Crested Gecko

[jon_without_h]

I am trying to find out mroe information about a crested gecko. Like prices, caging, right temperatures, etc. I alreayd have an idea about the diet. But I need ot knwo where is a good place to order one from too. So if anyone knows of any places in southern Ontario around Stratford/Kitchener to order a crested Gecko please let me know.

[Bartman]

Where I work we've got some crested gecko's. You could visit our site, www.reptilia.org, to check them out.

Housing wize, you could keep one in a 15 gallon tank. They are aboreal, so if you could ad a substrate damn and put it on its side so its more vertical that would be great. They usually live in temperatures around the 80's, so usually heat lamps arnt needed depending on your house of course. I think our cresteds are priced at 100, but you could double check on the site.

If you found a breeder, you could also grab some from them as they are usually cheeper, so if you wanted to save some money. There is also a show this weekend in mississauga. Visit www.reptileexpo.ca for more info.

Good luck, they're great lizards!

[Rebecca]

Post this in the Crested gecko forum you'll get more help there. As for temps room temp, price anywhere from 80 right up to a couple hundred. Just a little VERY basic info.

[HeatherRose]

They usually live in temperatures around the 80's

Are you talking about crested geckos? These geckos aren't made for heat. 74-78 is usually better for crested geckos...

This is one of the best caresheets in my opinion: http://www.acreptiles.com/geckos_crested_basics.htm

Check it out, and until then I'm moving this to the crestie forum :)

[jon_without_h]

I knwo they arent ment for heat.But i am moving into a farm house and they are usually cold and winter is coming around. So i just wasnt sure if there was a minimum heat they can have before they die or what ever.

[HeatherRose]

So i just wasnt sure if there was a minimum heat they can have before they die or what ever

From what I understand they can tolerate temperatures as low as 64 degrees F. Although of course it's probably not a great idea to keep them at these temps :p

In a small enclosure (10-29 gallons) a 40-60 watt light bulb should suffice as a basking light. Crested geckos spend less time on the ground, so an undertank heater won't benefit them as much.

[concept3]

a 40 or 60 watt bulb for a 10 or 20 gallon tank could cook a cresty in no time flat. Unless it was clamped up above the tank 10 inches. Jon just get a thermometer, and put it in your room for a couple days im sure your room unless in the basement wont go below 70. If it does go below a 15watt bulb should be plenty. If its in a 29 or 33 gallon you could put a 40 watt bulb on one side but a 40 watt bulb will dry a tank out fast so you will have to do lots of extra misting.

[Matt_K]

Originally posted by concept3
a 40 or 60 watt bulb for a 10 or 20 gallon tank could cook a cresty in no time flat.

According to both The Rhac book by Philippe de Vosjoli and The Crested Gecko In Captivity by Robbie Hamper, Using a 40-60 Watt bulb to heat such an enclosure is fine.. Provided the the light is limited to one side of said enclosure so the Cresties can chose where they want to be.. (This is for the RAISED area of the cage, ie: Branches, not the ground.)

[concept3]

I agree that as long as it is on one side of the cage they can escape the heat, but I am currently using a 50 watt bulb for my beardies basking spot and my temp gun reads 112f and that is sitting on a screen top on a 75 gallon. So a 60 watt bulb on a ten gallon i dont care what side it is on is going to be WAY to hot for a crestie.

[little_dragon_]

I've heard they grow faster is higher temps like 78-82

[Matt_K]

You must have one hell of a bulb then.. What kind of bulb exactly are you using?? I was using 100 Watt Mercury Vapour Bulbs on my Beardies Tank a while back and JUST getting to 115º.. A 50 Watt in a 75 reading that is a pretty damn good bulb..

Also, how close to the top are you reading that temp??

[concept3]

my temp gun sais it is most accurate 1/2 away from the surface you want the temp of. I geuss i should of clarified it is a halagen(sp) spot lamp but even the ones from the petstore are going to push the temps in a 10 gallon to high,.

[HeatherRose]

I was talking about a house bulb, sorry for any confusion.

[Matt_K]

Yes, in a 10 Gallon a 50 Watt bulb WILL get hot, but NOT 115º.. Halogen Spot Lamps get MUCH hotter then a reptile bulb and WAY hotter then a house or common red bulb.

And Also, What I meant was, how far from the light is your basking spot??

[beanersmysav]

I was using a 100 watt reptile blue bulb in my beardies tank and it was reading 130 but it was a long and wide breeder tank, not a tall tank because I like them to be able to get 6 inches from their UVB and I had a big piece of drift wood for them to get up to 6 inches away from their UVB light, needless to say I had to get a lower wattage bulb. But I use a 25 watt bulb on my cresteds because the wall I have them near gets 62-63 sometimes and this brings the temps up to 70's range depending on the day.

[jon_without_h]

I will probably get a 15 watt bulb maybe a 25 and put it on the one end of the tank. The tank is big enough for my cresty to go to the other side to get ride of the heat if it wants. Does anyone know if there are any limitations to what i use for a base like sand or what ever? I want to use sand and some tree and plants in mine.

[HeatherRose]

Sand isn't the greatest thing for crested gecko substrate. They're rainforest animals, and very vivacious eaters (especially babies) I can imagine if they were kept on sand they'd end up eating a lot of it. They need more humidity than sand can provide, and if you think about it it just doesn't really add up :p

Have you read any caresheets on crested geckos? You should check some out, they'd have some better ideas for substrates.

What about sphagnum moss or jungle earth? I use jungle earth personally, in my breeding tanks, while the other enclosures (especially for hatchlings) have paper towels.

Anyway, as for the general cage decor, look at ficus plants and pothos plants (which hold humidity really well). If you want a really natural look, you can plant these plants in jungle earth or potting soil used as substrate (sand wouldn't work very well for this at all either)

Cork bark is great for climbing and hiding spots as well and is relatively inexpensive.

Good luck, and check out these caresheets, they should provide you with tons of info...and please rethink the sand ;):D

http://www.acreptiles.com/geckos_crested_basics.htm

http://www.crestedgecko.com/cg_care.htm

[Ptindy]

Sand is not a good idea!! I would use either paper towels, reptile carpet, or a natural substrate if it is an adult. Babies on natural substrate doesn't work well as they will eat it when hunting. I wouldn't think it's a big problem for them to eat a bit cause i'm sure they do in the wild but I wouldn't risk in. Sand is a no no, as they aren't exposed to this in the wild and who knows how their body will react to a mouthful of sand. What I did with my young and old cresties is buy 6 inch potted tropical plants from wal-mart, ripped it out of the pot and flicked off all the original dirt as I could off, wash the plant under the tub tap for a bit and then replanted with my own potting soil. If you do this a uvb bulb and fluorescent light fixture from home depot (plants and aquariums light bulb) can be put on top of the tank to keep the plants alive. I don't do this for mine but I don't expect them to last much longer and will ahve to replace them. My rubber tree plant seems to be doing fine however and they have nice big leaves for the crested gecko to perch on. And if the heat under the bulb gets above 90, turn it off or get lower wattage.

[concept3]

To answer your question Matt the bulb is about 12-14 inches away from the basking spot. And Jon for your new cresty no matter what age he is at keep him on paper towel for the first month or two so you can see and examine his feces to make sure he is eating properly. Then once he is well established switch to bed a beast (the large chopped stuff) or as heather said sphagnum moss or jungle earth. I have never personally used jungle earth for anything so I cant recomend it.

[clint545]

Yup, best listen to the last 3 about the sand. I use the jungle bedding for mine and it works well. Just don't use sand.

[damzookeeper]

I use papertowel for my younger cresteds and nothing at all on the melamine floor of my adults cage. They have a hide that has a peat moss/spagnum moss mixture and a potted plant in the tank, but that is it for substrates. The floor is bare. Easy for cleaning too. :)

[Ptindy]

Yea, like dam said easy for cleaning, papertowl is basically just the floor but you don't have to pick up all the crap one at a time...it's a one swoop move haha.

Mike

[jon_without_h]

Is it expensive to buy moss/spagnum moss mixture? Or is gettingreptile carpet more expenisve? From what i am now getting told for the start i will ahve paper towel and the one spot for the plant having dirt. But what age should i change the paper towel to the moss/spagnum moss mixture or the reptile carpet?

[Ptindy]

when they don't miss they're crickets while hunting.

Mike

[jon_without_h]

Alright that sounds good. I know its not good to buy them at pet stores because is soo much more expensive but i dont know where else i can get one easily

[CDN-Cresties]

You can get one at the Retile Expo this weekend. I have a few that Im looking to sell as well. PM me if you're interested.

[jon_without_h]

Its my girlfriends birthday this weekend so i am spending time with her. I was planning on going but i would rather see her. ya know how it goes.

[concept3]

post a wanted ad in the classified or just search on the classifieds im sure you will find one. And one more thing reptile carped is one of the worst possible substrates anyone could ever use IMO

[jon_without_h]

Do you know prices for moss/spagnum moss mixture?

[peterm15]

Originally posted by jon_without_h
Its my girlfriends birthday this weekend so i am spending time with her. I was planning on going but i would rather see her. ya know how it goes.

im forcing my girlfriend to go... if she doesnt wanna go she can stay home....lol:D

im serious though....

[jon_without_h]

lol! Well i would do the same but its her birthday and i dont want to force her to go on her birthday. Got to give her some slack

[Ptindy]

Bringing my gf to shows made her like reptiles! I couldn't think of a better birthday for myself haha. Anyways, reptile carpet isn't the worst substrate. If you have a few pieces and clean each appropriately and don't mind the extra time it looks better then papertowl. I wouldn't use it, it's a pain in the butt, but he may like it. As for the spagnum moss, I bought a small bundle at home depot in the garden section for 5 bucks. I wouldn't recommend covering the whole floor with it though. I'm a natural vivaium I just made I used a peat moss, potting soil and coconut fibre mixture as my substrate.

Mike

[damzookeeper]

Originally posted by Ptindy
I wouldn't recommend covering the whole floor with it though. I'm a natural vivaium I just made I used a peat moss, potting soil and coconut fibre mixture as my substrate.

Mike

I agree with Mike, cricket's would have a field day hiding in a bed of spagnum. It's great for a moist hide though! I lay it on top of my peatmoss and they dig down under it and lay their eggs in the peatmoss and it keeps the eggs nice and moist at the same time. :D

[HeatherRose]

lol! Well i would do the same but its her birthday and i dont want to force her to go on her birthday. Got to give her some slack

You might as well convert her now, man. Your addiction will just get worse :p

[jon_without_h]

lol true enough. I will get her hcoked on the lizards during the next reptile show. It sucks it is so far away though. Like its in Febuary isnt it? I dont know if i can last that long!