i'm pretty sure it's not anymore), HOW do i boost the temperature? There's no dial or anything. All i have is a light box which isn't even supposed to be there (which, i presume, boosts the heat) and an under-substrate heat mat that emenates heat when i turn it on, and i was told to keep it on all the time, even at night.
Click to expand...

I realize this thread was started last spring. I am confused as to where you are placing the heat mat. You mention: "under substrate heat mat" more than once. The UTH (under tank heater) goes under the glass at the bottom of the tank. So you would have heat mat stuck to bottom of tank underneath, then the glass bottom of the tank, and finally the substrate: slate or paper towels is best.

How are you doing for temps now?
 
K

Kreuniclus

New member
I'll do temperatures and dimentions another day. Being as i switched back to the old viv, and that one has a missing bulb, i went out looking for another one. I found a reptile place and they didn't have the bulb. The guy said i need UV shining onto the viv, being as i never had UV before. He told me to go to another reptile place. I went there and i coudn't find the right size bulb. I asked the guy and he said Exo-Terra is a bad company to be with. He even showed me this example. UV can't get through the mesh on Exo-Terra's tanks. Also, they don't even make UV bulbs. I thought the best idea would be to just buy another tank. A Zoo-Med tank. And then everything would be fine.

I don't like to use the wooden tank because when i open it, he could get out very easily. He did once and i nearly died of fright. He was loose when anyone could step on him or a cat could've killed him or i would've lost him. I had a fear of feeding him before i pulled this one out again.

Also, there's something i worry about. My sister had a hamster but then she died so i took one of her things - a hollow log, and put it into Link's tank to see what he would do. He LOVES it. I've had it in there since spring and he still loves it. But i'm afraid he may get stuck in there because he has to squeeze in already. I would take it out but i don't want to because he loves it and when i took it out before he looked so bored. What should i do?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top