Crested Gecko Care.

[deeplove]

I'm going to be a total nOOb on this and ask...

Care for a Crested Gecko.

My daughter wants to get one after she saw one at Petco. They had a Green Iguana there that she wanted but I said no. Those kats can grow big. And I don't have room for one. My daughter is 5 going to 6 in November. I'm going to be keeping it in a tub for a time being till I can get an Exo Terra cage or something.

I need help on keeping one. Totally new just like my Ball. She's not afraid of lizards, snakes and some. She even picks up the household roach if she wants. Eww. But as the man of the house, I have to step in and control her urge to buy any reptiles.



Help. Crested Gecko. It's no Morph or anything fancy. Just a BEAUTIFUL creature that the "daughter" wants to have.

[deeplove]

Oh, I forgot to mention.

If the daughter would want to have a Morph or such by any chance...



Where and who does she have to talk to?

This is all asked by a 5 year old. What a great daughter.

[Laooda]

his is a great care sheet...
http://www.ball-pythons.net/modules....ewarticle&id=6
And Emily is a great breeder!
http://www.ball-pythons.net/forums/member.php?u=1182

[deeplove]

Thanks for the links. I'm really looking forward in getting the Cresties. Very cute bunch of guys. Anywho...

Will this rack work?

http://reptilebasics.com/Iris-Arbore...k-p-16193.html

I want to buy one Crested tonight and order the rack maybe this week coming up.

[mlededee]

That rack will work, but I'd recommend just starting with an appropriately sized kritter keeper for just one crested. That will be easier on your wallet, and after you have some time with your first crested you will be able to decide whether you want to add more to your collection in which case you would need more housing. That said, that the tubs in that rack are only large enough to house single adults--I house adult males, one per tub in a similar rack. One of the large exo-terras is better suited to more than one adult gecko.

[deeplove]

Ok. I need the criticism so I can figure this one out. I'm sure this gal, is some what older. Here's a pic.



For the time being, she's in a 10G tank. Which is...



The most important thing I forgot was the vines. Now, the humidity stays pretty high. The temps are at 72.3F high and 71.3F low. Humidity is around 80%. I have both a regular 18W CF fixture which is 6600K color and a Red Heat lamp which is about 60W.

Should I use the red heat lamp for the time being at night? I'm kinda scared that the Crested will climb to the top and burn it's toes. Cute ones by the way.

I read the care sheet but I'd like a quick personal opinion. I will get the vines and leaves tomorrow.

Oh, and it tried to climb the sides but she kept slipping. Is there something wrong with her?

I was looking at the Exo Terra but they're some what expensive. I have 2 10G tanks laying around so I thought I'd make use of them. DId I do Ok?

Oh, mlededee... One of your posts about your feeding schedule. I read it somewhere but I can't find it now. What's your routine? Should I start to feed or should I wait.

[mlededee]

You got her at Petco? It's not often that you find adults there, especially not females!

Your temps are fine and I would not add any heat unless it gets below 65 at night. In that case you will need to move the light off of the top of the cage as it will get too hot on the glass. You don't want it to get above about 80 degrees in the cage.

Humidity should be around 60%. Once your substrate dries out your humidity will come down some to a better level.

If she cannot climb the glass she is likely either approaching shed or she has been kept in too dry of conditions. Keeping her at the appropriate humidity levels will help to correct this problem. They do also have trouble climbing the glass sometimes when it is wet after you mist the tank.

The 10 gallon turned that way is fine for a single adult. Add some vines like you plan to and you're good to go.

You can go ahead and start offering her CGD now, but don't panic if she doesn't eat right away. Sometimes they need up to a week or so to settle in before they start eating. I don't feed insects for the first 3-5 days or so while they settle in. I feed on a schedule similar to this:

Day one: CGD
Day two: leftover CGD
Day three: no food
Day four: dusted crickets or other insects
Day five: no food
Day six: CGD
Day seven: leftover CGD
Day eight: no food
Day nine: dusted crickets or other insects
Day ten: no food

You can skip any of the insect feedings and feed CGD instead--I usually feed insects once per week or so. It's not a set thing--if they eat all of their CGD the first day then day two is the no food day, not the leftover CGD day. If I feel like making a fresh fruit mash they might get that instead of insects and some weeks I don't feed insects at all. Figure out what works for you and your gecko and go with it.

[deeplove]

I'll see if I can take a picture later on tonight with a ruler. Cute thing. Didn't let me sleep. She kept crawling under her water and food bowl and into the Repti Bark. The humidity is in the 60% - 80% so if it's about to shed, I'm sure that's a pretty good level.

I took a couple of nice dumps also. Yay for a new home. Tonight I'll get the leaves. I wanted to get a live plant for it, but there's not that much space in the 10G. Once those leaves go in, I'm sure it will get crowded.

This house never dips below 72F so the temps stayed at a steady 74F. I might go with a Rheostat just to control the amount of light it produces and I'll keep an eye to make sure that the heat doesn't go past 75F. The light will just be for viewing.



Oh, and yes... Petco. They had some Tokay and Skunks for $20. I was about to get a Tokay but my wife loved the Cresty. I don't know how much difference in care for a Tokay or a SKunk, but I do have another 10G laying around.

[mlededee]

I'd recommend saving the other 10 gallon for your next crested.

[deeplove]

Believe me you. Once I get used to this one, more will follow.



Question...

How active are they at night. My wife says that it dug itself into the Repti Bark under the water bowl and it's been there most of the day. It's 5:54pm now and it's still there.

SHould I worry?

Also, when I get the crickets, how much will it eat?

Later on tonight, I'll take some pictures with the ruler to see if you guys can tell me how old it is or something.

Thanks for the help guys. I'm happy I found this plave.