HELP! Very skinny crested gecko

[ReptiFiles]

Good evening! And thanks a lot for the reply to my worries,
I do have the MRP + 2 other repashy mix. I will try and restrain myself from giving him any insects for a week, (and explain this to the wife) as for here "no food will lead to death^^) I know its extreme but yes i ll explain it to her. Jokes aside, i do feed him a few licks (0n a skewer stick) of CGD and after three licks he just turns his head.
I also wanted to talk avout tank size, beeing a "big tank lover" and thus giving max space as possible to my little regugees :45x45x60 for Tiamat, the little crestie im talking about, i hope this does not affect his eating, even though im a bit sceptic about "too big tanks" knowing that in Nature there are no walls..
I am aware that an only insect diet may lead to MBD .. But i couldnt imagine a baby crestie going down on the floor of a forest to hunt gor rotten fruit, thats why I imagined a scenatio of them eating insects untill they were big enough, (I do supplement them with calcium and vitamine) he eats avout 2 per day, for now.
I ´ll be sure to give a restraint untill he eats his CGD though!! I xill try and post a pic of him if i manage to find how ^^ and do not hesitate to comment on his state ( beinng only 8-9 month old
Thank you for the advice, I appreciate the concern and help givén to us
PS: excuse my french .. I try to write proper english even View attachment 43341View attachment 43341View attachment 43341View attachment 43341View attachment 43341 it beeing my second language
Good night to you and all readers !

Although it's true that nature has no walls, there is still such a thing as "too big" of an enclosure, especially for young crested geckos. Young crested geckos tend to keep to themselves in the wild in order to avoid predators while they're small and vulnerable. But once your gecko reaches adulthood (around 2 years old), you can think about introducing him/her to however large of an enclosure you can sustain.

Wild crested geckos eat a varied diet of insects, flowers, nectar, and fruits whenever they can get them. Technically they are classified as frugivores, which means "fruit-eating." So the CGD is still very important, even for young cresteds. Breeders have raised hatchling geckos on nothing but CGD with great success, so as long as you have a good brand, you have nothing to worry about.

 

[liwia1177]

Mimo ( my crestie ) ate more Pangea from the back of the spoon than ever! Maybe it’s stupid but I think it’s a big step forward I’m going to weight him every week and see. If I don’t see him gaining weight soon I’m going invest into some sort of heating to increase the metabolism. Now, is a ceramic heat emitter with a thermostat good? And what wattage should I go for ?

 

[ReptiFiles]

That's good news! A ceramic heat emitter is definitely my go-to option for increasing temps. You shouldn't need a thermostat, though — a lamp dimmer and a thermometer should be all you need. Get the lowest wattage CHE you can find, as you really only need to bump temps by a few degrees.

 

[liwia1177]

That's good news! A ceramic heat emitter is definitely my go-to option for increasing temps. You shouldn't need a thermostat, though — a lamp dimmer and a thermometer should be all you need. Get the lowest wattage CHE you can find, as you really only need to bump temps by a few degrees.

Perfect thank you! I weighted him again today and it showed 2.60 grams. Last week it was 2.21 grams so hopefully he will keep gaining weight

 

[liwia1177]

So u think if I get a low wattage ceramic heat emitter I don’t need a thermostat? Also what is a lamp dimmer ?

 

[ReptiFiles]

I recommend a low wattage CHE just so you don't have to waste money. I recommend a dimmer because they work better with lamps. A dimmer is this, by the way: https://www.amazon.com/Lutron-TT-30...F8&qid=1509641236&sr=1-4&keywords=lamp+dimmer

 

[liwia1177]

I recommend a low wattage CHE just so you don't have to waste money. I recommend a dimmer because they work better with lamps. A dimmer is this, by the way: https://www.amazon.com/Lutron-TT-30...F8&qid=1509641236&sr=1-4&keywords=lamp+dimmer

That’s okay thank you and u sure I don’t need a thermostat then ? I’m not home all the time as I go to school and I don’t want the temperature to get too high while I’m not there, what do you think?

 

[ReptiFiles]

Most people fiddle around with the CHE and dimmer until it's just right, but if you're willing to invest in a thermostat, then that works too. You just need to make sure the probe is in the right place so you don't accidentally make the enclosure too hot. Both are viable options - dimmers are just cheaper.

 

[liwia1177]

Most people fiddle around with the CHE and dimmer until it's just right, but if you're willing to invest in a thermostat, then that works too. You just need to make sure the probe is in the right place so you don't accidentally make the enclosure too hot. Both are viable options - dimmers are just cheaper.

Thank you that’s what I’m going to do

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

That’s okay thank you and u sure I don’t need a thermostat then ? I’m not home all the time as I go to school and I don’t want the temperature to get too high while I’m not there, what do you think?

A dimmer/rheostat is a very risky option for a crestie in a vertical tank.

Thermostats automatically turn off the heat source if temps exceed the set temp. Rheostats have no such control if the tank overheats.

Your crestie is better off by far with a thermostat. Swell Reptiles in the UK is an awesome source for reptile supplies.

 

[liwia1177]

A dimmer/rheostat is a very risky option for a crestie in a vertical tank.

Thermostats automatically turn off the heat source if temps exceed the set temp. Rheostats have no such control if the tank overheats.

Your crestie is better off by far with a thermostat. Swell Reptiles in the UK is an awesome source for reptile supplies.

I understand thank you

 

[liwia1177]

I understand thank you

Hi everyone, I got my 25 watt ceramic heat emitter and a lamp dimmer (I know a thermostat is safer but they are quite expensive so I decided to try the dimmer first ). I put it at the top of the mesh top in one corner (outside the enclosure) and I put the thermometer at the very bottom. There’s no leaves in this corner so the gecko can’t get too close and get burned, thers branches just sitting on the ground in this corner and he enjoys walk-in on them, thought it was safe as he won’t be too close to the bulb if he decided to sit in the warm corner my question is, what should be the temperature in that corner ? I don’t wanna set it too high, at the minute i keep it at 25 degrees Celsius in the corner and I have another thermometer on the other side of the viv which shows 22-23 degrees. Before I stared heating it the temperature would usually be 20-21 degrees. Also there’s a heat mat on one side but it’s only 6watt so it doesn’t really do anything . Thank you everyone

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Hi ~

How tall is your crestie's enclosure?

Monitor the maximum temperature directly underneath the 25 watt CHE. It should climb no higher than 27.8ish*C (82ish F).

Side-mounted heat mats don't do much because heat rises.

 

[liwia1177]

Hi ~

How tall is your crestie's enclosure?

Monitor the maximum temperature directly underneath the 25 watt CHE. It should climb no higher than 27.8ish*C (82ish F).

Side-mounted heat mats don't do much because heat rises.

It’s 35 cm long and that’s okay thanks

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

It’s 35 cm long and that’s okay thanks

OK.

35 cm tall sounds like a good size enclosure.

 

[liwia1177]

OK.

35 cm tall sounds like a good size enclosure.

That’s good

 

[liwia1177]

I have one more question. My gecko seems to love sitting on a branch under the ceramic heat emitter. It does it every evening and I’m used to checking up on it before I got to sleep. I know it doesn’t get too hot under it as it’s usually around 25-26 degrees Celsius in that hotspot but would anything happened to my gecko if it sat under the heat for too long? Or will the gecko know what it needs, take care of itself and move to a colder side of the viv? I’d turn the temperature down a little bit for the night anyways but I’m really curious about do they just know what they need.

 

[ReptiFiles]

Since geckos are cold-blooded, their entire existence depends on their ability to detect when they are too hot/cold and act accordingly. This enables them to be in the best place for whatever activity they wish to pursue at the moment — resting, digesting, etc. That's why it's important to provide thermal gradients within enclosures. 25-26°C is a little warm for the norm with crested geckos, but it's also nowhere close to the danger zone, so he'll be fine.

 

[liwia1177]

Since geckos are cold-blooded, their entire existence depends on their ability to detect when they are too hot/cold and act accordingly. This enables them to be in the best place for whatever activity they wish to pursue at the moment — resting, digesting, etc. That's why it's important to provide thermal gradients within enclosures. 25-26°C is a little warm for the norm with crested geckos, but it's also nowhere close to the danger zone, so he'll be fine.

25-26 degrees is the warmest spot in the enclosure where he enjoys sitting in the evenings (he’s always there before I go to sleep and it looks like he’s so happy since I bought the heat emitter). The rest of the enclosure is around 22 degrees in the night and a bit warmer in the day. Thank you I can now go to sleep without worrying haha he also is putting in weight which I’m so happy about. 3 weeks ago it was 2.21 grams and today it’s 2.85 maybe it’s not that much but we’re getting there. All of you guys helped me so much thank you so much

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

25-26 degrees is the warmest spot in the enclosure where he enjoys sitting in the evenings (he’s always there before I go to sleep and it looks like he’s so happy since I bought the heat emitter). The rest of the enclosure is around 22 degrees in the night and a bit warmer in the day. Thank you I can now go to sleep without worrying haha he also is putting in weight which I’m so happy about. 3 weeks ago it was 2.21 grams and today it’s 2.85 maybe it’s not that much but we’re getting there. All of you guys helped me so much thank you so much

You're welcome!

Your little crestie is soaking up the warmth he needs! He'd move somewhere else if temps were too warm. You've provided many options. Don't worry. He'll be fine at 25-26*C.