What can I house w/ my leopard gecko??

Discussion in 'General Discussion and Introductions' started by butterfly39093, Nov 8, 2006.

  1. butterfly39093

    butterfly39093 Embryo

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    My son had a slumber party this past weekend for his bday and one of the kids took our female gecko out of her cage and lost her. We had been talking about getting a bearded dragon or chameleon (my preference) and feel our male gecko needs another companion. Can anybody suggest a different breed of lizard that would get along w/ our male leopard gecko? thx!!!
     
  2. JEFFREH

    JEFFREH Administrator

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  3. Cavemanpets

    Cavemanpets Well-Known Member

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    From what i understand you should never put two species of anything in with each other unless your talking cats and dogs... I can't even think of anything that requires the same care...
     
  4. JEFFREH

    JEFFREH Administrator

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  5. StikyPaws312

    StikyPaws312 Moderator

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    the only thing you can put is another leo, but is not reccomended at all. And if you have a male, it is really the best idea to keep him by himself. Leos are not social, he doesnt need anything else to be in the tank with him. Its best that you can do is just wait to find the female and when you get her back just start another tank b/c a male and female will breed, no matter what, they will, and you will end up with eggs if your lucky enough that she hasnt become eggbound from all the stress she goes through with him in the tank. And your lucky they both eat for you, when I put my males in with the females to breed the males never eat, they are too preoccupied with breeding with the female.
    Please dont house multiple species together. Btw- how large is your tank and whats your set-up?

    And if you want to get another herp, we have both a chameleon and awesome beardie forum for you to ask questions about them on :D

    Edit: I forgot to say welcome to the forum! Glad you found us!
     
  6. JEFFREH

    JEFFREH Administrator

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  7. butterfly39093

    butterfly39093 Embryo

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    i have to assume, at this point, 4 days later, that one of my cats has got hold of the female - i don't see finding her. the male and female (siblings) have been together for 7 yrs in the same tank. she has laid some eggs, but i've not been successful in hatching any - as my sister hatched eggs all the time. they've both been very good eaters. they were like best friends - always slept together, etc. i don't know the exact size of our tank - 20 gallon, probably. would it be acceptable to put a divider in the tank in order to separate the leo from a chameleon?
     
  8. JEFFREH

    JEFFREH Administrator

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  9. DaCubs

    DaCubs Well-Known Member

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    A 20g tank divided in half isn't even big enough for a leo. That's less floor space than a 10g, which is considered the absolute minimum. Personally, I think a single adult leo needs at least a 20g tank as a minimum. Otherwise things are cramped when you get all the hides in there.
    And a cham needs a much bigger enclosure than 1/2 of a 20g. From what I've read/heard, you're looking at a minimum enclosure size of 30"L x 18"W x 36"H. And I'm sure that's like saying a leo needs a 10g. Chams are also difficult to keep in captivity. Not nearly as easy as a leo. Just another thing to consider.

    Don't give up after only 4 days. Many people have found leos that were on the loose for a few weeks. They are scrappy little guys and very good at hiding and staying alive. So don't be so quick to just give up and replace her.
     
  10. JEFFREH

    JEFFREH Administrator

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  11. Saucy

    Saucy Well-Known Member

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    How many leos do you have in that tank? 20 gallons is sufficient for ONE leo and should go up quite a bit for more than that. Constant breeding is very stressful for your females. You should really split them up before you think of getting something else. And they aren't "snuggling"... they both want the same spot. It's a dominance thing. Your tank isn't big enough and probably doesn't have enough hides for all your geckos.

    Nothing has the same EXACT care as a leo nor could be kept with multiple of them in such a tiny tank. Chams don't even have close to the same requirements as a leo. They need to be humid, need to bask, need UVB and need a MUCH bigger cage. It really isn't suggested to keep chams in aquariums, either. They need the fresh air.
     
  12. Herpdude_24

    Herpdude_24 Member

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    Excuse me for butting in, but did you say that the leos are siblings?! That is not good. I am sure that other members of this site will agree, that that is a bad case of inbreeding... Anyway, I hope for the best wishes in you finding her, but promise me that you will not house them together anymore, ok?
     
  13. beezneez

    beezneez Member

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    NEVER house two different species together. no species has the same care. A 20 gallon tank is large enough for ONLY one leopard gecko. Seperating the tank would solve nothing. A chameleon needs a much bigger tank than a 10 gallon and so does a leo. It would also be very hard to get a tropical climate on one end and a desert climate on the other. A bearded dragon needs a minimum of a 65 gallon tank and could never be housed in a 20 gallon. It would get almost as big as the tank. If it was housed with a leo it would probably be tempted to eat it. IF you want to get a new reptile please do much research on it before purchasing it. I also suggest that you do more research on leos
     
  14. LeoDee

    LeoDee Well-Known Member

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    Whoa. First of all, you can't house different species together, they require totally different space and care. Ideally you shouldn't even house two leos together. You've been breeding siblings (which may be why the eggs didn't hatch), and have assumed your cat got your gecko. Was there no screen on the top? Geckos aren't "best friends," and sleeping together is actually a territorial issue not a cuddle session. EACH gecko should have three hides (warm, cool, and humid). One gecko standing over the other is also a dominance thing.
    Females should not be bred unless of a certain age/weight, and definitely not with siblings! They should only be housed with the male long enough for a mating session, then separated back to their individual tanks. 20 gallons is not enough room for two leos to live together. They are harem breeders, and if housed together full time a male should be with no less than three females. He is likely overbreeding her, and she may become eggbound. Have they ever seen a vet?
    My first suggestion is to try and find your female. I don't know how your cat may have gotten her, but you can't let that happen again. If you do find her, it would be in her best interest to get a separate tank. If you decide to get a different species, it must be housed in its own appropriate habitat.
     
  15. butterfly39093

    butterfly39093 Embryo

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    I'm sorry that I came to your site and asked for advice. I feel I've only been attacked for caring for my (now alone) male leo. My geckos have been together for over 8 years, now. My sister bred leos for some time and we've NEVER had problems with ANY of them. We've ALWAYS housed them together. I was guessing the size of our tank, it's quite a decent size reptile tank, YES, it has a screen on it (had you read my original submission, you would have seen that a child took her out of her cage w/o permission while no one was around), and there are more than enough hides. I DO thank the couple of you that were polite and not attacking me.
     
  16. Cavemanpets

    Cavemanpets Well-Known Member

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    Im sorry you feel youve been attacked.. and i personally dont care if you are housing brothers and sisters together... i think people are just upset that you want to house two species together, particularly when your thinking of housing two that require totally different atmospheres... i hope you find your female and i hope you arent to mad but i dont think anyone was trying to attack you, at least i hope not... anyways, i suggest if you want another reptile to place in with your boy you just get another female leo, thats really the only reptile i can think of you could place with him that wouldnt try to eat him or require a severely different atmosphere... good luck!
     
  17. butterfly39093

    butterfly39093 Embryo

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    thank you very much. obviously, i wanted advice about housing separate species and asked prior to just doing it, but i didn't need to be told that i'm not caring for my leos properly. they've lived 8+ yrs, i must be doing SOMETHING right!
     
  18. Janice

    Janice ReptileBoards Addict

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    I'm sorry that you feel like you are being attacked. I have to agree that you should never house 2 different species together. My opinion is, unless you plan on breeding, don't house a male and female together. Mating and egg-laying is really hard on the females..... And a 15g has the same floor space as a 20g, and since they don't climb, I would have to say a 15g should be the minimum for one leo. A 28 g long is not a bad size for 2. Are you sure that you don't have the tank size wrong?
     
  19. Janice

    Janice ReptileBoards Addict

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    Oh boy, seems I'm a bit behind :).....
     
  20. StikyPaws312

    StikyPaws312 Moderator

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    Butterfly, I'm terribly sorry you felt attacked, some people can go a bit far on this site. We all love our herps a lot and try to help out when we see them in need. we constantly see people coming on this site with "omg my leo is dying.... btw i have him on sand" or "omg one leo attatcked the other.... btw they are housed together in a little tank with 1 hide" We were just trying to ask for the back ground information on their care and husbandry to try to help you out.
    Leos can be very resourceful with staying out of the way of cats and larger preditors, i hope you find your lost girl. Sorry for everyones remarks if you felt offended but please know that we were just trying to help.
     
  21. Ash19

    Ash19 Well-Known Member

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    Well...I hope you weren't scared away from the attack. It's really not meant to be aggressive. As Stiky said, we all just care very much about reptiles and are concerned. And you did ask for advice...and got it, and then some. But I really hope you find your gecko. Don't give up!
     
  22. DaCubs

    DaCubs Well-Known Member

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    You know, this does raise a good point. How many people jumped in and repeated the same message? Next time someone comes here looking for advice, be civil and don't repeat the same things over and over again. I know everyone meant well, but the end result is a person that was just asking a question is now soured on the site. If someone has already raised the issues, walk away. We don't need 8 people pouncing on a person and telling them how awful they are for doing something. Just 1 is enough. Try to think about how you'd feel if you were in their shoes before posting as well. We're here to help, not chastise.
    butterfly39093, I do want to apologize. People here mean well, they just over-react sometimes. Hopefully this hasn't soured you on our site, it really is a great place to spend some time and learn about herps.
     
  23. Josiah G

    Josiah G Embryo

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    I happen to have a leopard gecko which I house with Russian tortoise they do perfectly fine together and are great companions for me and each other their needs are very similar so if you were considering any other companions for it I recommend a Russian tortoise
     

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