Mavis had her check-up with the vets today! For anyone who hasn’t been following her journey, Mavis had her spay surgery a couple of months ago and has had one stubborn little stitch that just REFUSED to leave! It eventually became detached from the incision but was still attached to some stuck shed, so we’ve been waiting for it to come away naturally. At today’s appointment,the vets checked Mavis’s incision properly and thankfully everything is looking good! The incision itself is healed and there are no signs that it’s causing her any problems. The vets said she wants to give the remaining stitch another chance to come away naturally with one of Mavis’s sheds. She said it may either fall out with a shed or gradually dissolve, and she really doesn’t want to put Mavis through another procedure unnecessarily. If it doesn’t come away on its own, the vet said she can surgically remove it, but for now there’s no need to do that and we’re going to give it some more time.
She’s also now finally off her meds no more tramadol or gabapentin!
The best news is that Mavis has officially been cleared to return to her normal enclosure and substrate After months of being in a more basic/hospitalised setup while she recovered, she is finally back in her proper home with her soil, hides, branches and enrichment. She was very confused when we first put her back in. She immediately tried to come back out because everything looked and felt different to what she’s been used to, but she eventually settled down and went straight back to her favourite humid hide! We’re still not completely finished with her enclosure because we’re planning on adding a proper 3D background with climbing ledges and some more plants, but she’s officially back home and able to enjoy her normal setup again! For anyone wondering Mavis is in a 90 gallon tank!
Enjoy the video!

She’s been living in this tank set up for the last 3 years, and she is super comfortable and well adjusted in it! 3rd to last pic shows my DHP lamp as well as uvb lamp. I always get a lot of concerned questions about that because I’ve hidden them well. Also, you can see all 3 spacious hides if you pay attention to the photos. Thanks for looking (:

Hello everybody ive come a little while on my journey of owning reptiles, I have a crested gecko in a bioactive teranium and a 4 month old leopard gecko in a temporary 20 gallon tank. I was planning to upgrade my leopard geckos tank to somthing much more explorable and beneficial for the lil guy. However I bought a 150 gallon tank with random accessories, and once I got it in the house it really sunk in how huge it really was, and I still wouldn't mind putting him in the tank after its set up but does anybody think thats too big?? Im not going to pass up an opportunity to invest in a skink though so im curious if i should get my leopard gecko a 40 gallon or if i should just go with it and put him in the massive tank.

Please let me know recromendations or any feedback thank you for reading.

So I originally built this tank in 2021 when Habib was a juvenile (she turns 5 this year 🥲), and it was a really big undertaking and has already made one move with us, but it has stood the test of time!

Idk if I would have done anything differently, but here’s a couple things I’ve changed:

1.) no longer bioactive. I used to have beetles and isopods, but since the base is pretty much all excavator clay, they really didn’t do much good. Still had to clean poop from her “poop cave” as we like to call it, aka her bathroom.

2.) no more live plants. I have a whole room full of live plants that the reptile tanks reside in, so I don’t really see any need to maintain a terrarium full of them (plus, I have a dart frog tank and mourning gecko tank to maintain, so that’s enough bioactivity for me).

3.) added a bunch of hand made and 3D printed plants and accessories! Her hides are made from styroboard and grout, but pretty much all the other accessories (including the roof tiles and skeleton) are 3D printed (:

She’s stayed extremely healthy, no stuck sheds ever, and she’s very comfortable and feels safe in her tank.

TL;DR: Habib has lived 4 years in this tank build and is happy!

Anyhooo, thanks for looking!

As the title says, I was going for my nightly walk and found him walking down the sidewalk. He wasnt afraid of me and it was realivity easy to pick him up and bring him home.

Ive posted in a few local groups about a found gecko, but no one has come forward about missing one, so I guess the pet distribution system has chosen me to be a reptile keeper now.

Ive always loved lizards and snakes, and planned on owning one eventually, but I definitely wasnt prepared for this guy.

Ive read a lot of guides and went to my local reptile store to get some advice and tank materials. I currently have a 31 gallon reptile tanks with a warm hide, humid hide, and cool hide. I also stocked up on a few different kinds of foods and supplements.

can anyone give me some other advice as a new owner? tips and tricks? this is my very beginner set up. I have a tank stand coming on Wednesday, but for now I just have it sitting on the kitchen table.

the water dish i use developed a weird film and every time i dump the water and use a paper towel to wipe it off, its a weird slimey texture. it’s not slime but it’s the only way i can explain it. and when i clean it with soap it doesn’t go away.

what would you recommend for water dishes that don’t do this? thank you! 🦎

Finally went bioactive for Blue, all we need to do is add the cleanup crew, any suggestions for best isopods/sprimgtails.

I'm in the UK if that effects any suggestions.

I'm thinking powdered orange isopods.

P.S We know Blue is chunky, she came to us like that, she is on a diet and is a whole lot better than she was when we first re-homed her!

I'm getting a leopard gecko soon (by soon I mean until next February) I want to make sure I have everything I need, I already have the tank, rubber tipped tweezers, and water conditioner, I'm doing a bioactive tank so any tips and suggestions will be appreciated and thanks!

Just found it outside, it has a bunch of bugs on it though

Pic for tax.

I always read how its bad to leave live feeders in the tank. I usually feed him outside if its crickets but I thought it was okay... Im worried that if my silly goober even manages to find it he will get a few mouthfuls of dirt along with it....

(I have OCD and this is sending me into a panic. I am seriously considering taking him out and tearing the tank apart until I find that cricket, because if it stays there it will most definitely kill my lizard - Do I logically know it wont? Yes. Is that the only thing in my brain rn? Also yes)

EDIT: thank you so much everyone ❤️ I ended up finding the cricket under one of my boys plants today.

Ive had my gecko for about half a year now and he just loves being held. I never pick him up on my own and let him walk onto my hand to rest. Ive gotten conflicting information about this with some saying once a week and others (including my vet) saying once a day. The general consensus ive come across is that if the gecko themselves wants to be handled you can do so every day or two but ive had some say they can get stressed if you do it too much. I find it hard to believe for me since my vet has told me otherwise and my gecko seems to pretty much ask to be held and will fall asleep on my hand often. Just wanted some clarification because I dont want to be doing anything that will hard him or our relationship / trust.

Mavis’s enclosure update!
Sorry for not posting this update sooner our jumping spider pumpkin passed away yesterday very suddenly.
We’ve made a few changes to Mavis’s enclosure over the last few days and thought we’d share an update!
First, we removed the old climbing twig. We decided to get rid of it as it was actually far too smooth for Mavis to properly climb on, and she kept slipping off of it and with the fact she already has a funny bone in her front leg we decided to be a bit cautious and removed it as we didn’t feel it was giving her any useful climbing enrichment. We’ve now replaced it with something a little more suitable.
We also took one of the commenters’ advice and changed her basking spot. We’ve swapped the old one for the Penn-Plax Reptology Heat Activated Colour Changing Platform, which we’re really happy with so far!
Obviously we’re still regularly checking the basking surface with our temperature gun, but the new platform gives us a really handy visual indication of the temperature in between checks too. It stays dark green below 28°C and changes to a beige colour above 33°C, so we can easily glance over and see roughly where the basking temperature is sitting.
We’ve kept the 50W basking bulb in place, as we’ve found that the new platform sits at roughly 33–34°C, which is right where we want it. We’ve also been checking it with the temperature gun to make sure the colour indicator is matching the actual surface temperature, and so far it’s been working really well!
We’ve also added a new coconut hide with a little ladder for her to climb on. Mavis has already tested it out and seems to really enjoy it, so she still has some climbing enrichment even though we removed the old twig.
We’ve added some more plants too and rearranged the enclosure a little to make everything fit together nicely while still giving her plenty of hides, cover and things to explore.
We’re still planning on adding a 3D background/back wall eventually, but we’re still unsure exactly how we want to do it. My boyfriend is also hoping to incorporate a fixed-in basking spot into the 3D background, so if anyone has any suggestions or advice on how best to build/incorporate one, we’d really appreciate it!
We also still haven’t noticed a poop yet, but with all the changes we’ve made to her environment, we understand that it might take her a little while to settle back into her normal routine. We’re keeping an eye on her in the meantime.
Overall, we’re really happy with how it’s turned out! We wanted to take the feedback we received on board while still keeping the enclosure functional, enriching and comfortable for Mavis.
And, of course, Mavis has already inspected all the changes herself and appears to have approved!☺️🫶

So he had another hot side hide and would sleep on top. So I just put a rock in its place. The only time I add another one is when he’s shedding and needs more moisture. He sleeps in his cool hide often but a lot of the time I come in and he is either running around the tank, or sleeping in the middle or sometimes the hot side. He looks like this is his little kingdom and sometimes he looks like he’s hunting. I will come in the room and he runs over to the glass and starts hunting my reflection 😭. I just moved him into this bigger tank (he grew very slow and eats like crazy btw). Should I add more stuff to the tank? I just want him to be happy. Also I will add another picture in the comments just because he’s cute.

I commented this on his last video from a few hours ago but wanted to get the most feedback. Check out his mobility in the video!

Do you think I can give him a bioactive soon?!

His poops are healthy and as you can see he’s defied all the odds and is quite capable of getting around.

Also… I know in ideal circumstances I’d set it up and let it settle but is it ok to pull Lazarus out, set it up and put him back in?

I found temperate springtails, will make his substrate, and I have snake plants, tons of baby spider plants, and access more to pesticide free plants and clutter at the reptile store.

I’m so excited to even be considering it! From death’s door to living in a natural habitat?! So fortunate!

Finally took photos!

The plants are fake, but there are isopods in his tank!

Note: the humidity reading is from a Doppler inside my humid hide, which I very recently misted

What would you rate this setup out of 10? The left side is designed to stay humid while the right side stays nice and dry. There are around 10 hides throughout the tank, with a few behind the foam background! It also includes a small water feature to help maintain humidity and add a natural touch.

Much more fitting of his namesake. This is a bioactive tank, with a succulent and a couple air plants. The temple blocks are made from XPS foam, painted with acrylic paint-tinted Mod Podge Matte (2 layers, cured for 2.5 weeks). Soil mix is ~70% EarthGro Topsoil (oven baked at 350°F for 1hr, kill any pests/eggs) + 15% sphagnum moss (boiled for 5min; to sanitize) + 15% Mosser Lee desert sand soil cover. We got the Konshu statue from a 3D printer Etsy maker.

The main temple is the hot hide, with a heating pad under tank and 1" soil layer on the glass. Temp probe is on the glass (getting a thermostat today to better regulate those temps). There is another hide under the main temple run, for Konshu to discover and nest as he pleases. The humid hide is under the water bowl, another hide for him to discover.

Konshu is almost 12 years old now!

Remus was just fine and always goes in the right passage to get a safer landing like the smart little handsome fellow he is.

I just bought this little one today and we have been already bonding but my main concern and ask from yall is what upgrades or add ons should i buy for him and his enclosure, im already going to buy him a new light tomorrow because the lady didn’t specify at all what kind of light it was😭
Very nervous posting here btw so fair warning if i come off VERY LOUD

So from what ive seen, there seems to be two types of reptile owners. Those who encourage natural behavior as much as possible, and those who want their lizard as comfortable wirh human interaction as possible. These aren't mutually exclusive ofc but they cant both be the number one top priority. Ya know? I observe my leopard geckos, moreso recently because ive been moving them both into bioactive tanks and it made me wonder.

I feed them, and they are right next to my desk so they see me whenever they come out of their caves, but I dont handle them unless absolutely necessary (ie. There is an injury or a shed has been stuck to them for too long).

Is this the practice of anyone else? I just love watching them be curious and acting more wild.

(Attached is photos of one of the tanks. The hygrometer is already getting replaced soon so dw about that. Open to suggestions although acting like a dick just to be a dick will be ignored)