Reptile & Amphibian Forums

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!

well i hope i can answere all your questions adequatly but i may forget and leave out some, let me know. anyways first things first, 70 is to cold. they need to be at at least 80 at night. and 90 in the day where the heat pad is. it can be a little warmer like 95. as far a the moisture thing both would work however moist moss in some sort of hide is better. this lets the gecko get all its shed off, if it is too dry it will get stuck on toes an stuff eventually making the toe die and fall off. i would also say arrange it to where half is warm and half is cool. you should also have a hot hide and a cool hide. as for the not eating, it is normal. give him/her about a week befor you start to worry. get a mealworm dish so you can leave 10 or more mealies in it all the time. if you want you can count them so the next day you know if any got eaten. i also leave 5 crickets with my leos overnight so they can eat them if they want but then i take them out the next day to give them fresh ones. allthough if they start to eat all the cricket or mealies give the more. you also want to make sure the crickets cant hide anywhere. okay now the lamp thing. leopard geckos dont need any type of day lamp, they are nocturnal so it is going to spend most of its time during the day in its hide sleeping. you also want its hide to be dark! the light actaully kind is kinda to bright sometimes and hurts their eyes. if ou want a day light i wouldnt get one that is to hot or bright, a night light however is fine. i dont think it realy matters what side your lights are on as long as it doesnt get too hot or to cold. okay i think that is it. you probably have a headache by now but i hope it helps.

Thank you for your help!

So you said they do not need a day time light? Do you just use a heating pad at the bottom of your tank tank? How big of a hiding place do you give them? Is the kind of moss I am using okay to use--not a danger?

well im not quit sure how big your gecko is, but just get something that they can fit in obviously make sure they can turn around and all that stuff, but not so big that they might not really feel like they are hiding. they like to fell safe and kind of enclosed. im not sure what kind of moss that is but if a cricket were to go in it and your gecko tried to grab it, and gets the moss in its mouth it probably isnt good. however it is probably digestable. you could also just use a damp paper towel. it will work just as good or Bed a Beast compact dirt. it comes in block form and you add water to it. if you use that you need to squish it down so the gecko dosnt get that in it mouth either, i only suggest this for the humid hide. like the other person said check out the golden gate geckos site, they are good but i have not read their care sheet.

Air temp at 70 on the cool side is fine at night, The temp you want to worry about it the temp right on the ground over the heat pad. That should be around 90 degrees all the time. To measure this temp you need a thermometer with a probe on it. Just place the probe on top of the substrate right above the heat pad. Don't bother useing tos thermometers that stick to the glass on the side, they do not acuratly measure temps , since belly heat is what is imporatant.
Some heat pads run hot you may need a thermostat (or dimmer) to bring the temp over the heat pad down if it gets above 95.
So basicly the light is up to you , you will likely need it more in the winter months when the temps get lower.

Marcia at Golden Gate Geckos has A VERY thourgh care sheet on her site. I sugest you check it out.

http://www.goldengategeckos.com/care.html
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Sarah H

www.fototime.com/inv/500FFD9910FF842
[email]ghia12345@aol.com[email]

One small thing i would like to add! IF you decide to use a light please make sure its a red or i think blue light! Geckos cant see those colors so you wont have a stressed out gecko that has had light shineing on it all day or night etc. Geckos as you probablly know are nocturnal and the light shineing on them all the time will stress them out causing them to lose there apetite and all those fun related issues!

Although they dont need it an ultra violet bulb (a small wattage bulb would be enough depending on your tank) will be good for both heating the cool side if temps dip to low and you can have it on at night for night viewing then just turn it off when your done observing your gecko!

Good luck!
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Mike & Wendy

2.0.0 Siberian husky, Jackrussel/schitzu
0.0.1 Lepard Gecko
0.0.4 Beta's
3.1.0 Warm blooded life sucking spawns.