Thinking about getting into Geckos

si_sleaf

Arachnoknight
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I'm thinking about getting into geckos pretty soon. One of my friends has a couple of leopard geckos and they seem pretty cool and easy to keep. Can anybody recommend to me a good starter species other than the leopards? Or for a beginner who has never kept lizards before is there another kind of lizard I could think about? Anoles?

Thanks:)
 

Bry

Arachnodemon
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What kind of lizard are you looking for? If you're looking for a tame lizard that is easily handled and not too difficult to care for, other options would be crested geckos or African fat-tailed geckos. Cresteds like more humidity than leopards, but other than that, they are up there with leopard geckos as one of the best beginner geckos. Anoles are pretty hardy, but they're not exactly handleable as they're very flighty, but they do make for a pretty interesting display. I don't know about the availability up in the UK, but, bearded dragons make great lizard pets also. Their care is a bit more involved, because they are diurnal, and require UV, and they are omnivorous. Regardless, they are very rewarding pets.

Bry
 

si_sleaf

Arachnoknight
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Thanks for the reply Bry. In Nottingham there is a reptile centre which sells all kinds of lizards and inverts. I really like the look of the crested geckos so I might go for those. How much would a typical setup cost?

Thanks

Si
 

Bry

Arachnodemon
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Not sure on the price, I've never owned cresties. Obviously, the price depends on how you want to set it up. If you shop around for good deals, you could probably easily keep the total price under $70-100 for the setup alone (I dunno the conversion rate). Perhaps someone with experience in keeping them will have a better answer for ya.

Bry
 

atavuss

Arachnoprince
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Originally posted by si_sleaf
Thanks for the reply Bry. In Nottingham there is a reptile centre which sells all kinds of lizards and inverts. I really like the look of the crested geckos so I might go for those. How much would a typical setup cost?

Thanks

Si
I paid 49.00 US for an unsexed juv crested gecko (red fire morph) and 79.00 US for a large juv male of the same morph. seems easy to find large juv males and unsexed hatchlings, but IME sexed females are hard to find.
do you want a naturalistic enclosure for them? or a bare bones easy to care for enclosure? I have the large juv male in a tall ten gallon "hex" aquarium that has three back panels siliconed to the glass, there is a knot hole that the gecko goes through to hide between the glass and the back of the cork panels (this used to be an h. maculata's enclosure) I have several live plants growing and a small condiment cup for a water dish (I just toss the condiment cup when it is dirty and put in a clean one). the hatchling is in a slightly smaller size enclosure but it also has cork bark, a fake "rock" background on the rear of the enclosure and a condiment cup for a water dish and several live plants. right now the hatchling gecko is perched on its water dish like a vulture waiting for a cricket to wander by, it does this every evening around 6 until the lights go out. I use grow fluorescent lights for the plants, the geckos do not need UV lighing. crested geckos might not be the best choice for a lizard pet that you want to handle a lot, they seem flighty and skittish and are always wanting to move around. my large juv male wants to always jump to my head and then from there it will jump off to wherever. I don't take the hatchling out as it is small enough to easily hide quickly in the house. they seem to easily lose their tails. the Chaffee zoo in fresno had several of them and all of them had no tails. their tails are prehinsile and they use them when climbing, etc. there is even a pad under their tail to help them grip. T-Rex brand has a powdered food that was developed by sandfire ranch. apparantly sandfire ranch has raised several generations of crested geckos on this powdered diet (it has to be hydrated with water) without any other food items.
 

Maggie

Arachnosquire
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On the other side, one you should NOT get as a starter gecko is a Tokay! Granted, they have been easy to take care of, so maybe thats a plus. But the temperment leaves a lot to be desired and when they bite they sure make it count.:rolleyes:
 

fatbloke

Arachnoangel
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si_sleaf im not sure if your aware of this but some shops do sell leopard gecko starter kits but they are not worth the money as they are very over priced for what they are and also if you buy it from a shop becareful as some shops will try and sell you things that arent really needed for them so if you end up getting it from a shop dont let them talk you into things you dont need if you check the following link there is normally geckos for sale


fatbloke

http://www.cviewmedia.com
 

Lycanthrope

Arachnolord
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si_sleaf im not sure if your aware of this but some shops do sell leopard gecko starter kits but they are not worth the money as they are very over priced for what they are and also if you buy it from a shop becareful as some shops will try and sell you things that arent really needed for them so if you end up getting it from a shop dont let them talk you into things you dont need if you check the following link there is normally geckos for sale
transversly if you find yourself in the wrong shop, they wont tell you everything you need, or will tell you the wrong things altogether. so its ever important to read and learn yourself beforehand, then make the shopkeeper look like an ass later;) .
but IME sexed females are hard to find
you think this may be due to the crested gecko being relatively new (in comparison to tokays and leopards) to the majority of hobbyists? like maybe the breeders are keeping the females to themselves for more breeding?
 

Bry

Arachnodemon
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Originally posted by Lycanthrope
transversly if you find yourself in the wrong shop, they wont tell you everything you need, or will tell you the wrong things altogether. so its ever important to read and learn yourself beforehand, then make the shopkeeper look like an ass later;).
Ah yes, this is always fun. ;)

you think this may be due to the crested gecko being relatively new (in comparison to tokays and leopards) to the majority of hobbyists? like maybe the breeders are keeping the females to themselves for more breeding?
While I do agree that cresteds are relatively new to the hobby compared to some other species, they are sexed by the same methods as other geckos and many other lizards. It's most likely because people are keeping the females and selling the males.

Bry
 

Psycho

Arachnobaron
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Jun 28, 2003
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My $.02

Ok if yer lookin to get into gecko's make sure thats what you wanna do because I hate to see people get into the hobby and then say "Ahhhhh I dont like this Lizard...lets try another"

#1)Gecko's are not a real handable reptile because their skin is very sensative to touch (but im not saying all geckos because the African Fattail Gecko loves attention...and maybe others)but they make a real good addition to a "look only" tarranium...

#2)Gecko's are selling for a good price and any species are available

#3)For a good starter(Being price wise)Golden Geckos are one of the common in house holds today cause they are super cheap ($15.00 us dollers) But if money is not an issue and you want to find a "user friendly" gecko look for an African Fattail or a Leopard gecko


BUT BEWARE....GECKO'S CAN BE REAL MEAN BUGGERS....ASK MY WIFE HOW IT FEELS TO HAVE A TOKAY LATCHED TO YOUR FINGER

~~~Psycho~~~
 

si_sleaf

Arachnoknight
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May 2, 2003
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Well, I did it. I got a leopard gecko because

a) that was all that was in other than a reserved clawed gecko

b) he's pretty cute

and c) I have loads of crickets that need eating up and my spiders just aren't up to the job.


I have called him Boycey (Fatbloke will know ;) ) and will post a pic later. Thanks fpr the advice chaps :)
 

si_sleaf

Arachnoknight
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May 2, 2003
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Sorry it's taken so long, but I have been working flat out this week and have not had time to get the pics taken.













He's quite the speedy fella and likes to climb up and down on my shirt:)
 

Craig

Arachnoknight
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Oct 12, 2002
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Last week a the clinic where I did an internship called me with a sick tokay gecko that someone was going to euthanize. He looked like a walking skeleton. I have had him for a week and he is putting on weight etc. I have never really been interested in keeping geckos before this but now I am obsessed !! In fact yesterday I went out and bought a cage mate for my tokay. I ended up separating them so the new guy would not hurt "lucky" lucky will be re-introduced into the enclosure when he has fully recovered.
An interesting side note: because lucky has to be hand fed twice a day he has become quite docile. he does not open his mouth or snap and he does not mind being handled anymore. I think if this same amount of time is given to other aggressive geckos they will become docile was well. I do not mind being bit by tokays becuase I have been bitten by so many animals with more serious bites. Tokay bites do hurt though!!
 
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