Crested Gecko Questions

[DudleyDragon]

Thinking about getting a few Crested Geckos. In general, how are they as pets? Easy? Also, do they need to eat crickets everyday like the Beardies or something else? Help please.

Thanks - Briana

 

[ThyDemise]

couple caresheets

http://pangeareptile.com/id52.htm
http://www.forums.repashy.com/care-sheets/25853-rhacodactylus-ciliatus-crested-gecko.html


theyre awesome little creatures. CGD or the two part MRP is all they need for food, they dont 'need' crickets. the ones i breed or get at a young age i dont offer crickets at all. if i get an older one who is used to getting live regularly then ill offer it once a week less and less each time until theyre completely off it.

 

[DudleyDragon]

couple caresheets
CGD or the two part MRP is all they need for food, they dont 'need' crickets.

Thank you for the reply, do you mind me asking what MRP is? Haha...sorry I'm new to this whole reptile world...

 

[ThyDemise]

meal replacement powder. theres a 'one part' where all you do is mix with water it has all the nutrients and flavor all in one. then theres a 'two part' where you have part 1-base, that has all the nutrients, and part 2-flavor, this adds the flavor to the mix, you add the two parts together and mix that with water. the benefit of the two part is you have options to different flavors where as the one part cgd is only one flavor.

http://www.pangeareptile.com/store/index.php

 

[herpfreak]

^ What ThyDemise said. Easy, cheap, and super fun! I prefer gargoyles to cresties, but cresties are great, too.

 

[Starforce2]

which is easier, live bugs or the powered food? I've never seen the powered food in stores.


I hope you don't mine me throwing in a few questions but I am considering the same type gecko as well:
Also, I notice they have 2 types of tall terrariums at petco, one is a glass version and one is a screen version. I assume the glass would be the best? Can I put a hood over the glass ones or is ventalation an issue? I had an aole that had 8 small holes in a plastic top and it lived past it's life span, but also had real soil and live plants which would naturaly refresh the air (I suspect there was more oxygen in there than the rest of the room..probably what caused him to live so long). Natural greenhouse effect trapped enough heat to keep it in the 80's and keep it moist, like once a month watering..wondering if I can pull off a similar feat in a tall terrarium. I'd hafta restrict airflow out of the top though, to trap the heat and moisture.

 

[herpfreak]

CGD is easiest. You can order the Repashy brand from most gecko breeders. I know Gecko Ranch sells it.

Both screen and glass work fine as long as you can keep the humidity at 70%, and yes, ventilation is important. It's up to you, but I personally wouldn't try a greenhouse setup. Much too risky.

 

[Starforce2]

what are the risks with the greenhouse type setup? What bad effects are caused by doing this? I've heard from others this is a bad idea yet my anole exceeded it's life span in one, with no uvb and no dusting of bugs what so ever and I never even had to clean it (except for removing turd from the heatrock).

I also have an idea about the humidity, if I get a big enough cage I can get those little ultrasound modules for the mist bowls cheap, they're small too. Just need to cover it with a screen so the lizzard can't get on it. Prob is we have very hard water. They don't last long.

 

[herpfreak]

It might work. I simply wouldn't risk it if I were you. There are plenty of breeders out there that have been breeding Rhacs for a very, very long time. In terms of caging setups, the best way to go is to follow the example of what's worked best for breeders. I've absolutely heard of many people who have great success making a mini eco-system type of thing with a mixture of soil, live plants, etc, it's just the reduced ventilation that I would worry about.

Hard water is rarely a problem with reptiles, although it would probably be a good idea to have the pH tested. If you're really concerned, you can find reptile-specific water filters for $10 or so.

 

[Starforce2]

The care sheet listed above mentions that naturalistic beeding (Peat moss, Bed-a-Beast, and Eco-Earth ) is good for when life food is not used, so what is good for if i do use live food (most likely I'll use both to a varied degree, assuming the gecko actualy eats non-live food) I assume they eco earth is that brick stuff.

http://www.ebugco.com/pages/reptilelife/food/crested_gecko_food.html (is that any good btw?)

Edit: will they eat dubia's?

 

[herpfreak]

Loose substrates are fine as long as all food is kept in bowls. If there's any risk of them ingesting the substrate, go with something solid like reptile carpet or newspaper.

If you want to use a non-live food, the only way to go is with Repashy's Crested Gecko Diet. It's the only pre-made food that contains good levels of calcium, vitamins, and protein. Actually, if you feed CGD, you don't even need live feeders.

Oh my gosh that sounded so much like a sales pitch. :? Lol I'm not trying to sell you anything, I'm just a happy customer.

Yes, dubia are great feeders. My Rhac won't eat anything live, but in theory, dubia are very nutritious.

 

[Starforce2]

I plan to use live feeders because that's what petco has them on. I tried pre-packaged bearded dragon food and my dragon wouldn't eat it, so I am not entirely confident the gecko would eat the gecko version, and I'll probably have a roach colony before I get any more pets, simply due to the rate at which I'll be using feeders by then (plus, the hassel of getting 2 different size crix because Prickles is almost ready for the big ones). Thing is petco uses this substrate that looks almost like seed starting mix, it's very fine. I don't think there'd be an issue if they ingested a mouthfull of the stuff. I gotta find out exactly what it is.

 

[ThyDemise]

if its from petco it is most likely deprived of most of what it needs to be healthy, especially if all they feed is live. cresteds do and will eat the crested food, there is no comparison between that and the bearded dragon 'food'...at all, so while youre not confident they will eat it, do some research on how many crested owners/breeders feed the cgd and the success rate they have. getting a crested off live and on cgd can be difficult in some cases, but nowhere near impossible, and in my opinion far better for the animal.

 

[Starforce2]

Well, I always intend to feed any reptile or amphibian insects, because animals need stimulus to be healthy, just as much as vitamins. Strong muscels and heart comes from hunting for their food, not just sitting around eating out of a dish. Just ask a zoo. I know there are substrates out there that reduce the risk of impaction, I just need to figure out which has the lowest chance. I have no problem with artifical food items, so long as they are safe and because there are things man raised bugs lack that wild bugs do not, but I'm not going to use the stuff exclusivley, even if experts say it's ok to do so. Atleast, not as long as I have easy access to live bugs.

I've also read from a gecko care sheet that you can simply sprinkle a small amout of vitamin or calcuim supplement in a dish and they will give it a lick when they need it. I am guessing they can smell the calcium to know what it is instinctivley?

Also a while back I began some research on finding some giant beetles and giant leaf bugs that I wanted to try, and found a species of easy to care for walking leaves, I think you can colony them (they are sold as pet food for lizzards) and can feed them with powdered bugchow, like the roaches do, in the winter, if I find that again I will hafta inquire about that as I think having leaf bugs would be cool and being able to also feed bugs which naturaly climb to a crested gecko which spends it's time in trees would probably be better than feeding a bug type that requires them to come to the ground to eat, provided ofcourse that the particular bugs are not bad for the lizzard.

 

[ThyDemise]

the 'experts say its ok' because its proven to be best for the animal, not just because it gets the job done. cgd has everything they need to be as healthy as they can be. feeding live is fine, but as a treat more than a staple. muscles come from alot more than hunting food. give them enough to do in the tank and take them out let them run around theyll get plenty of stimulus. but it sounds like youre generalizing all/most reptiles in your reasoning. whats best for some does not make it best for all. look at something like the iguana. are you going to tell me they lack muscle and stimulus because they dont eat insects? or would you simply toss a dozen crickets in there to hold true to your beliefs? (I always intend to feed any reptile or amphibian insects, because animals need stimulus to be healthy, just as much as vitamins.). disregard any general knowledge you have for a moment, and learn about just the particular animal you are looking to get, theyre not all the same.

a dozen or so of my cresteds wont even touch live food, and theyre no less healthy than the ones that do.

i use substrate on everyone over 10 grams, usually eco earth or coco noir in the non planted tanks, and peat moss/soil in the planted tanks. if you plan to plant a tank you can always grow a ground cover to limit the risk of ingestion. i have grass in one of my tanks, theres plenty of other options, and they look nicer than just dirt.

the leaf bug thing is interesting. im curious to know if/what of those are safe