Hello everyone.

Rlgilly

New Member
Messages
4
Hey! Glad I found you.
My name is Rhonda, my daughter abandoned her leopard gecko with me and I have fallen in love with it. I've done all kinds of searches and reading of info on them and still have some questions about them. My granddaughter named him (?) Speckol (her pronunciation of special). My questions will have pictures so you can actually see what I'm asking.
1) Is it possible to tell the age of a Leopard gecko? (Pic with my hand shows his size) from inside my thumb to tip of middle finger is 5 inches (~12.75 cm). 20190912_111209.jpg
2) Tank set up? (Pics 2 and 3) He has a log hide, a phone holder hide (hand made by me, it was sitting around and he seems to like it), and a moist raised bed. I also have his water dish (a mayonnaise jar lid), a 6" x 8" under tank heat pad for reptiles, humidity and temp gauge, blue/purple heat only lamp and a regular flourescent coil light bulb lamp. His tank gets to almost 90°F (32°C) during the day and just under 80°F (26°C) at night. I try to keep humidity between 20% and 40% but it jumps to almost 50 % after washing his mat. I only use hot water to clean his mat (a reptile mat) and tank. Oh and he has a "pet" plastic frog (courtesy of my granddaughter, so he doesn't get lonely).
I'm wondering if A) Do I need to put anything else in his tank or B) remove anything? C) Do they like to have things in the same spot all the time or can I mix and change things? D) Do i need to use any certian cleaner on tank and mat and glass? E) Any suggestions about my set up? 20190912_110345.jpg 20190912_114145.jpg
3) Gender? (Pic 4) Not really knowing what to look for I am guessing my Leo is a male from what I have seen online. Can any one verify? 20190912_111519.jpg 20190807_183029.jpg
I put in a larger dish after catching him in this one I put in for the crickets. 20190912_111016.jpg
He was curious about all the flashes from my camera while I took the above pics of his tank.

Thank you all for reading and replying to my post and questions.
Rlgilly.
 

indyana

Well-Known Member
Messages
2,336
Location
Massachusetts, United States
Welcome! Your little guy is a male gecko. It is not possible to exactly age because growth is very much linked to feeding rate, but he looks to be a young adult as far as growth.

For improvements, having some more enclosed hides would be nice for him. Humid hides especially are usually made by cutting an entrance hole on the top of a lidded container to help them stay nice and humid. I would also recommend getting a temp gun to measure temperatures, as the dials can be inaccurate. Once you can measure temp, you may find you have to adjust the heat by using a thermostat or changing bulb wattage.
 

Rlgilly

New Member
Messages
4
Welcome! Your little guy is a male gecko. It is not possible to exactly age because growth is very much linked to feeding rate, but he looks to be a young adult as far as growth.

For improvements, having some more enclosed hides would be nice for him. Humid hides especially are usually made by cutting an entrance hole on the top of a lidded container to help them stay nice and humid. I would also recommend getting a temp gun to measure temperatures, as the dials can be inaccurate. Once you can measure temp, you may find you have to adjust the heat by using a thermostat or changing bulb wattage.
He is eating 3 to 4 crickets (3/4 to 1 inch) a day. At sunset I take the hides out (if he's up and moving, otherwise I wait till he's up) and add 5 crickets. After a half hour I remove what's left and replace the hides. I take the hides out because I have found he eats better when the crickets can't hide. And he moves around a lot more too. Hubby and I love watching him hunt. Lol. The little tip of his tail wiggles so fast and sometimes his whole tail gets into it. Reminds us of our cat when she was a kitten playing with the laser light.

I have been thinking of putting a small terracotta pot over his moist bed to make it a moist hide.

I will have to save up for a temp gun. Being old and disabled our income is very fixed.

Should I get him some plastic or real plants? If so what kind? I want to provide the best I can for him since he could be with us for quite a few more years (20 to 30 years!!! Wow who'd a thunk?) Wondering now who will outlive me, my Jenday or my Leo. Lol.
 

indyana

Well-Known Member
Messages
2,336
Location
Massachusetts, United States
Anything interesting as far as climbing opportunities and textures will help keep life interesting for him. Decorative plants are more for keepers, as I haven't noticed my geckos enjoying them much. :)
 

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