New Leo owner with questions

[jamie674]

Hi, my name is Jamie and we bought our son a Leopard Gecko for his 8th birthday. We brought him (assuming its a male)Rocky home on Thursday December 5, 2013. When we first introduced Rocky to his new home he walked around until he found his rock hide and we have not seen him out and about on his own since. I have read that this is normal and to give him time to get used to his new space. My son is really bummed and wants to hold him so badly. So last night I lifted the rock hide to check and make sure he was ok and I did pick him up and let my son hold him. Was this ok to do and now should I wait until he comes out on his own?

Now let me get into what we have done so far so I can make sure we are doing things right. We have a 10 gallon tank, with Repti Bark for substrate. We have a water dish and a food dish for meal worms. 2 thermometers (warm side reads between 80-85 during the day and 70-80 at night, cool side reads between 70-80 during the day and 65-70 at night), we have a moist hide on the cool side and his rock hide on the warm side and a piece of driftwood for him to climb on if he ever decides to come out and play. We have a light and heat combo fixture and have both on during the day and only the red heat light at night. So that is our tank set up. Does everything sound ok or do I need to make adjustments?

Ok so now how do I get him on a feeding schedule? The first 2 nights I left 3 crickets and 3 meal worms in form him. I coat the crickets with a calcium and vitamin D3 powder. And have ordered a vitamin mineral powder to coat and feed the meal worms with. The second night he did come out sometime while we were sleeping and ate 3 crickets and I believe 3 meal worms and did his business in a corner! Yay!! But now that I had my son hold him last night, he did not eat last night and is in hiding. So how to I go about his feedings? What time is best and how long should I leave the food in there? Do I let my son hold him again or should I wait? Also I bought a cricket keeper and every day I swear I find like 4-5 dead ones! They have food and water and plenty of room and things to climb on...is there a thread that you can direct me to for this?
So I guess that's it...sorry for the rambling and all the questions. I just want to make sure Rocky is happy and healthy. And that my son is happy and can enjoy his new pet

I am attaching a photo of the tank set up and once he comes out and I can get a pic of him with out traumatizing him I will post one. He is really pretty!

Thank you in advance for the help!!

 

[jamie674]

Ok I found the care sheet and I just went a purchased a 20 gallon tank and a U.T.H. Should I use the UTh with the overhead red heat light? And how can I get the temp of the substrate to make sure it's not too hot? The upstairs rooms are kept at about 64 degrees so I want to make sure that Rocky has the proper heating.
And still need answers to holding him and how to feed him? Leave crickets in over night?

Thanks

 

[Geckologist.tj]

So sorry that no one has responded to you yet. Your post must have gotten burried.

There is a lot to be said here, so forgive me for the long post that I am about to make.;-)

You should avoid handling your new gecko for two weeks after bringing him home. After that adjustment period, you should start by introducing your hand and letting him sniff you out a little. From there, try to lure him into your hand or just let him walk around on it on his own. Babies especially can feel very insecure and can be very fragile so it's best to avoid lifting the hide off of them unless it is vital. Handling them before they have learned that you are not going to eat them can cause them to detach their tails. Some leos warm up to their keepers more quickly than others, especially once they realize that you supply the food.

Glad that you've read a care sheet and made some adjustments. Is the tank size and UTH the only things you've changed? Just to make sure you are clear on their needs, I'll quickly cover the MOST important ones. Keep researching and reading care sheets though. Elizabeth Freer has a great care sheet on this site. I suggest you study that one.
Leopard Geckos need:
-Warm side gound temps (this means the surface of the substrate) between 88-94 F
-Warm side air temps (four inches from the ground) around 80 F. I keep mine between 78-83 F.
-Cool side ground and air temps should be 70-75.
-All temps can drop two degrees at night.
-These temperatures should be measured with a digital probe type thermometer. Analog (dial) therms. are often way off.
-The temperatures are best maintained by using a UTH in conjunction with overhead heat. The temperatures should be controlled with a thermostat or at the very least a rheostat/ dimmer.
-There should be three hides: dry warm hide, moist hide, and dry cool hide. It is best to keep the moist hide either on the warm side or on the dividing line between warm and cool.
-The substrate for juveniles should be either paper towel or textured slate/ceramic tiles. Particulate substrates can cause impaction or topical irritation.

These are just a few of the most important things, because I'm limmited on time. Please check out more care sheets and ask any questions that you may have.

 

[jamie674]

Thank you for your response! I have done all of the above that you listed except I have yet to get a thermostat. I put down some newspaper then 4 6x6 tiles over the spot where the heat pad is then put his substrate over that so that it doesn't get too hot, until I can pick up a thermostat. I just checked the temps with a probe and it looks good! As do the air temps!! We switched him to his new tank last night and I was able to get some pics of him checking it out. He also came out quite a few times later..I think try to find an escape..lol.
Now to work on the eating schedule....I don't like leaving crickets in there with him for too long. DO you think leaving some meal worms in his dish over night would be ok until he is more comfortable with us?
Thanks again for your help! I am glad I found this site as I have read some great posts!

 

[Geckologist.tj]

Meal worms in a dish is okay. You really don't want him hunting for food with that substrate as he could accidently ingest wood particles and get impacted. The wood should really go ASAP.

It shouldn't be long with proper husbandry that he is eating sveral crickets in less than an hour. You can remove the crickets back legs if he is a slow hunter to begin with.

 

[jamie674]

I actually took the back legs off 4 crickets last night and put them in the dish (dusted) with 4 meal worms. He ate all the meal worms and 2 crickets! I have ordered a thermostat which should be here soon. As I used a probe thermometer and touched it to the tiles under the substrate and it was reading 100 degrees..way too hot!! but the substrate itself was around 85..so as long as he will eat out of the dish I will leave the substrate until I get the thermostat. I don't wont him burning his belly. What would be the best substrate to use then? Besides paper towels..I like the natural look way better Oh and he is definitely making an appearance more and more...happy dance!
Thanks for all your help!

 

[jamie674]

Would just the tiles be ok..they are ceramic and not slate? And would I need anything between or under the tiles? I am reading the "Poll Substrate" thread now and am finding so many different ways of doing things...my head is spinning..lol

 

[Geckologist.tj]

I guess a lot of people use something under the tiles to keep them from cracking the glass bottom of the aquarium. I personally do not put anything under the tiles, but three of my four enclosures are wooden and I have only been using tile as a substrate for about six months, so I could be doing it wrong I guess.

Ceramic tiles are okay provided they have enough texture to allow your leopard gecko to get plenty of traction on them. What you really want to avoid are the bath tile type that have a glossy smooth surface. If you notice your gecko always walking with his body close to the ground, especially when hunting, then you'll have to get something with more texture.