Beginner t leo's

[meow_mix450]

hey guys

uhh im pretty new to these things, and i plan n getting one, but heard ther are fat tailed, leo's, wuts the difference?????? i kno one has a fatter tail, which one is easyer for beginners???Any sites, and the range for these little guys, they eat a lot, i got a 33 gallon i belieive, its meant for reptiles.

Meow

[Dark_Angel_25]

hey Meow,
Fat Tails and Leopard Geckos have pretty much the same requirments. I now have 2 Leos (Zipper and Freckles) you can see dsome pics I posted in the leo forum. And they are pretty easy to take care of.

As juvies, I feed mine everyday, dusted everyother day with calcium (crickets) and they have a dish with calcium powder in it in the cage at all times. I put the mealworms in there every night.

They are so easy to take care of, and so funny to watch, especially the tail wiggle when they eat! :D

really, you need only these:
UTH
moist hide on warm side (i use a 25w red light to keep it warm)
1 hide on the UTH 1 hide on the cool side
Water dish
Calcium dish

And that is it. I have some stick on plants Freckles likes to climb in, but that is more esthetic that anything!

I hope you enjoy your new pets..

P.S. only thing to watch for is when they shed, make sure all the skin is off the tails and toes.. this is sometoimes a problem, but with a moist hide, it reduces the chance of damage greatly! I haven't had a problem, and when Freckles had shed on her toes, a soak in warm water for 5 minutes and some rubbing with a Qtip took it off no problem... :D


P.P.S: If you are getting a baby, a 33 gallon may be to large for it to find it's food.. you can herd the crickets ( like I do) this will help.. but keep your eye on them to make sure they don';t hide somewhere...

[meow_mix450]

why is it a problem??? if the shed desnt come off?/? and UTH stands for????lol srry im a real noob here, does it have to be a red like??? would a bearded dragon bulb be ok??? it gets pretty hot, and theres a side that is pretty cool.

Meow

Meow

[Dark_Angel_25]

Meow :
They do not need really high temps. you can use a UTH (under tank heater) I only use the light bulb to keep the moist hide warm, if you have a big enough UTH then just place the moist hide over the UTH as well.

As for the shedding, they eat their shed,but sometimes can't get it off the toes. this can be bad because it cuts off the circulation and can cause the toes to die and fall off. you will notice right away if the shed isn't done, you can see the skin. do not panic..

hot side should only be about 88 at the most... cool side around 75. I can get you more infor at home, (im at work now.. shhhhhh) or PM me or e-mail me I will be glad to help!

[meow_mix450]

lol ha ha iim srry, ill PM you then, anyone any tips???

Meow

[Zoe]

just thought I'd ad that I kept fat-tails for years and they are actually a bit different than leos.

First, they are WAY tamer. I was able to handle babies right out of the egg, whereas even my adult leos are a little finicky sometimes.
Also, fat-tails are far less desertic. They should live on dryish coconut bedding or mulch (as opposed to sand, even though leos shouldn't really be kept on sand) - they are from the African plains where it is dry, but not arid. They definitely need a humid hide or two.