Thermometer, yes. The thermostat is analog. Why is tape bad? It is electrical tape, holding the wires back so she doesn't get all caught up in them. If it is bad I will get it out right away...but when assembling her setup I put the thermostat probe and the thermometer probe right next to each other under her substrate. The thermostat probe has to be on the heat pad? Her ambient reads at 70-75 usually. I have newspaper on the very bottom and a 1/4inch or so shredded aspen bedding on top of that. The probes are on the newspaper.