Collection of Articles and advice to help us keep our herps
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Thanks, and due to the planing I have not really had to make any changes to it at all. Parameters are as follows.AmbientTemp 86 -89f during the day and 79-80 at night, humidity 65-68 percent daily, and when misting it jumps to 80 percentscubasteve06;1781582; said:
Here's a website I threw together a couple weeks ago. Mainly about African house snakes, but theres a page with other links to other cool sites as well.
Check it out: http://www.ShiningSnakes.com
Check it out: http://www.ShiningSnakes.com
malawi haps
wow, beautiful setup. i plan on building a 6'x4'x3' deep enclosure for my aussie water dragons,
how much did your setup run you?
wow, beautiful setup. i plan on building a 6'x4'x3' deep enclosure for my aussie water dragons,
how much did your setup run you?
If you dont go as elaborate as I did you could look to spend around 5-800 in materials .The mots expensive purchases were the two glass doors and hardware and all the silicone.ryanc2106;2447935; said:
New Leopard Gecko Tank Build
I'm not sure how many of you look at the sticky on the top about DIY reptile setups so I thought I'd post this here. It might give you some future ideas for your herps. If anything it will show you how to construct a fake rock wall for your pets.
I was lucky enough to get a free reptile tank off a friend of mine that I decided to turn into a new LG tank for my one trio of geckos. I decided I wanted to take a crack at making a fake stone wall for the background.
The tank I got is a Oceanic Lizard Lounge and it's about the size of a 40 gallon breeder. I made the wall from a piece of foam board and I ended up using 3 spray cans of "Great Stuff" foam.
Here's a pic of the tank, tile grout, foam wall and the sweet piece of driftwood I got off a member on here (thanks again Msjinkzd).
After letting the foam dry and harden for 3 days I did my best to carve out the rock wall. I used xacto knives, a hacksaw and my dremel to remove most of the foam. And boy did that ever make a big mess! I figured I'd carve out shelves for the geckos to hide and sleep in. That way they could pick whatever temperature gradient they wanted.
When all the dreaded carving was done I painted the whole front and sides with 3 coats of buff colored tile grout mixed with playsand. While it was still wet I lightly sprinkled a coating of playsand over it.
After drying for 2 days it was time to put the cage together. I put a couple pieces of ceramic tile on the bottom. It disperses the heat better from the under tank heater.
And here's the tank with all the deco finally stuck in it. I placed in a bunch of large, flat stones and added screened playsand to the cracks to keep things from shifting. It's not completely finished, I'm still moving some stuff around until I get it to where I want it. I also want to add some type of hanging plant for the top right corner. Yes, those are real plants. One is an aloe and the other is a type of Snake Plant. They geckos seem very interested in their new tank. They've checked out just about every nook and cranny!
I'm not sure how many of you look at the sticky on the top about DIY reptile setups so I thought I'd post this here. It might give you some future ideas for your herps. If anything it will show you how to construct a fake rock wall for your pets.
I was lucky enough to get a free reptile tank off a friend of mine that I decided to turn into a new LG tank for my one trio of geckos. I decided I wanted to take a crack at making a fake stone wall for the background.
The tank I got is a Oceanic Lizard Lounge and it's about the size of a 40 gallon breeder. I made the wall from a piece of foam board and I ended up using 3 spray cans of "Great Stuff" foam.
Here's a pic of the tank, tile grout, foam wall and the sweet piece of driftwood I got off a member on here (thanks again Msjinkzd).
After letting the foam dry and harden for 3 days I did my best to carve out the rock wall. I used xacto knives, a hacksaw and my dremel to remove most of the foam. And boy did that ever make a big mess! I figured I'd carve out shelves for the geckos to hide and sleep in. That way they could pick whatever temperature gradient they wanted.
When all the dreaded carving was done I painted the whole front and sides with 3 coats of buff colored tile grout mixed with playsand. While it was still wet I lightly sprinkled a coating of playsand over it.
After drying for 2 days it was time to put the cage together. I put a couple pieces of ceramic tile on the bottom. It disperses the heat better from the under tank heater.
And here's the tank with all the deco finally stuck in it. I placed in a bunch of large, flat stones and added screened playsand to the cracks to keep things from shifting. It's not completely finished, I'm still moving some stuff around until I get it to where I want it. I also want to add some type of hanging plant for the top right corner. Yes, those are real plants. One is an aloe and the other is a type of Snake Plant. They geckos seem very interested in their new tank. They've checked out just about every nook and cranny!
Eublepharis macularius
Common name: Leopard Gecko
Care Level: Easy
Size: Hatchlings 3-4", Adults 7-10", Giant Morphs 10-12"
Temperature Range: Warm end 86-90˚F, cool end 72-75˚F.
Humidity: 30%. A moist hide should be provided for the aid in shedding.
Origin: Afghanistan, Pakistan, Northern India and parts of Iran.
Temperament: Babies and juveniles are skittish but adults calm down with daily brief handling of 5-10 minutes.
Diet: Vitamin/calcium dusted mealworms, roaches, phoenix worms and crickets. Wax worms can be given as a treat a few times a month. Remember to gut load food first.
Narrative: One of the best beginner lizard species out there, leopard geckos are very easy to care for, friendly and hardy. With proper care this species can easily live to be 15-20 years old.
One chef can be housed in a 10 gallon but that can be pretty cramped and it's hard to create a good temperature gradient. A 20 gallon long would be a much better choice and you could even keep a pair in that sized tank. 10 gallons of space is recommended per gecko. If keeping multiple geckos together make sure that they are not both males because they will fight. You can keep females together. Leopard geckos are easy to breed and prolific so if you keep a male and female together there is a very good chance they will mate and lay eggs.
There are many options for a heating source. One that is highly recommended is the use of an Under Tank Heater. This should be attached to the under side of the tank on the warm end. A digital temperature probe is a good thing to buy to test how warm your hot/cool end is. If you need additional heat a red heat bulb or ceramic heat emitter can help with that. Remember that leopard geckos are nocturnal so they don't like harsh strong lighting. UVB lighting that is needed by most day time species is not necessary for leopard geckos because they receive all the vitamins they need from their dusted food in captivity. Never use heat stones to heat your cage! They can easily become too hot and burn your gecko.
You can go two different routes for substrate in the enclosure. Paper towels, news paper or butcher paper are a safe choice to use and are easy to remove when pepper paste but look very unnatural. Reptile carpet is a bad choice. It can be a breeding ground for bacteria, it holds urea from the gecko waste and smells. You also have to worry about it fraying and the gecko ingesting it by accident. It can get caught on the gecko's toe nails too and has been known to cut off circulation to the toes as well. A more natural look is the use of Ceramic Tiles, Slate, and Sand. Ceramic tiles/slate are easy to remove and clean and hold/distribute heat evenly. Sand is a substrate with mixed reviews. It can be used on adults but should be avoided with babies and juveniles as it can cause impaction in small animals. Screened play sand is the type you should use. Avoid calcium sand and most reptile sands that you come across in pet stores. You can pick up a cheap bag of play sand at most home improvement stores. Just make sure you screen out any large particles from it first. If you chose to use sand make sure to change the area where the geckos relieve themselves to help keep down on odors. To avoid impaction from your geckos eating sand make sure to provide a dish of calcium powder or dust the food in it. A healthy gecko should have no problem passing sand if it happens to ingest some during feeding.
Your tank should have at least 3 hides. One on the cool end and one the warm end. It's recommended that each gecko have it's own warm and cool hide if you are keeping multiple geckos in a setup. A moist hide should be provided to help aid in shedding. It can be as simple as a Tupperware container with a hole cut in the side filled with moist paper towels or moss. You can use ceramic tiles and slate stacked and propped up for additional hides. Just be sure that they are secure so they can not fall and injure or kill your gecko.
Leopard geckos are mainly ground dwelling lizards but they will take advantage of rocks and branches for climbing on. Fake plants or live succulents can also be used as long as they don't have any thorns. Make sure to provide a water dish at all times. Even though they are from an arid region, they do like to drink water daily.
Common name: Leopard Gecko
Care Level: Easy
Size: Hatchlings 3-4", Adults 7-10", Giant Morphs 10-12"
Temperature Range: Warm end 86-90˚F, cool end 72-75˚F.
Humidity: 30%. A moist hide should be provided for the aid in shedding.
Origin: Afghanistan, Pakistan, Northern India and parts of Iran.
Temperament: Babies and juveniles are skittish but adults calm down with daily brief handling of 5-10 minutes.
Diet: Vitamin/calcium dusted mealworms, roaches, phoenix worms and crickets. Wax worms can be given as a treat a few times a month. Remember to gut load food first.
Narrative: One of the best beginner lizard species out there, leopard geckos are very easy to care for, friendly and hardy. With proper care this species can easily live to be 15-20 years old.
One chef can be housed in a 10 gallon but that can be pretty cramped and it's hard to create a good temperature gradient. A 20 gallon long would be a much better choice and you could even keep a pair in that sized tank. 10 gallons of space is recommended per gecko. If keeping multiple geckos together make sure that they are not both males because they will fight. You can keep females together. Leopard geckos are easy to breed and prolific so if you keep a male and female together there is a very good chance they will mate and lay eggs.
There are many options for a heating source. One that is highly recommended is the use of an Under Tank Heater. This should be attached to the under side of the tank on the warm end. A digital temperature probe is a good thing to buy to test how warm your hot/cool end is. If you need additional heat a red heat bulb or ceramic heat emitter can help with that. Remember that leopard geckos are nocturnal so they don't like harsh strong lighting. UVB lighting that is needed by most day time species is not necessary for leopard geckos because they receive all the vitamins they need from their dusted food in captivity. Never use heat stones to heat your cage! They can easily become too hot and burn your gecko.
You can go two different routes for substrate in the enclosure. Paper towels, news paper or butcher paper are a safe choice to use and are easy to remove when pepper paste but look very unnatural. Reptile carpet is a bad choice. It can be a breeding ground for bacteria, it holds urea from the gecko waste and smells. You also have to worry about it fraying and the gecko ingesting it by accident. It can get caught on the gecko's toe nails too and has been known to cut off circulation to the toes as well. A more natural look is the use of Ceramic Tiles, Slate, and Sand. Ceramic tiles/slate are easy to remove and clean and hold/distribute heat evenly. Sand is a substrate with mixed reviews. It can be used on adults but should be avoided with babies and juveniles as it can cause impaction in small animals. Screened play sand is the type you should use. Avoid calcium sand and most reptile sands that you come across in pet stores. You can pick up a cheap bag of play sand at most home improvement stores. Just make sure you screen out any large particles from it first. If you chose to use sand make sure to change the area where the geckos relieve themselves to help keep down on odors. To avoid impaction from your geckos eating sand make sure to provide a dish of calcium powder or dust the food in it. A healthy gecko should have no problem passing sand if it happens to ingest some during feeding.
Your tank should have at least 3 hides. One on the cool end and one the warm end. It's recommended that each gecko have it's own warm and cool hide if you are keeping multiple geckos in a setup. A moist hide should be provided to help aid in shedding. It can be as simple as a Tupperware container with a hole cut in the side filled with moist paper towels or moss. You can use ceramic tiles and slate stacked and propped up for additional hides. Just be sure that they are secure so they can not fall and injure or kill your gecko.
Leopard geckos are mainly ground dwelling lizards but they will take advantage of rocks and branches for climbing on. Fake plants or live succulents can also be used as long as they don't have any thorns. Make sure to provide a water dish at all times. Even though they are from an arid region, they do like to drink water daily.
Heres another leo one, the previous one is great. This one mentions a couple of my favorite specific products.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Leopard-Gecko-Care/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Leopard-Gecko-Care/
David blair's Cyclura Iguana care. He is the Guru of ground iguanas.
http://www.herpnut.com/wordpress/
http://www.herpnut.com/wordpress/
