anyone order geckos from LLLReptile?

ColleenT · 08-16-03, 12:57 PM

Hello, i am new here. i just ordered two 3 inch crested geckos from LLLReptile and i was wondering if anyone else has gotten them from there and if they were healthy. they had a good deal, 2 for $85. but i did not get to chose color, they are all similar in color. That is ok, i think they are all cool looking.

i am new to Cresteds. But i have had Leopard Geckos. i am so excied to get the cresteds (wednesday or thursday), and my tank is a 44 gallon tank with 36x18 floor and 16? high. i already have crickets and calcium and i have mealworms, b/c i have bats. i am a bat rehabilitator. Bats are great to work with. But there is no money in it. Fortunately, my husband makes good money. but i have also read that there is a special mix by TREX or something that you can feed to the crested and they don't need crickets or mealworms b/c it has all the nutrients they need. has anyone used this product? thanks. And please tell me about your Rhaco's.

Colleen

alan · 08-16-03, 01:21 PM

They shouldn't be put into the large enclosure right away if they are still young. Put them in a 5 gallon or a 10 gallon depending on their size. I did run across LLLreptiles' site before but I didn't order anything from them. Do tell me if they are any good when the cresties arrived cos I am shopping around for them right now

ColleenT · 08-16-03, 03:49 PM

so they should not have a lot of space right away? I guess i can put a smaller tupperware container inside the tank for now. I have fake vines and branches and retile carpet in the big tank. also a red basking light 50 watt and a small heat pad under the tank. i will let you know how they look when i get them. thanks.

ColleenT · 08-16-03, 04:06 PM

Was it wrong of me to mention LLLReptile? i did not mean to cause any problems. if anyone has any comments about them, please feel free to email me at troiani@voicenet.com i did not realize i might be breaking the rules. Sorry.

and after thursday you can email me if you want to know how they look, healthwise. i did not mean to step on anyone's toes.

RaVeNo888o · 08-16-03, 04:11 PM

you dont really need a heat pad or basking light..they live at room temperatures 70-80, high seventy being ideal. it all depends on what you keep your house at..
If you already have crickets and mealworms you may just wanna stick with those and some baby food instead of feeding them the t-rex diet. It is your choice. The diet will give you everything it needs so you wont have to worry about other foods..it may be reluctant to feed on it at first but you should be able to get it to eat it. The crested i bought was brought up on the diet and cricks and is healthy. I am going to get some at the toronto show and start to feed that to him since he was already established on it

the tank may be a bit big for now for only 2 juvi cresteds..if you can get a temporary smaller tank/rubbermaid for now since they may not be able to find food in the larger tank.

HeatherRose · 08-16-03, 04:16 PM

Be careful with the basking light and heat pad! I've seen people with heatpads and high temps for their cresteds almost lose them.

Any light you use shouldn't be over 30 watts and any temperatures over 80 are not a good idea

stretch · 08-16-03, 06:48 PM

I just purchased an albino leo from them today it will arrive on Tuesday. Hopefully everything will work out fine. I'll post up when I get them.

eyespy · 08-16-03, 10:31 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by ColleenT
Was it wrong of me to mention LLLReptile? i did not mean to cause any problems. if anyone has any comments about them, please feel free to email me at troiani@voicenet.com i did not realize i might be breaking the rules. Sorry.
and after thursday you can email me if you want to know how they look, healthwise. i did not mean to step on anyone's toes.

There's nothing wrong with asking people's opinions of a vendor or breeder and asking that folks reply privately through email or PM. That way folks can share their personal experiences without either airing dirty laundry in public or doing a bit of free advertising for a few select companies. It's just best to keep discussions that are out on the forums nice and general so that nobody feels like filing any lawsuits against this website.

ColleenT · 08-17-03, 04:53 AM

thanks everyone.

my house does get cold, b/c the weather here is mostly winter like. I try to keep the inside of my house at 70-72, so if i keep either the light OR the pad is that better? maybe i can find a red light with a lower wattage. the basking light is the small size, maybe 6 inches across. The heatpad itself, is about 5x6 inches i think, it might even be smaller, and since it is a tank, i think i can keep good humidity without covering the screen. the screen top has good size holes, it is the metal type screen, not the soft-screen type, so i think the temps will regulate. and with the size of the tank compared to the size of the heaters, i just figured they could go far away from the heat if they need to. do they know enough to do that?

i can always unplug the heater or turn off the basking light. But how do i know for sure the temp in the tank? do the therostats that you stick on to the outside of the tank give an accurate reading? i would not think so. I'll go to the Pet shop this week and see what i can find. unfortunately, the best reptile place i have found is an hour from me, so i cannot always run up there. maybe Monday night i can. I plan to start them on crickets and mealworms, but i would like to switch to babyfood with the T-Rex diet if possible, since it is supposed to be a complete diet.i have read about mealworms eating their way out of a lizard. do not know if it is true, but that scares me.

little_dragon_ · 08-17-03, 10:22 AM

That is a myth!!! There's no way a mealworm could eat its way out of a lizards stomach unless it crawlwed in while the lizard was dead...A lizards stomach acids would finish off a mealworm if it didn't kill it before swallowing it.

damzookeeper · 08-17-03, 10:29 AM

OMG that myth is still going around. lol.

Good luck with the cresties! I love those little buggers.

JeffT · 08-17-03, 10:37 AM

One more suggestion, when they grow up and you put them in the big tank, I think they would be much more happy if you were to tip it on its side so that they have 36 height instead of 16. These animals are aboreal and they need a lot more height then ground space.
Good luck with them.

ColleenT · 08-17-03, 12:17 PM

Hmm... maybe i'll look around for a tall tank. usually i can find them in flea markets or garage sales. there is always a tank that someone tried to keep fish in and they usually go fairly cheap.

I was riding my horse, today, and i saw this huge area of moss. i will have to go back there and collect a bunch for the tank. i read that moss is good for the bottom of the tank. Of course, i have read so many conflicting things, it makes me wonder what to believe. What do you all think?

Also i picked up a thermometer today and a hygrometer. my tank is not very hot at all. i currently have the two baby Leopards in there until Wednesday, when my friend is taking them, so i wanted to see how warm it really was with the heat pad and the red basking light it is not that warm. about 82 degrees. and that was under the basking light. humidity about 70. but they have a humid hide box with peat moss in it. that is more humid than the rest of the tank.

HeatherRose · 08-17-03, 02:20 PM

82 is too hot.....I wouldn't let it get over 78-80...they aren't like other geckos that can take the higher temperatures, if they have to withstand one of the extremes,it should be cold

Cresteds DON"T need a basking light at all! If you want light so you can see them, use nothing over a 30 watt bulb. They don't need a heat pad either!

You are going to COOK your cresteds with a basking light and heat pad....they're NOT like leos.

Moss is fine, you can get it at petstores. I wouldn't use moss you just find anywhere, unless you like...boil or bake it or something, just to be safe.

ColleenT · 08-17-03, 04:24 PM

ok, i'll unplug the heat pad and i'll get a smaller watt red light for night time viewing.

but now, how do i keep the humidity high without the heat, will it stay humid at a cool temp? sorry if that is a stupid question. i am not very smart about humidity (or any type of science, really.)

i am afraid the tank will be too cold, tho. do you really think it will be ok at 70 degrees? how do i warm the tank slightly without overheating it? would a 30 watt red bulb keep it 75 or so during the day? i read somewhere that the day temps should be warmer than the night temps. do you do anything to change the temp from day to night?

now i'm worried

i hope i can get this right.