Reptile & Amphibian Forums

So, with five eggs now in the incubator (and more undoubtedly on the way), and the prospect of baby lizards popping out in about a month and a half, I'm getting ready for the little buggers. I plan on using some 20 qt (14"x8"x9" Sterilite tubs turned on there ends (so they are tall) as cages for the little ones, with simple cage furnishings (one pothos plant, some bamboo and a chunk of cork bark I will sterilize once a weeks, and paper towel bedding that can be changed daily). I am keeping them separate while I grow them up, and will be upping the enclosure size as they grow.

Any thoughts or suggestions on my plans?

Thanks,
Jared
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With great power, comes great responsibility.
-Ben Parker

Maybe I just don't pay attention, but what kind of geckos are they?

Tarl

Also, I wanted to mention that I'm keeping them separate so that I can carefully monitor their feeding, defecation, activity, etc. I wonder though, at what size/age can I, or should I, house them together, anbd in what numbers? Are there any advantages to housing them together? I can work with almost any cage size.

Also, how heavily, and at what frequency, should I be using what supplements? I normally use Rep-Cal Ca+D3 every other feeding, with pure pharm. grade CaCO3 the other feeding, and Rep-Cal Herptivite two or three times a month. I feed lobster roaches almost exclusively (occasionally I through in crickets or supper worms when my colony slows down for a week or so), but they are fed well with a variety of vegetables and greens, and fish food for protein.

Thanks,
Jared

PS- By the way, the cages will be miniaturized minimalist versions of the temporary cage my male stayed in quite comfortably for almost a year:

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With great power, comes great responsibility.
-Ben Parker

well, for starters, i have always kept clutchmates together for the fact i think it will make them more ready to be social. i kept henkeli hatchlings in 10 gallon tanks to begin with. as far as feeding goes, they likely wont start eating right off the bat. it will probably be a week or so before they start feeding, but you can try after the first few days. you can sit down and watch them eat, and while they arent quite as tiny as phantasticus hatchlings, you should still be able to see when they got a good meal in them. i also dust often with hatchlings so they get all the nutrition they need.

as for keeping them in groups to socialize them, i will mention that i have had the occasional young gecko drop its tail. more so with the satanics, but i did have a henk do it shortly after i moved (never found the tail either, so i guess it might have been snacked on by another, either causing it to drop the tail, or after it was dropped). good luck with them.
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-Mike Martin
North Carolina

Thanks Mike, that's the kind of advice I was needing to hear - pros and cons. I think I will start off my keeping them separate (since I have the 20 quart boxes already), but move them in together as they get to be a few months, and are a bit more sturdy.

Oh ,and if you don't mind, how young do you usually start selling/shipping yours?

Jared
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With great power, comes great responsibility.
-Ben Parker

the only henkeli ive shipped was about 8 months old, and he did fine.
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-Mike Martin
North Carolina

as far as keeping them separate, I actually keep hatchling from the same clutch together. I don't see a reason to separate them outside of that.

By the way, thats an awesome set up you have constructed there. I've not seen a fully function one a long those lines before. Great job! especially with the pothos doing so well.

cheers
jason

P.s. might want to check out the forums at geckounlimited as well. there are a ton of uroplatus keepers that might have some info for you too. between the two forums, a good amount of info is available.