New Member and first time Leopard gecko owner

[muskiemagic]

Hello everyone. I am a new Leo owner and have had her for about 3 weeks now. My Leo appers to be a 7 inch female based on no bumps on underside and weighs 46 grams. I have an Exo Terra 36x18x12 using ceramic tile as substrate. I have 3 hides a hot,humid and cool. Tempertures are running 90 on floor in hot hide controlled by heat mat and thermostat and my heat source is a 50 watt Halogen as well as a 50 watt Arcadia heat projector set with thermostat.I live in a basement where it stays cooler and that is why I am using 2 heat sources to maintain proper air temps.My air temps on hot side are between 84-87 and cool side 75. Humidity during day is around 20-25 % and at night 30-37%. When I first got Gretchen she spent most of her time in her hot hide which I understand is common for new environment. Recently the past week she has been spending a lot of time in her humid hide which I have heard can lead to health issues. She had a successful shed a week ago so I dont believe she is ready to shed again already.She just seems to like laying in her humid hide as you can see in pics she is in the hide now.She is eating well and does roam around from time to time. Is spending so much time in her humid hide something I should be concerned about ? From all the research I have done it seems like my set-up is ideal so I dont know what else I can do to make anything better for her. I have attatched photos of my set-up as well

 

[acpart]

Welcome! Your setup is fine, though in my opinion an air temp in the mid to high 80's is kind of hot, which may be one reason she's in the humid hide so much (air temp that hot can dry out the air). Even if that's not the issue, some geckos just fall in love with their humid hides and it's not a problem at all.

Aliza

 

[muskiemagic]

Welcome! Your setup is fine, though in my opinion an air temp in the mid to high 80's is kind of hot, which may be one reason she's in the humid hide so much (air temp that hot can dry out the air). Even if that's not the issue, some geckos just fall in love with their humid hides and it's not a problem at all.

Aliza

Thank you so much for your reply. What would you recommend for air temps ? I did a lot of research before I got Gretchen and pretty much every site I've visited said around the 85 mark thats why I've been aiming and maintaining that temp. And that has been a struggle living in a basement so if you recommend a lower temp.... that would actually help me out with the way I'm trying to heat her enclosure.

 

[acpart]

My opinion is that if the floor on the hot side is in the low 90's and there's a hide on the hot side, and if the air temperature in the home is comfortable for humans, it's fine for the gecko. If the gecko is cold, it can stay in its warm hide where the trapped air will make it warm. My vet feels that most people overheat their leopard geckos and the higher heat leads to dryness that ends of dehydrating them and in some cases causes eye problems. I had him write an article about it for Gecko Time. Here it is:

Eyelid Dysecdysis in Leopard Geckos - Gecko Time

I have never had a gecko as a pet. And that is an important fact in my suggestions for their care. My perspective is as if I am a space alien looking down on Earth from Mars and telling us we need to clean up our atmosphere. I do see hundreds of geckos each year with multiple kinds of veterinary...

geckotime.com

Aliza