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For the gecko owners

alshgs

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Please tell me another thing to feed these geckos so I don't have the awful smell of crickets in my house! Im terrified of having Dubia roaches but if they don't smell, I'd be willing to give it a shot. Otherwise these things are going to a grandmas house or something :wtf:

Please help a sista out! And what's the best bottom for the tank? I have ceramic tile type things but would eco earth be better? Thanks!
 

Mizzely

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Crickets are awful, terrible things!! There is nothing you can do to help that god awful smell.

Dubias are SO EASY. I love them. They are quiet, they are clean, they don't stink, and they live a lot longer! I don't know where you live in the country but they cannot breed at less than 88 to 90 degrees. I have had a few escapees, none of them lived more than a couple weeks. The adult males CAN fly I found out....but everyone else is unable to fly or climb well. They are easier to feed because they don't jump everywhere. And they are nutritionally better :)

Crickets.... ugh. I hate crickets. I only buy enough crickets for one feeding if I am going to give them. They are the worst lol.

I use tiles, They are easier to clean, and no risk of impaction from gecko eating a bug covered in substrate or missing the bug and eating substrate accidentally. They also transfer the heat better. Here's an old photo of his (I rearrange quite often, will get an update photo later if I can)

 

MandaExotics

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A someone who has bred dubia roaches before, I'm all for them. Yes the males technically fly but not well. I wouldn't worry about it. They're also friendlier to each other than crickets in my experience which is a plus. If you're not planning on breeding and have access to a steady supply of them I'd recommend them still.

The whole not being able to climb glass thing helps tremendously. Seeing as Turkestan roaches may be able to breed if accidentally let loose into your home I'm less likely to recommend those. It is convenient how they typically move faster depending on what you are feeding though.
 

Tyrion

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I have always bred and fed meal worms to my leopard geckos with a sprinkle of calcium ..have done this for 25 yrs when I was breeding leos ...and I have used aspen shavings as sub straight for the bottom of the cage it smells good and they dont ingest it ...with wet hide boxes of moss on both sides of the tank along with fake plants ...They love digging in the shavings and the moss .... :)
 

alshgs

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I have always bred and fed meal worms to my leopard geckos with a sprinkle of calcium ..have done this for 25 yrs when I was breeding leos ...and I have used aspen shavings as sub straight for the bottom of the cage it smells good and they dont ingest it ...with wet hide boxes of moss on both sides of the tank along with fake plants ...They love digging in the shavings and the moss .... :)
And you never fed crickets or dubias? I have superworms, mealworms and I use wax worms once a week or once every two weeks for treats. We love our geckos, but I just cannot handle the crickets and my husband say absolutely not to the dubia roaches:lol:
 

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I've always heard a diet of just mealworms is not ideal. Reptiles need variety too. Mine is a good eater but will go off his food if I don't change it up occassionally. Just like you wouldn't only feed birds pellets, it's not fair to only feed geckos mealworms.
 

alshgs

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I've always heard a diet of just mealworms is not ideal. Reptiles need variety too. Mine is a good eater but will go off his food if I don't change it up occassionally. Just like you wouldn't only feed birds pellets, it's not fair to only feed geckos mealworms.
Well snot. I guess we have to stick with crickets until hubby becomes okay with dubia roaches, lol. Mine seem to die off quickly too, and I feed them the thirst quencher stuff with some other type of cricket food and the orange cubes you can buy. Do I need feed something extra? And I have them in a cricket keeper....but have seen several people with tubs and holes punched in the top? Would this be a better idea? My son loves his geckos but man oh man I hate that they don't eat veggies like mammals do
 

alshgs

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A someone who has bred dubia roaches before, I'm all for them. Yes the males technically fly but not well. I wouldn't worry about it. They're also friendlier to each other than crickets in my experience which is a plus. If you're not planning on breeding and have access to a steady supply of them I'd recommend them still.

The whole not being able to climb glass thing helps tremendously. Seeing as Turkestan roaches may be able to breed if accidentally let loose into your home I'm less likely to recommend those. It is convenient how they typically move faster depending on what you are feeding though.
Are dubia roaches and online thing only? I've never seen them in stores but never pursued them because hubby was never on board for them
 

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I buy my dubias online and sometimes at specialty pet stores.

I feed my crickets moistened juvenile bearded dragon pellets and Nature Zone bites

Nature Zone Total Bites for Feeder Insects: Reptiles Feeder Insect Diet

I keep them in a cricket keeper because they are easier to feed by dumping them from the tubes.

I use the big tubs with eggcrate and holes in the top for dubias. Helps keep them warmer.
 

MandaExotics

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Are dubia roaches and online thing only? I've never seen them in stores but never pursued them because hubby was never on board for them
Some mom n pop pet stores carry them but not all of them, they might not be available to pick up where you live. Reptile expos carry them. It's also easy to order them online.
 

Fritzgerald16

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Pangea Reptile Supplies | Online Reptile Store | Lizard Supplies

Try these guys out! I use a powdered mix with water for my crested, he is over 7 inches and 6 years old now, we got him at 12 weeks old! I occasionally get him crickets for fun but these diets can come with ground up bugs in them, no smell and no fuss!
 

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And you never fed crickets or dubias? I have superworms, mealworms and I use wax worms once a week or once every two weeks for treats. We love our geckos, but I just cannot handle the crickets and my husband say absolutely not to the dubia roaches:lol:
Never ever crickets ..I hated crickets ... all I fed was super worms and mealies with calcium dust but I also bred my own mealies ...the geckos bred and lived great lives for me for 25 yrs ...they had enrichment through caging even though they ate the same thing ..never had any problems with feeding the same thing ..they were healthy no impactions ..problems with shedding or rickets in babies :)
 

bungo

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cresties, gargoyles and some other species can be fed fully on repashey or pangea, and only fed live food as a treat. However day geckos, leos and most species need the livefood and won't accept mixture. So it really depends on what species.

Also Dubia roaches are really good in the fact that they don't smell or jump around. However they do tend to tunnel under the ground, and some geckos may be slightly confused.
 

cosmolove

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My family recently purchased a leopard gecko from a pretty big breeder around here. They mostly feed theirs mealworms, per the breeders advice. They do feed crickets but not nearly as often. They mentioned that crickets can actually bite the gecko and hurt it if the gecko doesn't eat them first. So they feed a mix of both.
 

Mizzely

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My family recently purchased a leopard gecko from a pretty big breeder around here. They mostly feed theirs mealworms, per the breeders advice. They do feed crickets but not nearly as often. They mentioned that crickets can actually bite the gecko and hurt it if the gecko doesn't eat them first. So they feed a mix of both.

That's why you only give them enough that they can eat in one sitting, or feed them in a separate container :)

Mealworms are not as nutritonally complete, harder to digest, and don't move a lot. For some geckos, this means they won't eat enough (like mine) because they need that movement to encourage eating.

Black Fly Larva (aka nutrigrubs, phoenix worms, etc) are a much better alternative to mealworms if used as a staple, but they don't keep as long and are more expensive.
 

cosmolove

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That's why you only give them enough that they can eat in one sitting, or feed them in a separate container :)

Mealworms are not as nutritonally complete, harder to digest, and don't move a lot. For some geckos, this means they won't eat enough (like mine) because they need that movement to encourage eating.

Black Fly Larva (aka nutrigrubs, phoenix worms, etc) are a much better alternative to mealworms if used as a staple, but they don't keep as long and are more expensive.


We do both for this reason, the guy we got ours from shows and has been doing it for years. He sells some of his geckos for over $2,000 each. I am not saying that mealworms are 100% the best but we decided to stick with a similar diet that he recommended :)
 
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