# Can I Just Gush?



## BettaBabyBoo (Feb 25, 2014)

I'm completely, totally, irrevocably... In love with my new leopard gecko. (S)He about two inches long by my guesstimation, and I've started to refer to him/her as a boy for ease. He's too young to be properly sexed. 

Still, I'm in love with Lo(Little one) the leo. He's currently in a gradient heated ten gal(waiting for the dollar gallon sale, and have so e time to upgrade since he's tiny) with three hides, one on warm, one on cool, and one moist, with a tiny bottle cap of water and some things to climb on. He's incredibly friendly and will eat mealworms and crickets from my hand! 

Even my family, who thought I was nuts for getting a lizard that lives possibly longer than a dog, thought he was the cutest thing ever. He licks me and sits on my chest and hides in my hair. 

I'm literally so excited about everything he does. 
So, without further ado: Lo the leo!


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## beautiful Betta (Sep 19, 2013)

He is so adorable, how could anyone not fall for that little face, with his big eyes.


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## BettaBabyBoo (Feb 25, 2014)

beautiful Betta said:


> He is so adorable, how could anyone not fall for that little face, with his big eyes.


I love him so much ;-; he's just perfect gah. Everything he does enamors me


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## beautiful Betta (Sep 19, 2013)

What do you have to feed him? I Once looked into lizards a bearded dragon was apparently one of the easiest to keep. they were tiny. So I brought a book specific to them, and it was alright while they were young you could feed on insects, but when they got bigger, it was recommended that you would need to feed mice, ideally baby ones that had been freshly humanely killed and feed while still warm, and the only way to do that was to breed the mice yourself. That put me right of, I could never do that.


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## BettaBabyBoo (Feb 25, 2014)

beautiful Betta said:


> What do you have to feed him? I Once looked into lizards a bearded dragon was apparently one of the easiest to keep. they were tiny. So I brought a book specific to them, and it was alright while they were young you could feed on insects, but when they got bigger, it was recommended that you would need to feed mice, ideally baby ones that had been freshly humanely killed and feed while still warm, and the only way to do that was to breed the mice yourself. That put me right of, I could never do that.


He's been getting calcium dusted and gut fed meal worms and crickets. I've waxworms are good treats(like Betta bloodworms) too, and when he's full grown, pinkies(the baby mice) possibly, but it's not necessary, or superworms. Lol, I gently pick them up with tweezers and let him eat off of my fingers.

Oddly enough, beardies get pretty big and need a very big terrarium. One of my good friends has one in a 65 gallon :tongue:


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## beautiful Betta (Sep 19, 2013)

I think there was a time in the UK when bearded dragons were really popular and when purchased they were tiny unfortunately a lot didn't get the care they needed when they got bigger, a lot of people just brought them and didn't do the research like I did. But I remember them being everywhere for sale, a bit like betta's sales, staff selling them with a care guide that wasn't accurate.


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## BettaBabyBoo (Feb 25, 2014)

beautiful Betta said:


> I think there was a time in the UK when bearded dragons were really popular and when purchased they were tiny unfortunately a lot didn't get the care they needed when they got bigger, a lot of people just brought them and didn't do the research like I did. But I remember them being everywhere for sale, a bit like betta's sales, staff selling them with a care guide that wasn't accurate.


Sorry, that just reminded me of an article I read about how after Harry Potter first came out, flocks of starving owls flooded the UK for a bit because people wanted to try their hand with a pet bird... Smh that people would try to keep an owl, which I'm sure takes a lot of experience and care, and then set it free when they realized what they needed


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## beautiful Betta (Sep 19, 2013)

yea I remember that too, he had that special white one, which sadly probably made it even more appealing.


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## BettaBabyBoo (Feb 25, 2014)

Yeah, the snowy. That actually happens after a lot of movies-- 101 Dalmatians, Air Bud, etc.


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## cheekysquirrel (Jan 7, 2014)

I am now suffering from a case of cute aggression. That gecko is just so freaking cute that I can't stand it. Seriously. I want to nibble his little claws like I do my baby niece's foot.


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## BettaBabyBoo (Feb 25, 2014)

cheekysquirrel said:


> I am now suffering from a case of cute aggression. That gecko is just so freaking cute that I can't stand it. Seriously. I want to nibble his little claws like I do my baby niece's foot.


He's such a handful too! If I don't keep a strict eye on him, he'll be halfway across the room before I can blink.


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## cheekysquirrel (Jan 7, 2014)

So very much like my baby niece then ;-) Good luck with him!!!


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## BettaBabyBoo (Feb 25, 2014)

I can't wait to see how big he'll get


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## thekinetic (May 22, 2012)

Aww! :3 Now I want one even more.....must...do....more research. Still unsure about substrate. :/

FYI petco is having buck a gallon sale in april!


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## Agent13 (Apr 23, 2013)

beautiful Betta said:


> What do you have to feed him? I Once looked into lizards a bearded dragon was apparently one of the easiest to keep. they were tiny. So I brought a book specific to them, and it was alright while they were young you could feed on insects, but when they got bigger, it was recommended that you would need to feed mice, ideally baby ones that had been freshly humanely killed and feed while still warm, and the only way to do that was to breed the mice yourself. That put me right of, I could never do that.



No.. Unfortunately there is an extreme amount of bad information on bearded dragons . Mice are not to be fed . If you have a female who is suffering too much weight loss after laying eggs a pinky mouse can sorta be OK but still never the safest or recommended option. They eat 80% insects 20% salads till about age 1. At that point it's 80% salads 20% insects . Sounds more like ball python feeding you read about. 


For the OP.. The 2 safest options for substrate are paper towel or reptile carpet. When getting reptile carpet I always like to get two . You can switch them and wash the dirty one weekly .. Or more often . 


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## thekinetic (May 22, 2012)

I concur with the beardie diet, a friend of my brother's who stayed with us a while had a african bearded dragon (I think that was it) and he fed it almost exclusively on gut loaded crickets and meal worms. It was beautiful lizard though it liked to tail whip people! XD


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## BettaBabyBoo (Feb 25, 2014)

thekinetic said:


> Aww! :3 Now I want one even more.....must...do....more research. Still unsure about substrate. :/
> 
> FYI petco is having buck a gallon sale in april!


Woot! I'll have to remember to check in often


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## BettaBabyBoo (Feb 25, 2014)

Agent13 said:


> No.. Unfortunately there is an extreme amount of bad information on bearded dragons . Mice are not to be fed . If you have a female who is suffering too much weight loss after laying eggs a pinky mouse can sorta be OK but still never the safest or recommended option. They eat 80% insects 20% salads till about age 1. At that point it's 80% salads 20% insects . Sounds more like ball python feeding you read about.
> 
> 
> For the OP.. The 2 safest options for substrate are paper towel or reptile carpet. When getting reptile carpet I always like to get two . You can switch them and wash the dirty one weekly .. Or more often .
> ...


Yeah, I use reptile carpet, too. Its almost common sense not to get a substrate that could kill your pet :S


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## Agent13 (Apr 23, 2013)

thekinetic said:


> I concur with the beardie diet, a friend of my brother's who stayed with us a while had a african bearded dragon (I think that was it) and he fed it almost exclusively on gut loaded crickets and meal worms. It was beautiful lizard though it liked to tail whip people! XD



Sounds like a monitor of some type .. Perhaps a Nile monitor ? Really cool reptiles but for the advanced keepers . Either that or an iguana of some type. 
An aggressive beardie still is rarely if ever aggressive towards humans and doesn't tail whip . They head bob, puff their beards and other simply ridiculous displays lol. I have one that makes an absolute fool of himself anytime he's near my female frilled dragons enclosure. Really laughable and I swear the frilly looks at him like he's the lamest guy on the planet when he does this . 

(Sorry, didn't mean to get off topic ..I'm the in house reptile geek ;-) )


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## thekinetic (May 22, 2012)

BettaBabyBoo said:


> Yeah, I use reptile carpet, too. Its almost common sense not to get a substrate that could kill your pet :S


I heard they get their claws stuck in it?


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## Agent13 (Apr 23, 2013)

There used to be a kind that had that issue. I haven't seen it in while. You want to look for one that is dense without easy to see loops that would catch. The Zilla brand that I use for my frilled dragons is good. They're curved claws are notorious for getting caught on stuff but that carpet is great for them.. The beardies I have get textured tile.. Ceramic and porcelain 


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## beautiful Betta (Sep 19, 2013)

Agent13 said:


> No.. Unfortunately there is an extreme amount of bad information on bearded dragons . Mice are not to be fed . If you have a female who is suffering too much weight loss after laying eggs a pinky mouse can sorta be OK but still never the safest or recommended option. They eat 80% insects 20% salads till about age 1. At that point it's 80% salads 20% insects . Sounds more like ball python feeding you read about.
> 
> 
> For the OP.. The 2 safest options for substrate are paper towel or reptile carpet. When getting reptile carpet I always like to get two . You can switch them and wash the dirty one weekly .. Or more often .
> ...



Thank you for that information, that's good to know if I ever get the desire again to have a lizard, then I am fine with the insects. Hey we feed our betta's frozen tropical mixes.

I actually see geckos every night, they are on my windows (outside) catching the moths attracted to the light of from the house. They even breed on my windows. lol Not the same type, more of a sandy colour. They occasionally get stuck in the house, and I have the game of try to get them out without hurting them and they are so fast. I use a plastic food container place it over the top when they are still enough to do so and then slide some card underneath and then put them out. And in the day time we get tiny little lizards, they are friendlier, I can actually guide them onto my hand if inside the house and just put them out. I always worry with my dogs because they will go for them given half the chance, one of dogs shook one to death a little lizard he got hold of once, that was actually outside.


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## BettaBabyBoo (Feb 25, 2014)

thekinetic said:


> I heard they get their claws stuck in it?


Not unless you get like the ones with loose fabric. Mine are really dense!


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## thekinetic (May 22, 2012)

Agent13 I did some research and found it, it's a African spiny tailed lizard.


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## Agent13 (Apr 23, 2013)

Ahh that makes more sense . They do resemble beardies more then monitors 


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## Sathori (Jul 7, 2013)

I "squeeed" at the picture of the baby :3 I love baby leos. 
We had one at the LPS, that I work at, for a couple months. It took all my willpower to not scoop him up and take him home with me.
You should post some pictures of him when he's a bit older! :3

This was the baby we had:


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## beautiful Betta (Sep 19, 2013)

maybe it's the angle of the picture but that one looks under weight to me. His head looks bigger than his body.


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## Sathori (Jul 7, 2013)

Could be a combination of both. This picture was taken when we first got him/her from the livestock supplier. He/she may have been a tad underweight, but the angle is not that great either. It was hard to take a good photo if him/her since he/she was very active and constantly on the move at the time. I can guarantee you he/she was in good health and body weight while in our care.


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## thekinetic (May 22, 2012)

Aww cute! I love the coloring.


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## Blue Fish (Jun 11, 2012)

LOL, he's adorable!


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## Perocore (Oct 4, 2013)

What a cute little leo baby, BettaBabyBoo! I have three of the little rascals myself- all girls! We really should have picked unisex names though, now we have Pandemonium, Ares, and Adonis (who's my pride and joy, little Jungle snow macko!). They're such underrated and wonderful pets! My big girl, Pan, actually enjoys physical contact with me, and the others like to perch on my shoulders. Pan is the biggest, and she's about 11" long at 2 years old. Adonis is still growing, so we're not sure on how big she'll get yet.

Be sure to update us with more pictures!


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