Meet Mr. Spanky

[IHaveNoIdea]

Hello, my name is Mr. Spanky and this is my new home :king:

I'm 4 months old and I'm a roachaterian, but sometimes I eat a cricket or two as well :blushing:
In my free time I try to get out of my terrarium or bath in my water bowl. :evil:

 

[muffin_song]

Nice to meet you, Mr. Spanky! You are one beautiful young gecko!

I love the term "roachaterian." My gecko companion also likes roaches, although I try to throw in some variety as well.

 

[warhawk]

Very nice setup. I love the skull and I also love to see DIY hides out of house hold stuff. I have more than a few in my setups.

Just a question do you have something on the heat tape to adjust the temp or did you get lucky and it stays at 92? I have used tile in the past and it holds just the right temp all day.

 

[IHaveNoIdea]

Thank you both. I think that roaches are the best I can give him (local petshops have just crickets and mealworms). But I like to throw in some crickets occasionally as well.

I actually don't like my wet DIY hide It just doesn't fit in to the enviroment I created there. I have measured the temps inside the terrarium and warm side has 86°F and cold side 77°F. To adjust the temps I thought it might be good to use more tape so the heat doesn't escape so much. I think it should be ok like this.

Btw, if you sometimes don't understand what I'm saying, I would like to say that I'm not stupid, just my english isn't that good :scratchhead:

 

[warhawk]

I understand if you don't like the moist hide. I have some setups that look natural and others that I don't care just want something functional. Maybe another one of the skulls you could put a bottom in so the gecko could climb out the eye socket and use it as a moist hide.


On your temp 86 is a bit low, I like mine 92-95 degrees. Adding more cable might get you to the right temp but I have never used it so I can't say for sure.

 

[IHaveNoIdea]

I think I will buy one of those gecko hides with removable tops. Another skull would not look good and it is pretty expensive too (digging all those graves).
86 should be sufficient, I guess it might reach even 90°F.

 

[warhawk]

I hate digging graves and its really bad to spend all that time just to find out someone has already gotten the skull for their geckos so I have to dig another one.

I have found if the warm spot is 92 they geckos eat better and over all are healthier so I keep mine in that area. It also helps the digest the food if they can't digest it fast enough it could cause blockage.

 

[IHaveNoIdea]

I had him until today on a heat rock. Temps were even lower. And he pooped more than just fine, so I guess it will be enough. I don't want him to tear up his hole :biggrin:

 

[kholtme]

Looks awesome! Getting a hide with a removable top would work great for a moist hide, its what i use. Also, i highly recommend you bump your heat up to 90-92. He may be fine now, but after a couple of months of improper heat you could have problems. Also what is the loose substrate? I really like the look of the tank, and i think it will be fine using the loose substrate/rock set up if you take some precautions while feeding. I would suggest using tongs to feed or a bowl that the roaches or crickets cant escape but your gecko can get in with ease. If you let the roaches and crickets run free your gecko will get a big mouth full of loose substrate and will have impaction issues which can cause major health problems and even death.

 

[IHaveNoIdea]

Thanks. It is the Eco earth and I'm aware of what you said. 90% of the bottom area are stones though. It is mostly just in cracks. I'm basically following advices of this girl: https://www.youtube.com/user/leopardgeckotalk/playlists She has been using EE for years without any problems and in her terrariums EE covers the whole bottom of the tank.

I have been using tongs to feed my gecko since I got him and I will do so until he grows up a bit.

 

[kholtme]

I feel you will have no problems with your set up if you tong feed for the entire life of your gecko. It doesnt matter how old it gets or how big, they can still get impacted.

 

[IHaveNoIdea]

Well they testines are bigger in the maturity, so they need to eat more of it to get impacted. I tried to throw in some crickets today (one at a time) and he ate 6 of them from the stones and 1 of them from the eco earth, but he is really accurate so he cought him without eating any of that eco earth. I understand that tong feeding is much safer. I will probably tong feed him crickets and let him chase those crickets, because they don't hide so much and mostly stay on the stones.
I measured the temps as well today and found out, that if I let the heat cable on whole day, it will reach the desired 33°C (92°F).

Aaand Mr. Spanky bit me today :lol: It was the time when I usually feed him and I don't know what I was thinking but I put my finger in front of him and start moving it. Yeah, great idea. It didn't hurt, but believe me I almost had a heart attack :yikes:

 

[warhawk]

If you keep him well hydrated it will help reduce the risk of impaction.

And yes when they bit it will scare the crap of you the first few times. It doesn't hurt but I have had few grab my finger, I worry I will hurt them when I jerk away.

 

[IHaveNoIdea]

How can I keep him well hydrated? I placed a water bowl in his enclosure and he has his moist hide always ready.
Yeah, I was worried about that too. I hope he won't do it again.

 

[warhawk]

Keep the water bowl filled with fresh water, and moist hide needs to be checked everyday. My moist hides with paper towel get water every day and changed out once a week, hides with coconut fiber gets water 2-3 times a week as they need it. I have also been known to allow some geckos to soak in warm water if they are having issues when shedding, NOT SOMETHING I'M SUGGESTING

 

[IHaveNoIdea]

I change the paper towel in his moist hide almost everyday and I spray some water inside it everyday. I keep the water bowl filled with fresh water although I found a poop in it today. He used to poop in just one place and now he just can't find his spot.

 

[warhawk]

That should be fine.

As far as poop in the water most do that at some point.

And going in the same spot I have some that will always go in the same place others just kinda go everywhere.

 

[IHaveNoIdea]

Mr. Spanky was really well behaved. He has been doing this since the moving. I hope he will find his spot again.

 

[the haunt]

dont worry about impaction from eco earth, it simply doesnt impact, ive tested it with a small bit of water and a realistic amount of eco earth that a gecko may ingest when striking. the only thing i think you should do is heat up the tank slightly, i understand it may be effort but its best to avoid risks in this case, what you could do is get a hide that absorbs heat

 

[kholtme]

The haunt, are you saying you feed your gecko damp eco earth? I wouldnt recommend doing these kind of test. Eco earth is easier to pass than other loose substrates but doesnt mean you still shouldnt take actions to avoid your gecko from digesting it like feeding from a bowl or tongs. Impaction can still happen with eco earth.