Reptile & Amphibian Forums

this is my first leopard gecko that i have EVER had and i find her amazing in every way. when i have gotten pets in the past i have known a fair amount about them, what they need to eat, what they like to eat, the type of substate to use and how to maintain a healthy pet, plus a couple of veterinary books stock piled next to my bed for a quick reference for what i can not "home remedy", but a leo gecko was a totally new experiance.there are barely any books on leopard geckos and so i was left in the dark...a lot...but thanks to herpforum and some other online sources i have been doing O.K. But here are some quick notes for those of you who are just as much in the dark as i am:
* do not use ANY type of sand. even the so called "safe" ones are not safe, im many cases they still lead to impaction or inhillation infections. The best substate to use is paper towels or astroturf, which i am currently using because im leo didn't perticularly enjoy the paper towel.
* it is wise to get a lamp that has UVB and UVA light, i know that some people don't believe that it is a good idea, but for a leo who is not eating or any reptile that is not eating these lights can help. they also provide vitamen D in the skin of the lizard.
* some veterinarians are going against the under the tank heaters, as for why, i am not very sure, im going to keep mine because to many changes so soon will stress my leo.
* crickets are all fine and dandy until they start to eat your lizard...talk about irony...but the crickets can actually nip your lizard and cause painful cuts, best rule of thumb is that if the leo does not eat them within an hour take them out.
* mealworms can be fed parsely in orfer to bulk them up... didn't know this.
* if you are buying crickets at PETCO or any other pet supply store make sure that you feed the crickets before feeding your gecko. when they ship the crickets they are in cartons with no food or drink, so to get the maximum nutrition out of the cricket be sure to feed them scraps of fruit, veggie, or nuts.
* if you take care of you little friend they can live for over 20 years, up to 30!!!

actually mealworms can be fed as a staple diet instead of crickets,waxworms can be fed once a week offering just a few like 2-3 max as thier fattening and addictive.
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1.3 Leopard Gecko's
1.0 mali uromastyx
0.0.3 tokay's(adults unsexed)

Bit of a sweeping generalization about UV lighting helping ANY reptile...

-Signed, a hardcore keeper of burrowing snakes
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Peter: It's OK, I'll handle it. I read a book about something like this.
Brian: Are you sure it was a book? Are you sure it wasn't NOTHING?

I'm testing that theory, currently, Erin
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NP
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1.1 Leos(Ron and Raine), 2.1 Kitty Cats(Bubba, Angelo and Cookie) and 1.1 Rouen Ducks(Buddy and M.J.).

You've got a good start to a caresheet, but I disagree with your UV statement. Nocturnal animals who don't spend time in the sun naturally don't need UV. Most other reptiles do, but leos are different from dinural beasts. A D3 supplement along with calcium and proper gutloading of the food is all that is necessary.

I'd agree that crix are a pain, so mealworms are a solid alternative staple food.

Never heard that about parsley...I searched the internet for just about any caresheet i could come across and talked with dozens of breeders, but never came across that. Has your leo actually eaten parsley? Or is it just theory at this point?
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Blaine

0.0.1 HY/Patternless/Normal Leo (Echo)

oops, typed 'leo', meant 'mealworms'. (when talking about parsley)

Any idea what it is in the parsley that helps to fatten up the mealies?
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Blaine

0.0.1 HY/Patternless/Normal Leo (Echo)

You actually don't want to use parsley for gutloading, because it's VERY high in oxalates. I don't have the links with me right now so I can't quote exact figures, but I'm pretty sure parsley was one of the highest, something like twice what spinach had. Moderate oxalates are ok (collard greens and carrots have 'em), but too much and it will actually prevent calcium from absorbing.
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chickabowwow

3.2.3 leopard geckos (Rosie, Locke, Lisa, Caesar, Tommy)

oh wow i'm glad i read your post before going down the street and getting some parsley from the store!

[aimEe]
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0.1.0 Albino Leopard Gecko (Marlene)
0.0.2 Fire Bellied Toads (Norman & Forman)
0.2.0 African Dwarf Frogs (Hobo & Bobo)
1.0.0 Fighting Fish (Blue Balls)
0.0.2 Hermit Crabs (Kirby & Furby)
1.0.0 Black Lab / Pit Bull (Mikey)
aimee.i8.com

I need to quit eating the stuff, myself. I love parsley ever since I started eating Thai. lol
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chickabowwow

3.2.3 leopard geckos (Rosie, Locke, Lisa, Caesar, Tommy)

now you've got me hungry!
Thai food is awesome. Any food that heavily involves peanuts is A-Okay in my books. Love that sticky rice.
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Blaine

0.0.1 HY/Patternless/Normal Leo (Echo)

1) Oxalic acid chart

2) Nutritional content of veggies

Vegetables are an awesome component for gutloading, not just a source of moisture, so it's a shame that people don't use more than just carrots and potatoes.
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chickabowwow

3.2.3 leopard geckos (Rosie, Locke, Lisa, Caesar, Tommy)

Oh, man, I'm going to drive myself crazy. I read in a BUNCH of places that parsley was low in phosphate (all I knew that didn't allow proper calcium absorbtion). I use it in all my gutloads, too.

Anyway, I doubt it's worse than spinach, though. I'd have to look into it further, but I fed spinach to tadpoles and the froglets couldn't even walk. Parsley didn't have the same effect, and it was recommended, but I'll lay off it now.
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Got hips like Cinderella / Must be having a good shame / Talking sweet about nothing / Cookie I think you're Tame

There are a lot of variables involved. Since everybody uses a different gutload recipe, it means that their leos are going to need different amounts of calcium. The more protein and sodium that's in the diet, the more calcium is needed.

High oxalates might not do anything if the animal is already getting plenty of calcium from other sources, but it's still something to be avoided.
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chickabowwow

3.2.3 leopard geckos (Rosie, Locke, Lisa, Caesar, Tommy)

Thanks, though, that information is really valuable to me! While my geckos, for example, can go and actually lick their calcium up and might not be affected, you brought up a new light when it came to what to feed tadpoles. I'm going to look into other herbs on those links because many herbs are high in vitamins and minerals. I think parsley, for example, has a lot of vitamin C in it, and I'm interested in finding out now the oxalates in oregano since it's supposedly very healthy as well :-D
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Got hips like Cinderella / Must be having a good shame / Talking sweet about nothing / Cookie I think you're Tame

You know, I try to find out which vegetables make the best gutloads, but when it comes to actually strolling through the produce section, I completely forget. LOL If you can find any, Chinese greens are really cool because they're high in calcium and vitamins. I put some Chinese flowering cabbage (choy sum) in with my mealworms and superworms. They gobbled them up within several hours. Usually with other vegetables, I can still find bits of leftover pieces, but there wasn't even a scrap left with the flowering cabbage.
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chickabowwow

3.2.3 leopard geckos (Rosie, Locke, Lisa, Caesar, Tommy)

I'd been avoiding brocolli in my gutload fpormula because I had heard that it was high n oxalates, but according to that chart, carrots have about 3x times the oxalates as brocolli! Will need to check another source to confirm, but thanks!!!!
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Sarah Stettler aka Starling
Sarah@stargecko.com
StarGecko.Com COMING SOON! Star Quality Leopard Geckos
Specializing in Hypotangerine Tremper Albinos

Chick starter mash is what most people use to gut load crickets, and mealies. It's very cheap ($10 for a 50 pound bag). For crickets we just put a little in a deli cup lid, and then put in water bites. Mealies are a little different as we use this as a bedding, and just put the water bites on top of it!
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MIKE
4.14 Leopards (SHTCT, and Jungle Albino Trempers)
2.13 Fat Tails (Amels, Hets, and Normals)
1.1 Teratolepis Fasciata
1.3 Crested geckos
0.0.3 Dendrobates Tinctorius (Citronellas)
1.0 Diamond Back Terrapin
14 Snakes (Tri colored hogs, subocs, alterna, rosy boas, and black milks)

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0.1.0 Albino Leopard Gecko (Marlene)
0.0.2 Fire Bellied Toads (Norman & Forman)
0.2.0 African Dwarf Frogs (Hobo & Bobo)
1.0.0 Fighting Fish (Blue Balls)
0.0.2 Hermit Crabs (Kirby & Furby)
1.0.0 Black Lab / Pit Bull (Mikey)
aimee.i8.com

You're probably not going to find any leopard gecko books at the bookstore, but you can get The Leopard Gecko Manual at Petsmart. (Petco doesn't sell it.) Even though it's great to read caresheets online, it's still nice to have a physical reference on hand.
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chickabowwow

3.2.3 leopard geckos (Rosie, Locke, Lisa, Caesar, Tommy)