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Yeah, those Zilla kits all are pretty much terrible. You're better off not using a kit at all actually, since they are way overpriced compared to buying/making the things you need individually.


Definitely go for the 20 gallon long tank. That size tank is actually ideal for a single adult leopard gecko. Instead of the lights, you'll want to heat the tank with an under tank heater under one side that is controlled with a thermostat. That's not optional, since a UTH can get very hot if it isn't controlled. I use the Hydrofarm thermostat, and recommend it. It certainly isn't the best out there, but it does its job and you can't beat the price. Be sure to have a digital thermometer that can read the actual surface of your gecko's substrate, not the little ones that stick on the glass. A thermometer with a probe alongside an infrared temp gun works wonders.

I'd personally also ditch the reptile carpet for tile as well, since my guy kept snagging his toes and jaws on the carpet and the tile is a breeze to clean, but if yours does fine with the carpet it should work fine, just don't use sand. Be sure to have three hides: one on the cool end of the tank, one on the warm end, and a humid one. Exo Terra is my personal favorite for hides, but store brand ones work fine, or you could even make your own.


I can't really say how old your gecko is without pictures, but if you got it from a pet store it's probably pretty young. Be sure you dust its food with calcium and vitamins. Vitamin D3 is particularly important. Repashy Calcium Plus is great, since it's an all-in-one powder, but I know alternating Repti-Cal and Reptivite works as well.


Crickets are a great thing for it to eat actually, better than mealworms. However, variety is always nice, but I don't have a lot of tips on getting a gecko to try new foods since mine isn't picky. Dubia roaches, if you can get over the ick factor, make an even better feeder than crickets, and phoenix worms and Calci-Worms are also great options. I'd stick to feeding your gecko as much as it can eat in a night if it's a baby. You do need to catch and remove any crickets that aren't eaten in 15-30 minutes. I always try to corner them and grab them one at a time, even if that can take a while.

Also, be sure you're gutloading crickets before feeding them as well. Basically, feed them nutritious food before feeding them to your gecko. I recommend either Bug Burger or Cricket Crack, but there are a lot of options out there. Toss in some bits of carrot, potatoes, greens, or fruit as well, or use some gel polymer to keep them hydrated.


Sorry for the massive wall of text, but hopefully this helps! Good luck with your little buddy!

I believe this is the one I use, but it would need to be put on a thermostat to make sure it doesn't overheat. I have mine under the "warm" side of the tank with a hide over it so they can feel secure and warm their bellies. I use paper towels on top. Then then cool side is where I have the humid hide for shedding assistance :)

Aw, poor baby! She is very lucky to have a caring home! Unfortunately not all PetSmarts are created equal and it sounds like you guys had a run in with a bad one :( I'm very glad they gave her to you so you could get her back on her little feet! I have a few Cresties that used to love love love crickets and now turn their noses up at them, so sometimes their tastes do change as they age. Have you tried Dubia or Black Soldier Fly Larve ("Calciworms")?

Do you dust his food 1-2 times a week with Calcium/D3 mix? The D3 is instrumental in calcium absorption. A multivitamin would not hurt either. This is the one that I use.

Also, you say that he has a warm enclosure but does he have heating from the bottom? That is the most important part of heating. It helps them digest better. You can get an under tank heater (UTH) for $15-$25 depending on size and purchase location. Amazon has a good selection and good prices.

He looks a little thin and maybe a little dry in the picture but it does not look like anything that will be hard to fix. Try throwing some wax worms into his diet a few times a week. That will help him fill out.

I just got a new gecko 2 weeks ago and I would say if you have the space then get a 20 gallon. The 10 gallon is hard to decorate easily, its pretty squished. I think my leopard gecko is fine in the 10 gallon but I wish I had more room to play with the setup.

So here is what I have as a new setup:

10 Gallon tank kit that came with a cheap lamp for the top because I wanted that cheap lamp for nighttime blue/red bulb viewing. It also came with a SCREEN top to keep crickets in and kids out.


This amazing thing: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000NZZG3S/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It reads the surface temperature of the bottom and actually adjusts it so I don't have to do anything. It keeps the bottom at the 90 degrees I have it set too with the heat coming from the under pad.

This pad ($5 cheaper then the same size at big box stores)
http://www.amazon.com/Zoo-Med-ReptiTherm®-Under-Heater/dp/B0002AQCKA/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1413771386&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=under+heating+pad

I use newspaper on the bottom of the tank. I bought some expensive washable carpet but she seems to think its pretty weird and I am not sure she likes it. Newspaper is cheap, or you can use paper towels, which is also cheap.

I took a plastic disposable food dish from the grocery store and left the top on but cut a hole in the side of it and then covered the rough bits with pretty masking tape. I put a wet/damp paper towel in there and it is the wet hide.

I have used cardboard boxes as hides but wound up purchasing a pretty one at a big box store, without a bottom so I can keep stuff clean. I use water bottle caps for water and calcium. Buy some calcium with D3.. cheaper on amazon or get from big box store.

small crickets and small meal worms from petsm$art, I ask for small because I have a baby gecko.

PS sand is bad for baby gecko's if they accidentally ingest it, and the internets pretty much hate sand and does not recommend it.

With aboreal species, impaction really isn't a risk. Your focus is more on keeping the humidity in the enclosure up constantly, which is where the coco fiber and similar mixes come into play. Eco soil mixed with sphagnum moss would be another viable option. Orchid bark mixture (wood chips/moss/soil/etc mixture) would be a third. With orchid bark mix, you'd have to find one that doesn't contain any additives and plant food. For example you would not want to just grab a bag of Miracle Gro orchid mix off the shelf at Walmart.

In regards to treats. I wouldn't do absolutely anything until he is routinely eating the Pangea. With food already switching, he needs to view the one new thing as food for a while. Once he's consistently eating the food that he needs to be eating, then you might worry about a rare treat. It would honestly be better to just get some different flavors of pangea to rotate through rather than go through the trouble of blending bugs and fruit and pollen. With how picky he already is, it's unlikely he'll even touch it. He'll settle into one flavor of Pangea and that will probably be that.

Another thing you can do to maximize the enclosure space in his current and future cage is to add some climbing vines (again, secure with twist ties, some also come with suction cups) and perhaps a piece of hollow driftwood (somewhat poor example, but something like this). Both can typically be found at a reptile supply store. The latter you might have more luck with at an aquarium store.

Make sure that the new cage is well ventilated. In addition, no need for UVA or UVB lights, or heat. They're a nocturnal species and room temps are typically sufficient.

Oh then check out this channel for direct Leopard Gecko care, and this channel for gold nuggets of care tips. I recommend going with reptile carpet or eco earth. Good luck!

I agree with the cork bark comment (and their plant ideas), but with the top stuff, I like these: https://www.amazon.com/Flukers-Repta-Vines-Pothos-Reptiles-Amphibians/dp/B0009YEB70 Just anything similar to give it more shelter up top and not be out in the open.

This one's my favorite, and cheap, too.

Exo Terra Plastic Terrarium Plant, Large, Mandarin https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002AR5F6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_m9XzCb8Y7DPFQ

Tried and true.

Also, ditch the gauges, they’re wildly inaccurate.

You can buy rheostats from ZooMed to control the temp of your heating pad. I use a few of those, but I recently bought a little [dimmer switch][http://www.amazon.com/Lutron-TT-300H-WH-Electronics-Plug-In-Dimmer/dp/B0000BYEF6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1410720721&sr=8-1] device off Amazon that does the same thing.
(warning: the related products will make you embarrassed to buy it).

Whichever you pick, make sure you check the temps with a thermometer. If you're ordering off Amazon anyway, you can get some really cheap digital ones.

Have you posted baby pics?
I use this it's cheap and works well.
http://amzn.com/B001R6B38O

http://www.amazon.com/Zoo-Med-Reptile-Calcium-without/dp/B000UJPHL8/ref=sr_1_5?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1449480666&sr=1-5&keywords=reptile+calcium is what I use for my leo. I have a much smaller container of the same brand that has vitamin D in it that i use rarely. I probably would not suggest using a UVB light- they come out at dawn and dusk so a bright light would quite possibly confine them to their hides, as they would assume it is daytime by the light.

I was worried about this aswell. I put it on a rubber mat like this one:

http://www.amazon.com/18-Bar-Service-Mat-Black/dp/B000MVI4ZK/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1398510393&sr=8-4&keywords=rubber+mat

they are 22 bucks here

Also one more question, my apologies.

How necessary are these feeders? I would prefer (aesthetically) to have my feeding bowl and pond at the bottom
https://www.amazon.com/Pangea-Ultimate-Gecko-Ledge-Suction/dp/B07F7H3NYM/ref=sr_1_12?keywords=reptile+feeder&qid=1554438447&s=gateway&sr=8-12

Crested geckos technically do not need a heat source. I live in a particularly cold area so I use a heater to buff into the higher 60's in the winter (just to be safe). If you go the heat route do not use a regular heat lamp bulb. Non light emitting ceramic heat bulbs are a must. Also never use a heat lamp without a thermostat like this one to regulate its temperature.

I have something similar to this https://smile.amazon.com/Prevue-Hendryx-Naturals-Hideaway-Ladder/dp/B007PO3AEC/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=bird+cocnut+hide&qid=1555337929&s=gateway&sr=8-3-spell .

I also have live plants on the bottom of the tank (tall bushy with large leaves able to take cresty weight) and fake plants hanging from the walls. Like this https://smile.amazon.com/Exo-Terra-Plastic-Terrarium-Mandarin/dp/B0002AR5F6/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=reptile+fake+plants&qid=1555338104&s=gateway&sr=8-3

Any light fixture will do, depending on what his enclosure looks like you can add a dome fixture for relatively cheap or a hood if he’s in something like an exo terra or zoo med terrarium. Any LED bulb from Home Depot would be fine usually but it all depends on the temperature and on how much heat is needed.

Again, the main objective is all about temperature. If you get a thermometer and measure the temperature that you currently have then you can mess around with adding either LED’s or low wattage bulbs (like 26 watts) from petco or petsmart if it’d take less of the guesswork out for you :)

My guy is in an exo terra terrarium so he has a matching hood and the two led bulbs. I’ll link both of them here, but again I live in Southern California so for like 99% of the year I don’t have to worry about heating it up but mostly just cooling it down

exo terra hood

Pangea LED plant bulb