My first Gecko! FEEDING VIDEO ADDED

[monkE]

Kind of strange timing right after Diztrbd1 posted an awesome video of his geckos, a FF ad came out here on BCA and i jumped at the chance to have one of these guys for the first time. Thank you to Grete J! I love him already!

He is a Panther Gecko, and has a gorgeous colour pattern. Here are some pictures of this complete set up that I was given.

Riding shot gun on the way home


The coffee table will have to do until i find a good place for him

I love this pattern




Because i've never owned a Gecko, i am completely green as far as taking care of them. I have read so far that you should feed them 3-4 times a week, something like 3 crickets each feeding. I guess that i need to regulate the tanks temperature with a heat source which i don't have at the moment. My apartment is quite hot so for now it will have to do. I will pick up a heat rock or lamp in the next couple days.

What about poo? I don't see anything noticeable in the tank right now..

Any and all helpful advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks for looking!

[Keri]

I would suggest a heat lamp or under tank heater, heat rocks only provide very localized heat and can be dangerous. Grab a thermometer while you're at it and you won't have to guess at temps

He's very cute!

[240sx]

Very cool little creature!

I have an 80 gallon tank that I'm too lazy to re-silicone.... that would make a great home for one of these guys!

Or do I not need a 5th tank?....

[Grete_J]

I hope he's settling in well

[Diztrbd1]

Congrats Mike! Was interested in that guy myself lol Glad to see he went to a good home. He is very cool looking! I agree with Keri about using a heat pad as opposed to a heat rock. All the research I have done advises against a heat rock. I'm no expert lol but I have been doing alotttt of research on my LG's. They are a little different from the Panther/Pictus/Ocelot Geckos, but have alot of similarities with the habitats plus they are both ground dwellers as opposed to the rest of the Geckos that can climb anything.Keeping than in mind he doesn't require a tall aquarium or cage. Luckily Mine came with a Zilla Deluxe Desert Gecko Kit. If you notice in my pix/vids there are 2 hides in it, the one on the left has a under the tank heat pad and above it is a day blue bulb (provides heat as well) The right cave just has a night black heat bulb( to keep the tank from cooling off too much as my apt is quite cool at night & also since they are more active at night the bulb simulates the moons glow as to not interfere with their vision.) It is recommended to have them set-up like this so the Gecko can regulate it's body temp as it needs ( one side warm and the other side cool) I also mist under the cool cave for the humidity factor and helps them shed better. I don't think you really need a special heat/UV lamp as they are nocturnal and don't bask like most other lizards. Although I do see mine laying on the rocks more than I thought they would. As for feeding I feed mine 3-4 crickets 4-5 times a week ( I read most do it every other day, but I'm quite sure in the wild they eat every day lol) Meal worms are good for them too I feed them a couple meal worms about every other feeding with the crickets. Wax worms are a good treat for them too but they are more of a once a week thing/treat as I read it's best not to feed wax worms to them too often. Also you want to dust the food with Calcium Powder 1-2 times a week. In case you didn't know they need the Calcium. It's recommended to keep a small dish with Cal powder in it. The Gecko knows when it needs it and will get it when necessary. As for the poo lol I'm sure you have seen some by now. The nice thing is they are creatures of habit and use the same spot almost every time. Rather than make this any longer I provided a few links for you and if you have any questions feel free to ask, I'll do my best to help if I can lol


Ocelot Gecko - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
pictus gecko care
Pictus Gecko (Paroedura pictus)
Pictus Gecko Care | The Gecko Spot

[monkE]

Wow extremely helpful stuff John! Thank you very much. I'm glad i got a hold of Kameko before you got to her or this little guy probably would have ended up at your place!

I have purchased an under tank heater and i've placed it under the side with his little rock hide. The water dish is placed on the opposite side. He has made a little hiding place in the mulch underneath the fake leaves on the cooler side and he sort of goes back and forth between the two, i guess to regulate his body temperature. I will have to get my hands on a spray bottle so that i can mist him daily....havn't done it yet.

Rick at IPU just sold me a can of "Hi-Cal Cricket Monster Diet" Apparently im supposed to dump crickets into a bag and dust them with this stuff before putting them into the tank... i've done that for the first time tonight....

Is it strange that he doesn't ever go after the crickets when i place them in the tank? I guess he's noctournal so he goes hunting at night.... After seeing your video i was really excited to watch him feed! oh well... as long as he's eating!

Well thank you for all the advice and those links... I'll keep this posted as he gets more and more comfortable in his new home!

[Diztrbd1]

Your very welcome Mike. I wouldn't worry too much about it not going after the crickets, could still be settling in. I read they stress pretty easy when being moved. Took mine a few days before they did. Now soon as I get in front of the tank they come out cuz they know what time it is lol Might be best to feed it when the light are off. Being that they are nocturnal I believe they have better night vision than day. They react to movement. Was funny the other day I put my digital thermometer probe in the tank and they were both trying to get it as it was moving around. Give it some time I'm sure he/she will be all over the crickets in no time. As for dusting the crickets I put a little of the powder in a deli/Tupperware container and do it that way, but I'm sure a bag will work just as well. I don't think you need to do it every feeding , wouldn't hurt to put some in a small dish of some kind so it can get it when it needs it. Not sure if they can get too much, just going by what I have researched. Thats pretty cool it hides under the leaves in the mulch, being mine are more desert geckos I just have a boring reptile carpet for substrate lol but the female has managed to get under it a couple times lol Another thing you might keep in mind is dont have it in a high traffic area , that can cause stress as well. Anyway, look forward to seeing more of it as it gets settled in, It is a really nice looking Gecko. Wish mine had more of a pattern to them as most Leopard Gecko's do, but oh well they are still cool lol BTW here is a link to the BC Reptile club's forum in case you want to check it out: BC Reptile Club • Index page I'm a member there , never posted. I mostly joined in case I need some help or info from locals. Cool member pix there and a decent classified section for reptiles and goodies

[monkE]

Just got some mealworms last night and gave my little guy his first taste. I think he's too lazy for crickets so I decided to give these guys a try.
With the crickets I actually had to heard them right up to the geckos face before he'd make an attempt to grab them!

Enjoy the vid

[Diztrbd1]

Cool vid Mike, he/she is looking great! Strange he doesn't react too well with the crickets....if I go anywhere near my tank after the lights are out, mine are searching everywhere & looking at me with anticipation for the crickets. SO funny watching them stalk them down. I'll have to get a new vid myself.

[effox]

lol, he looks like a lazy bugger!

Cool gecko man!

P.S. Nice Russel Peters background noise, lol.