Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My father and I came across Western Fence Lizard last week on Mon. She was very standard looking, lighter than most I hvae seen, blue stripes on her belly and I gethered she was a Female just from research on the net and coming across pictures of both genders.
I went to the pet store and got her a nice little set-up- 10gl tank, brown dirt/grounding, a hollow log to hide & bask on and a shrub for the other side for shade. I got her a small drinking bowl which I have not seen her use but the water level mysteriously is lower the next day =). I have given her 2 crickets each morning, keeping the heating lamp on one side on during the day, I put temp gauges in the tank to monitor along with a humidity gauge.
I have NEVER owned a lizard before, but I love every anmal and I really like her! So I hope I am doing everything right.
She has been at the office, Sat afternoon my father was here and he turned on her light for me and fed her, MISTAKE was he left the light on over night! Not only that, but it was STILL ON when I got here this morning (monday). Her coloring is almost BLACK now!! I am terrified that is mistake is going to kill her! What can I do?? Please help!!? I turned the light off, she dug herself under the dirt and I am afraid to turn the light on now if she is burnt. HELP PLEASE!!

Fence lizards can change colors. They will often go black when basking. This is probably what happened.

If you're worried about light cycles you can buy an appliance timer and plug your lights into that. That way they will go off and on automatically. It would also be a good idea to invest in a digital thermometer with a probe, that way you can measure the temperatures in your tank. You want the warmest basking site to measure at about 100 degrees F and the cooler side to be in the 70s. You can use something elevated like a rock or piece of wood below the basking light to bring the basking site closer rather than upping the wattage (a 50 watt should be sufficient) to achieve the optimum temperature.

If you haven't already, it's also good to get a flourescent coil or tube that emits UV. The UV light will enable your lizard to synthesize vitamin D3 which is necessary for calcium absorption. Food (crickets etc.) should also be dusted with a phospherus free calcium supplement (it should not have calcium phosphate etc in it) with vitamin D3. I use Rep-cal and have been very happy with it. Without this your lizard would be at risk of developing metabolic bone disease.

Feeders should also be allowed to pig out before you offer them to your lizard. Half of your lizard's nutrition is going to come from their stomach contents. I like to let my crickets feed for at least 3 or 4 hours prior to feeding on things like fish flakes, with chopped carrots, or oranges for moisture.

Fence lizards often don't recognize water bowls right away. The water may be evaporating out of the bowl. Get a mister and mist the tank once a day while your lizard is out. She'll drink the water droplets. You can mist the bowl to try to attract her to it too. Don't discontinue the misting unless you observe her regularly drinking from her bowl.

Good luck!
Alice