Posted by:
kelz0429
at Sun Mar 26 11:24:16 2006 [ Email Message ] [ Show All Posts by kelz0429 ]
Hi all!
I bought my very first leopard gecko last night (I have always wanted one, so I am really excited). Here is my setup (I will attach a picture or two):
-10 gallon tank
-screen top
-Zoo Med Repti Cage Carpet
-under-tank heating pad (namely, Zoo Med Reptitherm u.t.h. reptile heater)
-ESU Reptile Bi Light 2 (you have probably seen this before--it is a dual light with place for daytime light and nighttime light or two of each)
-a few decorative hiding/perch setups
-decent sized water bowl
-decorative feeding bowl
How does this sound?
I have a few questions:
-The way this light is set up requires that one lamp (bulb--i just figured out that they are called lamps, not bulbs) be on one side and one lamp on the other. So, my daytime lamp (if i have a nighttime lamp installed) has to be on one side, while the nighttime lamp is taking up the other. Should I put the daytime lamp on the same side as the heating pad, or will that be too much? Should I buy a new light fixture where I can put the light in the middle? Does it even matter? Oh, yeah, if I put the lamp on the side opposite the heating pad, it will be over the water (which is partially covered by one of my decorative pieces), is that a bad thing?
-Do I even need a nighttime lamp? I have two betta fish in the same room as the gecko and their bowl thermometers pretty much bottom out at 70 degrees overnight, so the gecko shouldn't get too much cooler than that (plus he has his heating pad). Would it hurt to have a heat light on 24 hrs a day?
-Another question (thanks for reading this far!) has to do with moisture. I know they are arid climate (desert) dwellers by nature. The guy at my local pet shop told me that I do not need to put any wet moss or anything in the terrarium with the gecko. He said I can just spray a little bit of water in the tank in the morning to mimic the dew that forms in the desert. Another guy told me that it is best to have some moist moss in this hiding place. Which is true? I have also read that moss is not good for them to have in the tank with them b/c they might eat it. I went ahead and bought some moss (Flunker's All Natural moss for all terrariums), is this stuff okay?
-If I put the moss in the tank, should i put it on the side with the heating pad, or the other side, or kind of placed so that some of it is heating and some of it isn't?
-Okay, my last question for now has to do with the gecko's behavior since I got him. I don't think he is eating. I place about 5 live meal worms (they were the refrigerated kind that stay dormant until they warm up a bit) in his food bowl. I think dropped 4 or 5 crickets sprinkled with calcium powder in his tank. I don't think he has eaten anything at all since I put him in about 16 hours ago. I tried to hand-feed him a cricket and then a meal worm, but he didn't go for either. I am really worried about this. Is this normal while they are acclimating themselves to a new environment? Should I get him vet checked or something?
Thanks for the help--it is greatly appreciated! I can see myself becoming addicted to these little guys. I am hoping my gecko is female (probably is, but I haven't check yet) so that I can get another female or a male to cage with her).
Thanks again!
[ Hide Replies ]
 newbie with tons of questions--thanks! - kelz0429, Sun Mar 26 11:24:16 2006
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