Tokay hurting itself trying to open door

[zuper8]

My Tokay knows how the door of his tank opens. but of course, it's locked in such a way that he can't open it from the inside. He tries to open it by force, by flinging himself nose-first into the glass door.

Of course this makes me extremely sad. I know that no terrarium, no matter how nice, will satisfy him like being free. Here is a link to my set-up, though it has more hides/ plants in it now: http://www.geckosunlimited.com/comm...d-etc/63715-my-tokay-its-house-lots-pics.html

Aside from giving me yet another ethical dilemma as a gecko-keeper, this behavior has caused another issue. The tip of his poor nose has a big red bruise on it, and I know it's from the gecko catapulting himself into the door. so now that he's injuring himself I need to do something.

Has anyone had this problem? What should I do? I do handle him several times a week for the mental stimulation, more consistently after I noticed this little behavior problem. He is very active and does not seem depressed/ lethargic unless he doesn't get out of the cage every few days.

 

[cricket4u]

My Tokay knows how the door of his tank opens. but of course, it's locked in such a way that he can't open it from the inside. He tries to open it by force, by flinging himself nose-first into the glass door.

Of course this makes me extremely sad. I know that no terrarium, no matter how nice, will satisfy him like being free. Here is a link to my set-up, though it has more hides/ plants in it now: http://www.geckosunlimited.com/comm...d-etc/63715-my-tokay-its-house-lots-pics.html

Aside from giving me yet another ethical dilemma as a gecko-keeper, this behavior has caused another issue. The tip of his poor nose has a big red bruise on it, and I know it's from the gecko catapulting himself into the door. so now that he's injuring himself I need to do something.

Has anyone had this problem? What should I do? I do handle him several times a week for the mental stimulation, more consistently after I noticed this little behavior problem. He is very active and does not seem depressed/ lethargic unless he doesn't get out of the cage every few days.

That's so sad, I know how you feel. I have had that problem but mostly in WC and other reptiles. What I did was move them to much larger enclosures. I wish I knew of another solution, but that is the only one that has worked for me.

 

[Riverside Reptiles]

Try giving him a nice big piece of PVC to hide in. Lean it diagonally up against the wall so it's vertical. It'll only cost you a couple of dollars at the hardware store. Also make sure that his temps are correct etc. If he's trying that hard to escape, there's something making him want out. Tokays in general don't tend to be nose rubbers like some other species.

 

[cricket4u]

Try giving him a nice big piece of PVC to hide in. Lean it diagonally up against the wall so it's vertical. It'll only cost you a couple of dollars at the hardware store. Also make sure that his temps are correct etc. If he's trying that hard to escape, there's something making him want out. Tokays in general don't tend to be nose rubbers like some other species.

I thought about temperatures as well, but he seems comfortable in the picture. Normally if it's too hot they will hang out a bit lower. One of the problems with all glass enclosures is they can see their reflection (although snout rubbing is rare in most geckos). I know you have housed more tokays than I have so how do you feel about covering more of the sides of the glass maybe with more plants?

 

[zuper8]

Hmm, never thought about the reflection... he does pull his head back and look directly into the glass a lot. He definitely only smacks the door though, so I think he has an objective lol. he is so darn smart, he's obsessed with the peg that I latch the door with because he knows it needs to come out.

When the house is between 65-73 degrees, the tank is about 83. When it's 75 or higher (like the past few weeks) the tank is 88-92. I noticed the higher temps made him eat like crazy but no change in his escape plan.

What do you think I should remove to put the PVC pipe in? I don't have room with how things are set up.

 

[Koghis]

Add something to climb on in the upper part of the enclosure, please! Your curretly just using 1/2 of what could be used


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[bawner00]

It amazes me how smart they are, once mine escaped cause I didn't close the slide door at all, I found her the next morning and returned her to the tank, she spent weeks in this same place, because she knew that was the way out, my solution was to add more vertical hiddings close to this exit, then everytime i cleaned, I moved the hiding further away the door, 5-6 weeks later, everything was in the starting place, and hydra, forgot she wanted to exit, good luck

 

[cricket4u]

Have fun squeezing things in.:biggrin:I just noticed he has no hollow places to hide. As mentioned those PVC pipes can make the difference. I recommend a thermostat, a temp gun and access to higher temp of 90-95 on the highest point.

 

[zuper8]

Thanks everybody for your help and suggestions!!

I will get a hollow hide, I think I will be hitting up Ethan for some bamboo so it will look and feel more natural plus the hardware stores around me only sell pvc in five ft sections.

I would love to be able to use the top half of the tank but... how? I have seen bamboo sticks with suction cups that I could put across the top half but beyond that I don't know what I could suspend up there.... most of my stuff is pretty tall, you can't see the top in the pic I posted but directly above that bamboo leaf is the screen top. would love any ideas folks have for creating more interest/ things to do with the little space I have left. really I would love to get a bigger tank, I am going to have to fit that in the budget soon I think.

bawner, your story was really interesting to me because that's exactly how mine got started... I forgot to latch the door, and he pushed it open and was halfway out when I noticed. ever since then he has had a fixation, as any non-domesticated animal in captivity can develop. I am definitely impressed with how intelligent these animals are!!

 

[billewicz]

Yes, once they know were the door is, some will bolt for it, especially new wild imports. Most will settle down within a few weeks. And yes, several of my Tokay will will **** their heads to see 'through' the glass past the reflection. Especially after their lights are out but there is ambient sun light or the room lights are on.

Also, I have several Tokay that will meet me at the door for food. Some will run into the cricket container for their first hit and then retreat back into their enclosure.

And yes, I like having a leaning vertical hide just inside the door so they can sit right there and feel safe without wanting to bolt.

By the way, I found 18" and 22" tall roofing slate on Craigs list under building supplies. Roofers will sell old roofing slate they pulled off of an old roof. Usually a buck or two each. This is great for standing up against one of the sides and then standing a tall cork bark slab against that for a natural look and a great 'nesting' sight.

See photo.

Oh, and one more thing, it's hotter here on the East Coast than in Indonesia right now. My point is that the mid 90's during the day and low 80's at night is typical Tokay weather with rain most afternoons. Weather Headlines - weather.com Enjoy.