In the market for a crested gecko

Hey folks. I just started learning about crested geckos this week. I love ALL reptiles (and amphibians) and due to their ease, "cresties" seem like a good choice for a first gecko.

So, I'm in the market. Who can help me out? Money is an issue. I don't want the newest designer gecko out there. They all look cool. I'm particularly fond of the orange looking ones, but I don't know what they go for. Maybe, $50 is my [flexible] max price? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

i think the orange ones are a designer morph type deal so im pretty sure its going to be a higher price than what you are looking for. 50 sounds like a good amount for a crestie. they are easy to take care of and are wonderful! (my friend just got one and is very pleased). good luck

Keep in mind that if the gecko needs to be shipped to you ...there goes that $50.00

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Originally Posted by nebby3103

Hey folks. I just started learning about crested geckos this week. I love ALL reptiles (and amphibians) and due to their ease, "cresties" seem like a good choice for a first gecko.

So, I'm in the market. Who can help me out? Money is an issue. I don't want the newest designer gecko out there. They all look cool. I'm particularly fond of the orange looking ones, but I don't know what they go for. Maybe, $50 is my [flexible] max price? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

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If you are only wanting to spend $50 dollars you may want to try a pet store for a crestie...$50 dollars is what it will cost you for overnight shipping from a breeder.

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Originally Posted by ECLARK

Keep in mind that if the gecko needs to be shipped to you ...there goes that $50.00

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LOL We posted at the same time:P

Something else to consider, local reptile show. thats where you can see and touch what you are gonna buy and thats where you will get your best deal. :)

What is this "shipping" you speak of? I know it's gonna up the price a bit. My $70 BP cost $110. Oh well. I live about an hour or so from Indianapolis, where there are regular reptile shows. With gas approaching $3/gal, it may be cheaper to have it shipped than take a day trip. Either way, $50 for the animal; shipping and gas, well, damn.

Shipping: What it costs you to have the breeder mail overnight the animal from them to you!

here's the thing--if you can't afford the cost of the animal you can't afford to own the animal. the price of the actual animal is the least expense you will have. you also have to consider the cost of the animal's enclosure and everything in it and all upgrades required as the animal grows. then there is the cost of food and any vet bills that may be required during the course of owning the animal. if the cost of the animal alone makes you cringe, you may need to rethink things a bit.

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Originally Posted by mlededee

here's the thing--if you can't afford the cost of the animal you can't afford to own the animal. the price of the actual animal is the least expense you will have. you also have to consider the cost of the animal's enclosure and everything in it and all upgrades required as the animal grows. then there is the cost of food and any vet bills that may be required during the course of owning the animal. if the cost of the animal alone makes you cringe, you may need to rethink things a bit.

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Here's the thing -- and I don't mean to be rude -- I know what I'm getting myself into. I'm 21 years old. I wouldn't buy an animal I couldn't take good care of. I had to stretch my budget to buy my BP, it's food, it's enclosure and other supplies, and she's doing wonderuflly. All I'm saying is that I don't want a $500 lizard. Just like I didn't want a $1500 BP. The normal ones grow and behave the same way as all of the fancy morphs, and I'm not at a place where I can afford anything fancy. If I buy a crested gecko, it will be in good hands. No worries.

Now, the reason I posted is becuase I don't know where to buy one. I know about pet stores, and would prefer to steer clear. Shows are good, and I'll probably end up buying at one, but I'd like to do some leg work first. Can anyone direct me to a reputable breeder who sells online? (I guess I'll start at your site, mlededee!) Thanks.

it's all good, it is just all too often that you see people who want to buy an animal for cheap and don't take the other things into consideration. you might try www.pangea.com for a hatchling or juvie crested. matt has some very reasonably priced cresteds for sale right now and usually updates every few weeks with new geckos. :)

Thanks! I also found "Crested Lady" (I forget the URL) who appears to be out of the business for a while. Her page links to several breeders she believes to be good.

One other question while I'm here: would a cage 12Wx12Dx18H be sufficent for 2 crested geckos (both female, of course)? I know the appropriate size for 1 and for 3...

i think that's a bit small for 2 adult cresteds. something more like 18x18x18 would be better--that's the size of one of the medium sized exo terra enclosures.

A lizard cube!! Ok. Thanks. Those Exo-Terra's are exactly what I'm looking at. I'll bump the size up a notch.

i thought that might be what you were looking at based on the size you asked about. ;)

What about a 20L (30x12x12H)? I already have one and it could save me a little dough. But, if it won't work, it won't work.

I had a very successful transaction with Garrick Demeyer of CrestedGecko.com...might wanna give him a holler...oh and mlededee rocks too :D

a 20 gallon long would work if you turn it on its side so that it is vertically oriented.

I have a couple more questions, and I figure why start a new thread? Anyway, here goes:

Based on what I've read, cresteds can thrive on CGD alone without any insects or babyfood. True? If I do feed insects, they must be dusted with calicum and reptivite (sp)?

After my May acquisition of 2 crested geckos, I'll have, well, 2 crested geckos and 1 BP. I'm far too stubborn to use paper towels at this point. Spending and hour changing subtrates and cleaning cages once a month doesn't really bother me. So, what is the best substrate for cresteds? I use coconut fiber for my BP, but have been considering a switch. I would like to use the same thing for both of them if possible.

Impaction is my main concern. I lost a bearded dragon to and impaction when I was younger (and before I knew what impaction was) and I don't plan on making the same mistake twice.

Hopefully the blue questions aren't bothersome, I just thought it would be easier to pick 'em out that way. Thanks.

yes, they will do fine on a diet of just cgd although i would recommend giving them some sort of diet every once in a while for variety and the stimulation of hunting. even if it's just a few crickets twice a week or something like that i think it's worth it. they definitely don't need baby food--it is full of sugar which is not needed in their diet.

dust crickets and other insects with calcium and reptivite or herptivite. dust up to twice per week--if you feed less than twice per week dust each time, if you feed more than twice per week just just two of the times. (you want to make sure they don't get too much calcium.)

coconut fiber may be okay for adult cresteds if you don't feed insects or don't feed them often (and supervise when you do). i wouldn't recommend it for juvies and not at all for hatchlings. if you don't want to use paper towels a good choice is cage carpet of some sort. there will be no risk of impaction from cage carpet but it does still look nice.

How do you usually feed the crickets? That is, what is the best cricket food, gutload, etc.? I was planning on just using moist cotton balls for water...

Darn thing won't let me edit my previous post. I found a place that sells aquariums, terrariums and a whole lot more. They have some tanks similar the Exo-Terra that I'm interested in for much less money (www.glasscages.com). For 2-3 cresteds, could I get away with:

24x12.5x17H (20 tall)
20x10x25H (22 tall)
24x12.5x25H (30 tall)
30x12.5x25 (40 tall)

I would like to keep the footprint as small as possible seeing as horizontal space is a scarce in my tiny apartment.

any of the cricket foods on this page are good: http://www.flukerfarms.com/index.asp...TS&Category=22. if you use the dry cricket diet (i use something similar) you will also need to use one of the quencher products as a source of water. the orange cubes are all-in-one food and water. i tried those for a while but i didn't like them as well as using the dry food and a quencher--they smelled funny and got a little ickier if not consumed in a certain amount of time. for just a small number of crickets though, either would be fine depending on your preference.

a 20 tall is good for two adults, i'd get one of the bigger ones for more than 2--probably the 30 tall.

If I were to buy two cresteds (unsexed) and hope with all my might that they were female, would they be? I'm kidding, of course. But I do want to buy two crested geckos, and the one's I'm looking at are too young to be sexed. If I accidentally buy two males and they group up together in the same enclosure, would it still be bad to keep them together? What if I buy a male and a female... am I in for eggs 100% (that I might be able to deal with)?

I also saw in another thread something about the pores. Can you sex a crested by looking at those? If not, what are those all about (ie why do they matter)?

sometimes males that have been together from the time they are very young and that have never been introduced to a female can get along if they are housed in a large enough enclosure with lots of space to claim separate territories and lots of places to hide. it is somewhat seldom that this works, and i would not really recommend it. i have had males that were kept together from the time they hatched (i keep clutchmates together until they are old enough to be sexed or moved to a larger enclosure) and if i leave them together for too long they start to squabble. although it is nothing major at first, i do separate them immediately, realizing that they are still juveniles and as they mature it will likely turn into more aggressive fighting.

if you end up with a pair you will get eggs and most likely too soon--before the female is old enough and up to the correct weight. males and females should not be introduced until the female is at least one year old and 35 grams minimum, males should be close to one year and 30 grams minimum. if paired before they are ready the female is at great risk of calcium crash and egg binding, both of which are often fatal. after each breeding season males and females need to be separated in order to give them a break and for the females to rebuild their calcium stores, so keep in mind that even if you do get an adult breeding pair they will need to be separated for about 4-5 months out of the year.

males have pre-anal pores which can be seen under magnification (usually with a jewelers' loupe) as early as 3 months of age. as males get older the pores get larger and easier to see without a loupe. an experienced crested breeder should be able to loupe sex young cresteds (if they are 3-4+ months old), but this usually means that you will pay more as females are worth more.

I'm still looking. I held my first crested gecko at the pet store the other day (and politely told them the cage should be 10* cooler) and fell in love. These things are awesome, and now I want one (two) even more. So, I found a very nice orange tiger female online. I know a picture would help, and I'll get one for you if it's really necessary. But what's a good price range for that type of morph? I don't want to pay too much but I would like to be fair to the breeder as well.

There is always a great selection of Crested Geckos on Kingsnake.com, just be careful who you buy from.


It may be smarter to buy 1 sexed female than a couple unsexed babies. :)

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Originally Posted by nebby3103

So, I found a very nice orange tiger female online. I know a picture would help, and I'll get one for you if it's really necessary. But what's a good price range for that type of morph? I don't want to pay too much but I would like to be fair to the breeder as well.

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depends on her age, weight, and exactly how nice she is. i would price a juvie, 20 gram orange tiger female around $125-150 and an adult, 40 gram orange tiger female (more than 1 year old but less than 5 years old) around $200.

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Originally Posted by mlededee

depends on her age, weight, and exactly how nice she is. i would price a juvie, 20 gram orange tiger female around $125-150 and an adult, 40 gram orange tiger female (more than 1 year old but less than 5 years old) around $200.

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Funny, I really did mean to include that information. She is ~4 months and ~6 grams. That's my other question... is she healthy?

i obviously can't tell you whether the animal looks healthy or not without a photo but that weight for that age crested is okay. mine are usually slightly bigger at 4 months old but that is also because of what i feed (cgd and crickets).

the biggest thing i'd be wary of is the sexing ability of the seller. is this a guaranteed female? 6 grams is pretty small for a female to be accurately sexed at unless it is done by a very reputable breeder (and there really are only a few crested breeders who do sex females that small and guarantee the sex to be accurate).

The sex is guaranteed female. I've seen a very high-res photo of the pores as well as numerous photos of the animal itself. She looks to be in great shape! Her diet consits of crickets and fruit mash at the moment. I plan to wean her off of fruit and eventually get her to feed on CGD. $150 shipped. What d'ya think?

is this crested from tamara loftin (dirty stinky stuff)? she is very reputable. i have worked with her in the past and got an auric from her, which is extremely heathly. i'd go for it. :gj:

You got it! Not that it was some sort of game or contest. I was just trying to get a feel for the gecko itself. The website is AWESOME... very professional. All communication I've had thus far has been very clear and they seem knowledgable. I think I'll do it. Thanks.

EDIT: I also want to thank everyone who contributed and answered questions in this thread. I've been milling (sp?) this decision over for some time (starting well before I began this thread) and with your help I've decided to go for it and get a couple of cresties. I could well see myself breeding these guys as a future hobby. They're awesome little buggers. Thanks again :)

ha, i just figured it was her based on what you said about the gecko, the photos, what it is eating, etc. i thought in the beginning it might be her because she is one of the few breeders that does (accurately) sex cresteds at that age/size but i didn't want to assume anything. you should be very pleased with whatever you get from tamara. i want to see some pics when it arrives!

I've worked quite hard to not start a new thread, so my questions have been all over the place. Hopefully someone is still watching. One more:

In the interest of saving money in the short term, I've decided to take a 20L tank that I already own and turn it on its side. So, how many juvie and adult geckos can fit in a 12x12x30h tank? As you may know by now, I'd like 2, but if 1 is the answer than so be it. Two may happen at a later date. Thanks.

EDIT: I may have phrased that poorly. I won't be housing a juvie an adult together. How many as juvies? How many as adults? I'm guessing the answer to the latter is, sadly, 1.

you could house 3 or 4 juvies (up to about 15-20 grams) in a tank that size. 2 adults should be okay in that size as well, since it is pretty tall so they would have the vertical space.