Amber Alert: Children kidnapped from foster home

Amber Alert: Children kidnapped from foster home: Amber Alert: Children kidnapped from foster home

Amber Alert: Children kidnapped from foster home

Amber Alert: Children kidnapped from foster home: Amber Alert: Children kidnapped from foster home

10 May 2013

Fargo's Close Up

Fargo's getting so big!

Fargo continues to eat and grow. The more time we sped with her the more character we see! 

Fargo Third Shed

Have't updated in a while but Fargo has been doing awesome. She's been eating like a little fatty which is great including her mealworms! I can see her growing which is exciting. She had her third this week which I got to witness and assist with.

I took her out to play for a bit and noticed her skin was looking pale which led me to assume she was preparing for a shed. 

Here is Fargo doing a split. You can notice that her color is dull. This was taken the day before her shed.

Leopards geckos become more stressed when they are preparing and/or are going through a shed. It is important to try not to handle them and just kind of lead them alone. They can also lose their appetite during and afterwards. Even though essentially they can go through their shed on their own there are a few things you can do to make sure that the shed goes well and easily.

• Be sure their humid hide is misted and kept damp
• A humid hide can simply be a tupperware container with a wet paper towel or moss, just be sure to cut a good size hole for them to get in and out of
• Keep their tank misted
• Even though normally leos don't require high humidity levels or tank misting; it is okay to do so during a shed. The added humidity will help loosen their dead skin and make it easier to come off
• Give them a bath
• Place your gecko in a secure container with luke warm water. Be sure the water doesn't go past their belly. The warm water will also help loosen their skin. If using a sink please be careful to cover the drain!!!!!

Fargo taking a bath. Please take note that the drain was fully closed!

• After a shed check to make sure all of the dead skin has been successfully removed
• Sometimes leos will have skin left on their toes. It is important to remove the dead skin carefully from their toes. If it is not removed leos can actually lose their toes! What I do is get a q-tip and wet one end and try to carefully remove it that way. Remember your leo is a small pet so always use caution as not to injure them.

Fargo just chillin with her dead skin

Here are some videos of Fargo's shed! Check them out!!

If you have any questions leave them below! :)

Fargo playing with her food

So today i figured out that Fargo does indeed like to eat meal worms she just doesn't seem to like to or know how to eat them out of the dish. I placed a couple of meal worms in front of her and she went for them so I kept them coming and she kept on eating. I love watching her eat. Here is a video of her messing with one of the meal worms before deciding she was no longer hungry and walked away.

Fargo also had another shed while I was away this weekend. She did pretty well on her own. She only had a little piece left on the tip of one of her toes which I removed. Looks like Fargo is doing really well and I couldn't be happier!!!

Being away from Fargo

I have been away from Fargo for a few days. I went to New Hampshire for the weekend and am now spending some time at my fiance's home. I miss my little girl though. My sister has been taking care of her but I am constantly thinking about how she's doing. I was told she was spending some time in her humid hide. I may miss another one of her sheds. It's too bad leopard geckos aren't more portable so that I could take her with me wherever I go haha.

My sister was nice enough to send me a photo of her. The quality isn't the best but she still looks so cute.

Quite a Scare!

Fargo gave me quite a scare today. I was peeking into her tank as I always do and didn't see her in her normal hiding spots. I looked and looked and had no idea what happened to her. Then I finally found her. She climbed onto one of the plants I have on her plant. She looked so cute!

"Oh hey mom. Just hanging out on this plant. No big deal. Am I in trouble?"

Also today my fiance Justin got to meet Fargo for the first time. I think he likes her which is a surprise since he isn't really a reptile guy.

Justin and Fargo

Fargo's doing well. She been eating her crickets. Still can't get her to eat mealworms. I think I have only seen her eat one. Oh well at least she's eating something.

Fargo, our new leopard gecko

Here is a video I published today on youtube showing Fargo's tank. Check it out!

Day 6: Poop and Shedding

I spent Sunday and Monday at my fiance's house and had my mother and sister watch over Fargo as I was away. When I came back home today I noticed what I thought to be a piece of paper in her tank. I was wondering how that had got inside her tank.

After observing it a little more I realized it was actually skin from her tail! Fargo had her first shed at home while I was away. I took her out of her tank and noticed that she still had little pieces on her toes so I carefully and gently removed them. Left over shed on toes can cause them to fall off so I wanted to make sure she was nice and clean from her shed. I don't think she liked me touching her toes much  but she'll appreciate it in the long run when she has all of her digits.

Left over shed from Fargo's tail

I also found two poops in her tank which I am hoping is a sign that she is eating! One looked normal while the other was a bit light in color. I read online that this can sometimes be normal after a shed so I am hoping it is nothing to worry about.

Below are a photo of her poops. I don't mean to be gross but I just want any feedback from other leo owners who may know if this coloration is healthy.

The one on the bottom is what I assume is a healthy colored poo while the one on top is the lighter colored one

I am very excited that Fargo as had her first shed since we brought her home. I am a little bummed I missed it but it's a good sign that things are going well!

Day 4 : Feeding

Never thought I would say this but I am starting to not mind handling the feeder bugs for Fargo.

The crickets I keep in a Cricket Keeper. Inside their tank I place some sort of a water source such as a carrot or potato. Do not make my mistake by placing a dish with actual water in it. I originally placed a bottle cap with water inside to find my crickets all drowned the next day. I also put a small dish of cricket food that you can purchase in the reptile section of a pet store. This will gut load them before I feed them to Fargo.

This is the cricket keeper I use
Image Source

Taking them out of the cricket keeper is easy. The cricket keeper comes with tubes that they like to hang out in. All I have to do is remove the tube and shake them into a bag and then just dump them into Fargo's tank. I have been sprinkling them each time with the calcium and vitamins since I am not sure if she has eaten any of the others that I have placed in the tank.

For the meal worms I fill a layer of oatmeal in a plastic tupperware container. I add pieces of carrots, apples and potato. I also sprinkle some of the calcium and mutli vitamin supplements inside. I let them feed for 24 hours then removed the pieces of food and stick them in the fridge. I poked holes in the cover of the tupperware to provide oxygen. The worms become dormant in the fridge so they don't need food.

Keeping them refrigerated will keep them from turning into beetles.

These are the vitamins/calcium that I sprinkle my feeder bugs with
Image Source

I still haven't seen Fargo eat but I have just been keeping her dish filled with a few meal worms  replacing any that die. I also place a piece of carrot in the meal worm dish so they can keep hydrated.

Today I also added a few more crickets. I don't know where the others have gone. She may have eaten them or they may be hiding. I'm hoping they've been eaten.

Toward the end of the week I plan on cleaning out the reptile carpet and checking to see if some of the crickets made their way underneath.

Tonight I will be at my fiance's so Fargo will remain undisturbed. Hopefully this will allow her time to get use to her new home.

To other herp owners: How long did it take for your new pet to adjust to his/her new home?

Day 3

Here is my cutie girl Fargo peeking out to say hello this morning. Or maybe she's just telling me to go away. I do find her in the two different hides so at lease I know she is roaming around. Still haven't seen her eat or drink but she could be doing so at night while I'm asleep since she is nocturnal. Hopefully she comes around soon and will become more social!

Here is a photo of Fargo's tank set up. The left side is the cool side and the ride side the hot. I have the digital thermometers below both her cool and hot hide to make sure the temps stay at what's most comfortable for her.

In the back right corner is her humid hide. Haven't seen her in that one but I read somewhere online that some really only use it when they are ready for shedding so I am not to worried about that. She does move from her cool hide to her hot hide which is great.

I have her mealworm bowl, calcium bowl and water bowl in the front. I was debating on whether or not I should place them in the back of the tank where she may be more comfortable.

Currently I have her blue daylight heat lamp turned on. I have been keeping this on from 6am to 6pm. Since I do not currently have a thermostat I just keep a close eye to make sure that it does not get to warm with the lamp and UTH.

Right now the temp is at 92.7F on the hot side and 75F on the cool side. I usually allow a little bit of a drop at night but still like the hot side to be well over 80F for her.

Fargo is shy and is currently hiding in the hide on the cool side (upper left corner) she will probably spend most of her day sleeping.

Fargo's Exploring!

So after I published my last post I creeped over to Fargo's tank and she is out of her hide! She still seems a little skiddish when I come up to the glass so I walked away to let her explore her new home on her own. 

Fargo out of her hide. Sorry for the horrible quality. The lighting isn't the best and I didn't want to scare her with flash

Welcome Fargo!!!!

Yesterday my sister and I picked up the newest member to our family, a precious leopard gecko named Fargo. She is still to young to determine gender but we keep on referring her to a she in hopes that she is female.

The reason we are hoping she is female is because we hope to get another in the future. Male leopard geckos should not be housed with other male leopard geckos! You can house a male with a female but then you are at risk of becoming a grandparent. Since Fargo is our first herp we are not ready for the responsibility of breeding and caring for babies. Females are able to live with other females. Of course this is a case by case since some leos may not want a companion.

Fargo is in her new home. She's been mostly hiding. It is important to remember that leopard geckos are nocturnal, therefore is it normal for them to sleep all day in their hides. Fargo has been hiding out at night too but according to some google searches this is normal when you bring home a new leo. It can take up to two weeks for them to become comfortable and acquainted in their new habitats.

Fargo also hasn't been eating. We have placed live vitamin sprinkled crickets in her home but she has taken no interest to them. We have also provided a bowls with water, gut loaded mealworms and her calcium in her home and no interest there either. Again we turned to google with our concern, this is also normal when bringing home a new gecko. I will continue to try to feed her with feeding tongs and hopefully in a few days she will give in.

I took her out of her tank today because I could not resist her cuteness and wanted to hold her. Leo's are very docile creatures and with proper taming can be handled, however it is not the smartest idea to handle a new gecko. Fargo is already stressed about being in her new home, by taking her out of it just caused more stress. I will resist my temptations and leave her to herself until she becomes more comfortable in her environment and starts eating.

For new leo pet owners like myself please note that it is important to keep a dish with water and calcium (I use reptcal) in their tanks at all times. Water should be replaced with new water everyday. I have been using bottle water since I am not sure how tap water may effect her,

Hides are also very important to leos. Leos hide from the sun all day and should have proper hide. I have three in my tank for Fargo. There is a hide on the cooler side of the tank, a hide on the hotter side of her tank and also a humid hide on the warmer side.

A humid hide is essential! This hide will help Fargo shed her skin when shedding time arrives. I keep a damp paper towel in the humid hide and peat moss. I mist the moss daily to make sure it stays humid in the hide.

Fargo has reptile carpet as her substrate. While sand is aesthetically pleasing I have read from many different sources not to use sand since the leo can ingest it and it can cause them to become ill. Some owners and breeders do debate this issue and use sand but since I am a new herp owner I decided to go the safe route. The reptile carpet actually looks nice. We have a tan/brown colored carpet so we can pretend it's sand haha.

I have also read that paper towels work just as well. I personally think the reptile carpet looks better but that is just my preference.

"Mommy, leave me alone and let me adjust!" -Fargo

Another major thing new leo owners need to worry about is keeping the correct temperatures. These are desert animals after all and it is important to imitate their natural habitat as much as possible in order to keep them healthy and alive. I have been trying my best to create the temperature gradient that is important for leos. According to the research I found that most leo experts say during the day the "hot spot" of the habitat should be between 90-95F and 70-75F on the cooler side. In the middle the temp usually stays in the 80's. Even though these reptiles are desert animals I personally would not recommend the temperature to exceed 95F as it could burn or make your leo too hot.

At night time I have been letting the temperature to drop to the 80's on the warmer side and the 70's on the cooler side. The temp on the cooler side should not be cooler than 65F.

For heating I use an under the tank heater. My research told me that leo's actually retain their heat from their bellies as opposed to some other reptiles who take heat from the sun/ overhead heat. I keep the UTH in the corner of the hot side of the tank and have Fargo's dry hide over it. If using an UTH please do your research and follow the instructions correctly. The pad goes under the tank not in the tank. I also made sure to levitate the tank with these furniture pads that are made to prevent your furniture from scratching the floor. I stacked two together to get the desired height and stuck them to the bottom of the tank. Please do not place anything near the actual pad as it may be a fire hazard. It is important to have that gap between the pad and the surface you have the tank on so that the heat can flow. Again do your research. I am not an expert. I am new to this and all of this information has come from my personal research.

I would also highly recommend getting a thermostat for your UTH. This will prevent the UTH from getting too hot and burning your pet. You can control the temperatures with the thermostat so that it will maintain the desired temperature.

I also purchased electric thermometers for Fargo. i personally believe these will keep more accurate readings than the ones that stick on to the tank. The stick on thermometers will measure the temp in the air, but remember leo's get their heat from their bellies so you want to make sure to take the temp on the floor of the tank. This is why the electronic thermometers are great. They come with a wire that has a sensor on the bottom. I stuck one of the sensors in the hide over the UTH and the sensor from my second thermometer under the hide on the cooler side. Simple and easy to read!


 I also use overhead lamps although many people will say you do not need them. Since I have not purchased a thermostat for my UTH yet I use a mix of the UTH and heat lamps to keep the habitat at the right temps. I use a daytime 60W blue daytime reptile bulb and a 40W red nighttime bulb. I suggest to play around with the wattages of your bulbs to see which keep it at the desired temps, However I would not go over a 75W bulb as it may make the tank too hot and can burn your tank. Especially if you are using a UTH.

The reason I use the bulbs is so that I can better control the temps until I can purchase a thermostat for my UTH. If I see that the tank is getting too hot I will try turning off the heat lamp or UTH to bring down the temp.

Fargo also does not require any UVB lighting however it is important to keep a 12 hour day and 12 hour night cycle for your gecko. Since my room doesn't provide much natural lighting during the day I use a blue daytime reptile light. At night it should be dark for Fargo but since I like to look at her I use a red nighttime reptile bulb which I read was okay to use for leo's at night.

I purchased a timed power source outlet for the lamps but still haven't figured out how to work it haha so I've just been manually turning them on and off for her as needed.

I will post some photos of her tank setup at another time since it is night time and don't want to turn on bright lights.

For food as I had mentioned we have tried crickets and mealworms but she hasn't been eating either or yet. I am trying not to worry since it is only Day 2 of her being home and she could just be adjusting. I was hoping to keep her on a mealworm diet. Some breeders/experts say this is perfectly fine others argue you should use    crickets are her primary diet. For new owners, do your research and see what works best for you and your gecko. Since she is still a juvenile we decided to try both and then if we later decide to stick with one or the other we can do so. It is important that whatever type of insect you use that they are gut loaded. I will post later on how I gut load Fargo's food.

If you are planning on getting your first herp please please please do your own research. Again, I am NOT by any means an expert. This is my first herp and all of the information I have provided has been from the research I have done. Google, look on reptile sites, go on you tube or purchase a book on your herp. Please do not just go by a pet stores care sheet.

Fargo doesn't want to play just yet.

If you have any comments or suggestions please leave them below. I am very open on how to keep the best care of Fargo!