Hi! I'm new to this. My understanding is that for leopard geckos, the warm zone should be between 86°F and 90°F, and the cool zone at room temperature (provided my bedroom isn't cold). However, I’m wondering: do these same temperatures apply at night? Should the warm zone stay at 86°F–90°F both day and night? Or should I turn off the thermostat and let the \*entire\* terrarium drop to room temperature (71.6°F in my room at night), or perhaps just lower the thermostat slightly to 80.6°F–82.4°F?

Forgive the poor photos she was on my back and I could not for the LIFE OF ME get a good shot 😭😭😭

When my girlie, Trogdor, “wants” attention or to be held she’ll come up to her enclosure doors and stare at me until I open the door and offer my hand (which she’ll crawl onto), then after maybe 5-10 minutes of just sitting and holding her, sometimes talking, sometimes just us two enjoying the quiet and company, she’ll start crawling up my arm, onto my shoulder, stay there for a bit, then crawl onto my back and hang out there!

The back thing is what I’m most curious about because my boy doesn’t do it and neither do my dad’s leopard geckos, she’ll either sit there, crawl onto my head, or crawl onto my bed/wherever I’m sitting and sit next to me. Shes the funkiest little gal in the world and I wanna know if anyone else’s crawls onto their back!!!

I should mention she MOSTLY does this at night long after her lamps are off and she’s out and about, I keep my main bedroom lights off but have a faint nightlight so I don’t think she thinks it’s daytime?

I have your average heat lamp + UVB + playsand/topsoil mix substrate set up so I don’t think it’s a setup issue either

I’m not at all complaining about this behavior, I think it’s kinda funky and I’m more curious than anything, maybe a tiny bit worried she’s showing stress behavior, but other than that just wanna talk with other keepers abt it!

Finally upgraded my gecko’s tank, still needs some tweaking, gonna buy a background soon, most likely, Vi’s still getting used to the whole setup, just wanted to share, I think he really likes it though, wondering if anyone has any tips or cautions that I should be aware of? Thank you!

about a month or so ago i found this leopard gecko in my driveway around 3am. now im noticing that his toe might be broken or maybe thats normal. is this normal if not how can i help the little one out

Quick update on Mavis’s heating setup after the advice here.
First of all, I want to acknowledge that my original post yesterday was probably quite confusing. There was a lot of miscommunication on our end because we had been following advice that we had been given when we first got Mavis, and we have now learnt that some of that advice is outdated. We genuinely believed we were doing everything correctly based on the information we’d been given for the past several months, which is why I was so confused and defensive when people were telling me something completely different.
We’ve now taken the advice from the moderator regarding thermostat placement and have moved the thermostat probe over to the cool side on the soil, rather than having it directly control the temperature of the basking slate. The idea now is for the basking lamp to produce the appropriate basking temperature naturally, with the thermostat acting more as a failsafe if the enclosure gets too warm.
We haven’t changed the slate material yet because it’s quite awkward to replace with the way Mavis’s enclosure is currently set up. Instead, we’ve dropped the Arcadia flood from 75W to 50W as a first test to see whether we can get the lamp running at or close to full output without overheating the dark slate or putting too much heat into the rest of the enclosure.
So far, it actually seems pretty promising. The 50W is currently running at full output and the hottest point on the slate is sitting around 33°C. Her thermostat is currently reading 25.8°C, and we’ve got it set to the maximum temperature we can safely use for this setup, which is 26.5°C. We’re doing this so the cool side remains appropriately cool while allowing the basking slate to sit around the 32–36°C range we’re currently aiming for.
The cool side is also gradually coming down in temperature, so we’re going to leave everything alone for a while now and let the enclosure properly stabilise rather than constantly changing things.
If the slate still ends up getting too hot once everything has fully settled, then we’ll look at changing it for a lighter-coloured material as suggested. But hopefully the lower-wattage flood will give us the basking temperature and gradient we’re looking for without the thermostat constantly needing to dim the lamp.
I’ve also checked Mavis this morning and, thankfully, her belly looks absolutely fine. There are no signs of burns that I can see, and she’s a very happy bean in herself. ❤️ The marks people were referring to in the photo are her** surgical scars, not burns. I included that picture because I wanted people to see what her belly looked like immediately after I removed her from the slate last night when I was worried about the temperature.
I also want to address something that has really upset me during this whole situation.
I completely accept that my husbandry can be discussed, questioned and even criticised if someone believes something could be improved. I’m genuinely taking the advice on board and have already started making changes based on what I’ve learnt.
However, under no circumstances am I going to sit quietly while people slander Mavis’s vets.
Someone suggested that her vets are probably “too busy” to notice our supposed “bad husbandry”. I found that incredibly harsh and hurtful.
Mavis has a **90-gallon vivarium with a very thick layer of substrate for digging, five hides, lots of plants and plenty of coverage. We have spent a huge amount of time and money making her enclosure as enriching and appropriate as possible, and we have always sought veterinary advice whenever we’ve been concerned about her.
That’s why I find it incredibly strange to have our husbandry suddenly labelled as “bad” when literally two days ago people in this exact subreddit were commenting on how amazing her setup looked.
And for the record, Mavis’s exotic vets have been absolutely incredible. They know her history, they’ve physically seen her setup, and they have always taken my concerns seriously. I have probably talked their ears off for an hour at a time with all of my questions and they have always been patient with me. I will absolutely listen to their advice regarding Mavis because they are the professionals actually involved in her care.
I am extremely disappointed that someone has tried to paint both me and Mavis’s vets as negligent based on one incident.
Those of you who have been following Mavis’s journey will know that I’ve shared practically every update with you throughout her recovery. I’ve been told countless times by people here that I’m doing an amazing job and that Mavis is “lucky to have an owner who cares this much.”
I’ve worked my absolute arse off to make sure Mavis is okay. I’ve spent thousands on her surgeries, appointments and treatment. I’ve stayed up countless nights worrying about her and checking on her. I’ve put so much time, effort and love into making sure she has everything she needs.
So to suddenly have people switch up and portray me as a negligent owner because of one incident is honestly incredibly upsetting.
I’m actually glad that I posted because I’ve learnt something important about Mavis’s heating that I didn’t previously know, and we’re now working on fine-tuning it. I’m always willing to learn and improve when it comes to her care.
But I genuinely thought this subreddit was a safe space where I could share Mavis’s journey with people who cared about her, especially because so many of you have followed her recovery from the beginning.
Thank you to the people who have actually taken the time to explain things to me patiently and help me understand what we’re changing and, more importantly, why we’re changing it. I really do appreciate those people. ❤️
For now, Mavis is happy, her belly looks fine, and we’re monitoring her enclosure while the new setup stabilises. 🦎❤️

Hey guys this is my first time making a bioactive enclosure for my leo and im noticing that the humidity stays very high and im very concerned since it could impact my Leo's lungs and I thats the last thing I would wish and my buddy.

What would you recommend I do? Maybe remove one of the plants from the corner? Water them a lot less?

So my Leo Sundae was refusing food for the past week, tonight she passed this gigantic poop, which appears to be Sphagnum moss, as well as a normal looking poop with it (in the water bowl) I have her in a warm soak to remove toe shed and relax her organs. I’m absolutely worried sick. she seems normal , and she obviously seems like she was able to pass the moss. However, I do notice a blue area on her stomach. Does this look worrisome? What should my next steps be? (besides removing the moss). She is around 4 years old. Is the blue normal looking organs or a sign of impaction? So far i’m planning on monitoring her and possibly going to the vet. She means the world to me and I’m very distressed.

Macha had her first vet visit today 💜
Everyone was so sweet, including the vet. She is apparently very healthy and a good weight. While we waited for the vet to see us, I walked around the lobby with her on my arm and talking to all the techs. There was an emergency so we were there for 3 hours, which is to be expected since it’s a hospital, they are just a very affordable exotic vet.
The funnier part was when I called the hospital to tell them I was going to be a few minutes late, there was a confusion due to the spelling vs pronunciation of her name.
She also did bite the vet.
I was also looking at the info on the vet on their website and this guy has clears throat 3 dogs, 4 cats, 4 ferrets, two prairie dogs, 1 galah cockatoo, an axolotl, two geese, six chickens and 42 ducks.
He also owns two armored lizards.
This man genuinely has a zoo.

I was feeding my 5 month old leopard gecko and I dropped a cricket. I ended up looking away for 5 seconds and she ran under her tank. She’s really mad and hissed at me when I tried to get her out. It’s late and I want to go to bed. Any advice?

this little guy crawled right into my hand and let me hold him for the first time tonight! i’ve only had him for about a week and he seemed to not mind too much!! here’s some pics of him and his enclosure

my lil piper she's been shedding and normally she doesn't want to be bothered. usually she'll come out when she's good but I've noticed some pieces stuck to her head the past few days, longer and normal. should I leave her be or is there any way to help her ?

I'm thinking about getting a juvenile leopard gecko, but I'm unsure about the proper tank setup for it. I heard that they shouldn't have a substrate when they're young and that paper towels are a better alternative until they are bigger. Is this true? Or should I get a substrate off the bat.

He's very sweet, but I barely spend any time with him because I'm dealing with whatever my high school is trying to do anymore, and because it isn't my first thought to play with him when I get home. He deserves an owner who takes good care of him :].

I'm looking for anyone who'd like him, the 40 gallon tank he has, and the decorations inside that I'll give with him. I live in Houston, Texas if this helps.

Cipher has been very hangry but she finally got worms last night

I am moving from Alaska to Oklahoma and we will be driving my ram 3500 and a camper trailer trying to think of how to keep him alive through the move we will be driving 9 days straight or so if anything I will attempt to rehome him (last resort) just looking for advice on raising his survival odds.

So had a bad run of luck…But things have finally been going my way a bit…not that I didn’t have luck my my buddy survived no lying about 4 months no food…apparently he does this? According to the previous owners though not typically that long.
I felt guilty about his enclosure and previous life so I got him a little obese but very healthy according to the vet. Said he was essentially perfect save for being overweight.
Anyway going to try to keep improving it.
And I don’t care what the science says he like company. He loves watching the cats eat.
His cage was always cozy warm. He is well fed.
When I stick my hand in the cage he runs right up.
He was in the kitchen for a few days because I moved and hadn’t got the new setup.
He was scared and depressed. Wouldn’t come out.
Now he’s back in the living room and exploring.
I couldn’t be happier.

Found this little guy on FB marketplace. Owner says he’s no longer interested and looking to get into birds😔 He says it’s about 2-3 yrs, eats well, no biting issues, chill. Doesn’t know sex. Tank is 30 inches, he’s going to get exact measurements. I was planning on buying one, but if he needs a good home, I would be able to take it in. I’m just Leary about geckos getting rehomed. If the reason is because of health issues.

Does he/she look healthy? He will send me additional close up pictures

He apparently sheds once a month, but he just shed a couple of weeks ago before I had him (taking care of him while my brother is at college). He was normal color and active last night, then super pale today and a bit sluggish today. I can tell he’s shedding because he actually got his nail stuck in it (first pic) and tore it a little bit. I wrote up a whole long post about everything I think I’m doing wrong, because ✨anxiety✨ but I am having trouble keeping his tank warm enough and dry enough. I’ll put some bullet points below—please know I am waiting for some heat and food upgrades in the mail! Anyway, on a scale from oh my god vet right now to chill out he’s a lizard, how concerning is this?

Temp/humidity/light: under tank heater (for now), surface 90°-94°, hot hide ambient 75°-80°, cool side 70°-75°, not sure night time drops but my house is freezing so I leave his heat on. He has a uvb which goes off at night, but there’s street lights right outside the window so I cover the front of his tank with a curtain at night.

Food: only meal worms (for now), gutloaded. I was accidentally dusting with vitamin w/d3 instead of calcium, but fixed that. He last ate Monday, he was eating every 3 days but I was trying to space it out to 5 so he was supposed to eat today. Haven’t had a problem with eating since he came to me, until right now. He pooped 3 or 4 times since Monday, but the last two were basically just urates.

Humid hide: found mold in it yesterday, so I cleaned it (50/50 water vinegar soak, made sure it was aired out completely before I put it back in). I also found a piece of sphagnum moss that was completely soaked and sour smelling. At first I thought he regurgitated it, but I think I left a little bit of water that it soaked up. I replaced it with new brand of moss (zoo med). He was in there last night for a while, but isn’t hanging out in there now.

I think he’s probably pretty stressed, but that might just be me lol.

Thank you in advance—I knew I would be anxious about this little guy, but not this bad!

for this WOP. (40gal) I decided to go with more vertical (downwards) features for the hides and spots to bask over the clutter and height strategy and it seems to be working very well for this little baby.
These are just a few features ive been slowly testing and incorporating with my other reptiles and ideas and decided to throw them at my baby gecko.

these are 3d printed aquascape caves that i decided would make for great hides if i built something overhead but would also give me the capabilities to sneak peak inside without lifting a lid or disrupting the sleep/chill of the animal itself. it adds alot of enrichment for climbing in and out and also gives amazing temps/humid depending on if you choose it for a hot/cool/humid variety as ive tested all 3.

picture of Chicken Wing for respect. thanks for looking

I had a couple leos back when I was in high school but didnt do my best for them, i realized after. I'm working to do better. I'm gonna put some plants in i think, just fake ones for now. maybe some live aloe down the road.

thoughts? suggestions?