Meet Riku the Leopard Gecko!

[Ignitius]

Hello all! I decided to get myself a 3rd gecko after spotting him at a pet store. I know its not the ideal place to shop, but he looked pretty healthy. From the looks of him I'd say an eclipse midnight-blizzard (although he changes shades randomly it seems)? Don't worry about the carpet in the tank, I'm transitioning him to ceramic this weekend.:banana:

 

[XoVictoryXo]

handsome boy! good luck with him!

 

[Mardy]

Cute gecko, congrats

 

[Ignitius]

Thanks all! He's pretty lively! He still gets startled when I open the tank though haha. I bought the wrong size UTH (I bought that 8x6 one for my 20 gallon long) so I'm having a tough time with temps at night. However I'll be getting the medium UTH (already have a thermostat) to make sure it stays at 93. :biggrin: He LOVES little hornworms. I've never seen a guy lunge for one so quick! Ha!

 

[XoVictoryXo]

Hornworms are a big hit in this house too!
They get big pretty fast! What i do now (not nice and its messy) is cut them in half so they do not choke or have a hard time digesting
You can add a UV bulb to ensure the tank stays at proper temps

 

[Ignitius]

Good idea! I just might try that. I'm getting a larger UTH as well as a larger CHE as the current one is only 60 watts for the 20 gallon long.

 

[cricket4u]

Good idea! I just might try that. I'm getting a larger UTH as well as a larger CHE as the current one is only 60 watts for the 20 gallon long.

I don't think you guys want to cut a hornworm in half. You'll have hornworm guts squirts on the glass.:biggrin: When my leos bite the worm too viciously, they drop the worm, stare at the mush like, "What the hell" and they may just sit there confused because it stopped moving. They want to swallow the whole thing, not see their messy guts it seems.:lol:

Silkworms are very good as well. I highly recommend them for variety.

 

[cricket4u]

Hornworms are a big hit in this house too!
They get big pretty fast! What i do now (not nice and its messy) is cut them in half so they do not choke or have a hard time digesting
You can add a UV bulb to ensure the tank stays at proper temps

Unfortunately they do grow too quickly. If you keep them in the coolest part of your home it will slow them down.

XO- The main reason it's not a good idea to cut them in half is, you'll be losing a good part of the nutrients.

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Unfortunately they do grow too quickly. If you keep them in the coolest part of your home it will slow them down.

XO- The main reason it's not a good idea to cut them in half is, you'll be losing a good part of the nutrients.

Buy 3/4-1 inch long hornworms.

Another way to slow down hornworm growth is to keep them in a picnic cooler with an ice pack or in your wine cooler ;-):

http://www.geckosunlimited.com/comm...feeding-issues/68585-hornworm-guidelines.html

 

[Saskia]

If you don´t want to waste your current UTH you can get a CHE which will help you keep your temps right, and won´t stress your leo!

 

[N8thegeckogeek]

Cute little critter!

 

[Ignitius]

Thanks all! I upgraded his UTH to the proper medium size. He's growing quickly and quickly growing accustomed to me. I forgot I dislike dealing with the small crickets though. They get everywhere. :crackup:

 

[Ignitius]

Fun update: He's growing really quickly! He's a vicious eater. He took down around 4 smaller hornworms. His poo ended up being fairly foul stenched and had a lot of urine. I'm not sure if its related or not. However otherwise he's fine and I'll keep an eye out for any improvement.

 

[N8thegeckogeek]

Great! Hope he's healthy