fish lady turned gecko lady in los angeles checking in...

[loachlady]

Hi all, just want to introduce myself. After poking around a bit I have the impression this forum is a great resource for all types of geckos and gecko keepers.

As the title suggests, I've been big into aquariums since about 2020 (lockdown/pandemic hobby), like, really obsessed. Recently I've been enjoying branching toward terrestrial interests as well...exactly a year ago, my partner and I went to a reptile expo and that was it...we've been pretty keen on such critters since. She has a beautiful veiled chameleon. I currently have a pictus gecko named Picky, a beautiful Afghan leopard gecko named Soraya, and two very chonky yellow-bellied toads (Bombina variegata, European variety of fire-bellied toads). I'm thinking of expanding my gecko collection. I really like cresties but I think they are a little more high-maintenance than what I have already so I'm not sure I'm ready to make the jump. Thought about mourning geckos, but those need a lot of misting and whatnot too, don't they?...so maybe another arid or semi-arid ground dwelling gecko that will be a bit forgiving.

Anyway that's me... I'll post some pics of my setups in a bit, but for now, I'd love to hear from you guys.

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Welcome aboard, loachlady! Both mourning geckos & crested geckos do well with misting once daily in the evenings. Mourning geckos are pretty small when fully grown. Crested geckos are significantly larger.

I look forward to seeing your pics.

 

[acpart]

Welcome! Geckos are kind of like Lays potato chips: no one can keep just one.
Remember that mourning geckos are parthenogenetic, which means if you start with a few you'll ultimately have a lot more than a few. I don't find crested geckos to be that difficult. They don't really need heat, if you like plants you can add those and have 2 things to enjoy. If your household is able to deal with a veiled chameleon, a crested gecko should be no big deal. I also think that banded geckos (Coleonyx) are small and really cute.

Aliza

 

[Herpin Man]

Hello Loachlady. Crossing over from fish to herps and vice versa is not uncommon.
With regards to small arid habitat geckos, I am going to second Acpart's suggestion of Coleonyx. I have been working with western banded geckos (variegatus) for several years now, and really like them. Care is very similar to leopard geckos, although, like other smaller species, they aren't really something you should handle regularly. They can be flighty and quick. However, they eat less than leopard geckos, and therefore poop a lot less.
I also work with mourning geckos, and although they appreciate daily misting, they are by no means high maintenance.

 

[Goz]

Hi,nice to meet ya. After my last house rabbit died (Laddie),I decided to go in a pet direction I'd never gone in before...Much to my amazement,keeping reptoles is kind of like keeping fish,which I did as a kid,well me and Mother did...Anyway,I got a gargoyle gecko last Dec. and he's just a little;e charmer.