Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i've had my leopard gecko for four days now. not sure how old he is, he's about 5 inches long. i have been feeding him 5 crickets in the evening and he gobbles them up in a matter of minutes. am i underfeeding him? should i be giving him more? also, i have been using reptisafe water conditioner with electrolytes and calcium and dusting the crickets with sandfire leopard gecko dust. the first three or four ingredients have some derivitive of the word calcium in them. is he getting enough calcium? not enough? i don't know how to tell. and he only drinks from the moss in his terrarium, not the water bowl. that's probably not unusual behavior, but i haven't seen him drink from the water bowl at all. i know he knows its there (he occasionally walks through it) but he doesn't use it. any suggestions for any of this? he's my first reptile and i want to be sure that he's healthy and well care for.

My first concern is your statement:
"he only drinks from the moss in his terrarium, not the water bowl."
Are you using some type of moss as the substrate (floor covering) in your leos tank/habitat? If so, you need to remove it ASAP. Leos need an arid environment not an overly humid one. Leos kept in too high of humidity can develop respiratory problems. Also "loose" substrates are not recommended for Leos. The best substrates are paper toweling, slate tile, non-adhesive shelf liner, repti-carpet or newspaper.

For humidity you need to have a humid/moist hide on the warm side of the enclosure. If you don't know what one is, they are simple to make: www.stoplightcityleopardgeckos.com/makingahumidhide.htm This allows your leo access to humidity when it needs it and also is a huge aid when your leo sheds.

As for feeding, you should feed your leo as many crickets as it will eat in a 15-30 minute period, every day. Since your leo is young you need to dust the crickets with "plain" calcium, no vitamin D3 or phosphorus added, 4-5 days a week, and then dust with a vitamin supplement that does have the vitamin D3 in it once a week. Your Leopard Gecko Dust (by T-Rex) does have D3 in it. T-Rex also makes plain calcium called "Bone Aid". It is also advised to keep a small dish or cap of the plain calcium in the leos enclosure all the time.

Hope that helps

that does help. i just got some of the plain calcium today and have put it in a dish. i am using paper towel as substrate, the moss is only in one of his hiding spots. but that's the only place i have seen him drink. any ideas on that one?

Moss in a humid hide is fine. It is normal for a leo to lick the water on the inside of the humid hide. They don't necessarily drink out of their water dish on a daily basis. Just make sure it has fresh water when it does decide it's thirsty