New to the Leopard Gecko's

Hello my name is Marc i am 19 and new to the leopard geckos. My friend talked me into getting one because he is going to breed soon and maybe one day ill join him. Here are the two that i bought. Is there anything anyone could tell me and help me out please and thank you, Marc. I need help with names too.

Well first off, the sand is bad. Like, super bad.

Just read through the links in my signature and you'll get a pretty good idea.

The one closest to you is a Murphy's Patternless morph I believe.

Thank you Kodieh I will get rid of the sand this weekend when i get the money. I plan on getting another 10 gallon tank and splitting them up.

yeah like kodieh said get rid of the sand it is really bad they can eat it n it can cause them alot of harm maybe even death and u dont want that, just put them on some paper towels they will love it, if you dont mind me asking what dose your friend use for his leo's becuase if he uses sand then he shouldnt start breeding because that is one of the basic's you should know.

hope this helps looney

Welcome to the forum! My name is Kathryn
I hope you enjoy your time here at the LGF!

For substrate you can just use papertowels. They are cheap, and easy to replace. For a more aesthetic choice you should go with tiles, (ceramic, slate or peel-n-stick). I use both, and personally I like the tiles better. I find them easier to clean.

Are you using an UTH (under tank heater)? Its a common mistake for new leo owners to use a UV light. They UTH because they use belly heat to digest their food.

Its especially important that you get rid of the sand ASAP because as juvies they have small tummies, which means a smaller amount of sand can cause impaction.

You should also have at least 2 hides, one hide on the cool side and one on the warm side. You should also have a humid hut (a container with moss or paper towel that is misted daily) as it helps your leos to shed, which as juvies they should do about every 2 weeks.

You have lovely leos! Both are very gorgeous!

Again, welcome to the forum, I'm looking forward to talking with you!

Thank you guys for the help. And my friend uses paper towels as well. So paper towels is what i will use. right now im using lights but i will def get the heating pads. Looks like this weekend i will have an update cage and possibly another cage to split them up. what can i use to make the humid hut and with peat moss work?

I'm glad we are helping!
This is what I use for the humid hide: http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2752603

You can use peat moss.
A lot of members here use this (review by gothicgurrl on here!) http://www.leopardgeckoforum.com/t463-review-of-zoo-med-terrarium-moss
Misting it daily will help it stay moist to aid in leo shedding! My leos really love their moist hides!

Like Kathryn said, the Zoo Med New Zealand Sphagnum moss is a really good choice. Just got my first bag and haven't even used 10% of it yet. Great, long lasting, and holds moisture perfectly.

You can alop find sphagnum moss at home depot... I just picked up a mini bale in the orchid section for under $4.00. Same size bag for herps would have cost me twice as much, and the stuff for orchids is organic so it is safe.

Aside of that there really is a lot wrong with your habitat from what I can see at the moment... it's great that you'll be able to make changes this weekend as a prolonged exposure to an inappropriate habitat can have a hard impact on young leos FAST... we don't want that, obviously...

the sand needs to go as stated, peel n stick tiles or slate or paper towels will work best. Ceramic tends to insulate rather than conduct heat so you'd need to size up your under tank ehater for the most effective heating. Also places like home depot and lowes will cut tiles for you in shop so you don't have to worry about it. Check out the show off your set up thread in the housing stickcies (or photos, not sure which forum it's in now sorry), The housing thread in KodieH's signature is also a MUST READ for any new leo owner. You'll need a probe thermometer, and honestly, ditch the lights, belly heat is what's crucial to leos, they're not heliotherms like bearded dragons, they don't bask, they're crepuscular thigmatherms... they need belly heat to properly thermoregulate and digest their food. Lights only stress them out since they're up after sunset and before sunrise, they do not utelize any of the UV values brought on by external lighting, it won't benefit them since they don't bask. Dividing the leos up into their own tanks is optimum, that way you know each is eating properly, shedding properly, isn't stressed out by the other that might be bullying for premium hiding spots heat spots or food. Leos aren't communal animals so living in groups is against their natural programming. They usually only group together for breeding purposes. Besides if you accidentally have 2 males since sexing is so hard at that age, once they mature a bit they might fight. You can't house 2 males together with out conflict. Also like Kathyrn stated... get plenty of hides in your tanks... esp for juvies. The more clutter/cover in the tank the more secure they feel... I'd say at a minumum until you seperate them 2 cold hides 2 hot hides and 2 moist hides to remove any conflict or bullying.

Aside of the habitat, they're 2 adorable lil leos... they look nice and healthy. Best of luck with them and welcome to the forum

for the hide itself just use an little cricket tub or worm tub whatever u feed your leo and cut out one side of it and turn it upside down , sounds like you friend could of given you a bit more advice before letting u go out and buy things you dont even need, keep the sand tho its good to make a little litter box with if you want to that is



here is an exzample of a moss hide

Since you're here in America, and closer to me than most, I do recommend Pyrex glass bowls for humid hides. I use them in both my enclosures and they work great.

I am so glad you guys are helping this much. It means a lot! i did not expect this much help and advice. i went out today and got paper towels. so no more sand and i guess ill go in the back and gather a little sand from where i dumped for litter haha. Very soon i will get some tile. my mom happens to work for home depot so i will be able to get scrap tile for free . I should be getting another tank sometime next week so i can split them up. Plus i went to get a heating mat today and they were out so i am going tomorrow to get one from another store . Ever since i got the paper towels in the cage they seem to like it more they are out and about walking around and just enjoying it. Thank you guys so much.

I'm glad we are helping you out!
When I joined I was so surprised and happy by the help I got as well (I had a surprise leo, wasn't expecting to get one -she's a rescue that I just couldn't turn away, her previous owners hadn't cleaned her tank in over a year and hadn't been fed properly in at least a week).
Everyone here is so friendly and helpful, and I"m glad to be apart of this community!

Some leos won't use litter boxes, some will. Here is a link to some info about leo litter boxes: http://www.leopardgeckoforum.com/t578-litter-box-training?highlight=litter+box#6339

Lucky! Discount tile will be great! I use peel-n-stick, cause they were cheapest, but I'd love some ceramic tiles, because I believe they hold heat better (not positive though).

It will definitely be a good idea to split them up, especially if this is your first attempt with leos. Keeping leos together should only be done by people with experience with leos, and even then its a bit risky. As well, if you ever get a new leo in the future you NEED to quarantine. To prevent any spread of disease the new leo may have.

If you are getting another tank you'll need two heatmats
There is also heat cable which is useful for people who have multiple tanks. The heat mat should cover 1/3 of the tank's bottom. I use fish tanks, and my dad made lids for them for like $5.00. I ended up saving about $30-$40 buying that way. You should check goodwill and cash converter places, they are good for cheap used tanks (especially fish tanks that may have cracks so they can't be used for water so are discounted even more). Thats what I did, and I got my 20 gallon tank for I think $15.00.

Looks like tomorrow im going to pick up some moss and go look at a few discount stores for tanks i never thought of that but that is a great idea. Thanks again. Now i need name ideas!

Welcome to the forum and great job and turning to the leo side of things



First off you have some stunning leopard geckos there. Sand it bad. I suggest you keep hatchlings up to 6 months on kitchen rolls or lino. And adults can be kept on the same (the safiest) if not than very large substrate can be used. There is a large risk of impaction with lose substrate.

They dont need over head heating, only belly heat this helps they digest and thats the only way they obtain their heat. With eating hatchlings up to around 6 months of age need to be feed once a day to one every couple of days. And they need to have more calcium and vits than a fully grown adult x

Hi all, I have just got a baby leopard gecko I have got two hides, kitchen paper as substraite, water dish etc. The first night I dusted 4 crickets with calcium but he didn't seem interested. Also, on the second night I thought he may be a little more settled and dusted another 4 crickets and the same problem he didn't seem the slightest bit interested he barely came out of his hide. Is this normal behaviour for a new baby? I'm just worried that he isn't taking to well to his new home. If the crickets are still in the tank the following day should I get rid of them or keep them in until he/she eats them? I'm also using a thermostat for my heat mats but it doesn't seem to keep it at the right temperature, do you recomend them? I'm using two small heat mats because I was given them with the tank and it is the equivilant to one medium sized on these are conected by a double socket so the thermostat can keep both mats at the right temperature. If anyone could help me in any way it would be very much appreciated.

Welcome to the forum Craig! It sounds like you are on the right track so far.
A few things I'd like to mention. You should NEVER leave crickets in with your leo (especially a juvie such as yours) as the crickets can and will try to eat your leo (I've seen crickets attack my leo once, Its not pretty).
A leo may take a few weeks to get used to its new habitat. If they don't eat for a bit, they should be OK. Leos can go months without eating (although obviously thats cruel if you just don't offer :P). The crickets may be to big for the leo to eat as well, depending on its size.
With a juvie you should have lots of hiding places so they can hide and feel nice and secure. Not a lot of open space for a juvie.
What temperature is the heat mat at right now?
I would offer the crickets and if no interest is shown within a few minutes, take them out. Mealworms are a better choice. Crickets can carry disease, and they are kinda just gross. :P They'll eat whatever they can, which includes each other. Disease spreads easily between them.

Hi Kathryn, thankyou for the reply I have taken the crickets out and I will try some Mealworms and see how he gets on with them. I have made two hides for him and there are fake vine like plants attached to the wall which he keeps climbing to the top is this because he is scared? The temperature now is 27 degrees but keeps fluctuating between 23-27 thats using the thermostat. I tryed using it without the thermostat but the temperature rose far to high like mid 30! Could the fact that I have two heat mats attached by an extension socket to the thermostat so it can power two be affecting it? Many thanks Craig

No problem Craig! Anyway I can help, I'm happy to!
Glad you're going to try the mealworms. After I switched over, I just found them so much easier, easier to take care of, to feed and they can't escape!

Two hides are great, one on the hot side and one on the cool side, right?
I don't think he's climbing to the top because he's scared. There are 3D backgrounds, that I've seen leos like to climb alot. He might be doing that just for fun.

Mid 30 is actually where you want to be! The right temperature is around 88-95*F. (31-35*C Approx.). Right now, you've actually got it set a bit low. Are you measuring air temperature or the temperature of the ground? You should measure temp of the ground, cause thats where his belly will be resting.

That is probably the problem with the thermostat;attaching two to one. Try without the thermostat and see what the temperature stays around.

No problem, Craig!

Hello again,

I went to the reptile store today and purchased some meal worms to try my Leo on tonight when I feed him. Should I dust the worms each time I feed him? How much should I feed a juevenile? I also think the crickets the bloke at the other general pet store gave me were to big because when I went to this pet store he showed me the size I should be given and they were a lot smaller!!

Yes both of my hides are on either sides of the Viv...They are just takeaway tubs with little doors cut out and covered with dark tape to make them dark when he is sleeping is this ok?

The person at the store said I must tape my thermostat and my digital thermometer to the heat mat or as close as possible to get a true reading. I've done that and set the thermostat at 31*c, the light comes on, and the mat reaches temperature. However, when the temperature drops it doesn't come back on and it drops to 27ish *c, am I doing something wrong or would you say the thermostat is broke?

If this doesn't work I will try without the thermostat and see what the temperature goes to.

Many thanks again, I'm really glad I found this forum

Kind Regards Craig.

Here is what I do. I tape the probe to the floor of the terrarium where the heat mat is and usually that is where I put the "warm" house for my leo. I find that ususally I can control the heat with the amount of substrate. If it is too hot I add another layer of tile or papertowel whichever I am using in that tank. I have found the thermostats very difficult to maintain in my leos tanks and I am not sure why because I know that many others seem to have good luck with them but I find there is too much fluctuation.

And we are glad you found us too;)