Hi Elizabeth,
I'm thinking about it, but I would only consider keeping geckos again if I were
to breed as well. I started out pretty general but ended up specializing in
Phelsuma, and that's the direction I'd take again. I ended up working with 9
different species of Phelsuma pretty successfully, and was the first person in
the U.S. (as far as I know) to breed the Moroccan Atlas Gecko, Quedenfeldtia
trachyblepharis, in captivity. I was never really interested in things you
could find at the corner pet shop.
I have noticed the online community is a lot less active than it was 10 or so
years ago, although I still recognize some names (Dr. Werner was one I used to
converse with quite a bit). I'll definitely check out Geckos Unlimited, thanks
for the tip.
Take it easy,
Jason
________________________________________________________________________
I have not failed, I've found 10,000 ways that won't work. - Thomas Edison
________________________________________________________________________
--- On Wed, 6/23/10, elizabethfr...@aol.com <elizabethfr...@aol.com> wrote:
From: elizabethfr...@aol.com <elizabethfr...@aol.com>
Subject: Re: [gecko]leopard gecko test for new (kid) keepers
To: gecko@lists.gekkota.com
Date: Wednesday, June 23, 2010, 1:35 AM
Jason ~
Do you think you will ever return to the hobby if not to breed, just for
some pets? Check out Geckos Unlimited with over 20,000+ geckophiles to
view much about our well-loved critters.
Elizabeth Freer
In a message dated 6/22/2010 10:27:13 P.M. Pacific Daylight Time,
hod...@yahoo.com writes:
Hi Joe,
Your test looks pretty good to me, and I think it's a great idea,
by the way. People could argue for pet questions (no pun intended)
they think a new keeper should know the answers to, but really anything
that demonstrates someone has the level of interest to seek out
information before making a purchase is the goal, I think.
When I started out in keeping geckos, I had the advantages of an
obsession that kept me reading constantly about them and a mother that
wouldn't allow them, so I did a lot of reading and attended a lot of
shows over several years before I moved out on my own and actually made
my first purchase. Things went really well for me off the bat, I
hatched my first eggs 8 months after buying my first pair of Standing's
day geckos and that first pair was with me for 6 years (and 60+
offspring) before I gave up the hobby and found a new home for them
(and
I hope they're still going strong, although that was about 12 years
ago), and I attribute that to the research I did beforehand.
Kudos for encouraging responsible pet ownership, if I saw your
attitude in every reptile keeper I met I'd probably still be breeding
geckos today.
Take it easy,
Jason
________________________________________________________________________
I
have not failed, I've found 10,000 ways that won't work. - Thomas
Edison
________________________________________________________________________
---
On Sun, 6/20/10, Joseph Loucek <jclou...@yahoo.com>
wrote:
From:
Joseph Loucek <jclou...@yahoo.com>
Subject: [gecko]leopard
gecko test for new (kid) keepers
To:
gecko@lists.gekkota.com
Date: Sunday, June 20, 2010, 10:20
AM
Hey Gang -
Does anyone have a test to give to a potential new 11 year
old keeper?
A guy at work asked me about leopard geckos, and I told him
I'd make
up a 20 or so test for his son to pass (and the parents,
too). So, thinking
about it for about a week or two, I came up with these 20
questions.
What do you think? Should I change, add or remove
any?
The test is designed for the kid who has never had a pet
reptile before, and
all the sudden wants one. What can we do to make sure
they are ready?
Just sitting here, I thought of another question, so I am
up to 21.
(questions are below)
Thanks,
Joe
1. Where are your 2 closest pet stores?
2. How often should you clean the cage?
3. How often should you change the water?
4. Where are leopard geckos from?
5. Why do you want a captive-bred leopard gecko (as
opposed to a
wild caught)?
6. What kind of mineral supplements should you give
your leopard gecko?
( I might need help
answering this one - has anything changed in the last
3-5
years?)
7. How big a cage will you need for your leopard
gecko?
8. What kind of substrate (cage liner) should you
use?
9. What temperature range is a leopard gecko most
comfortable?
10. How will you maintain that temperature,
especially in the winter?
11. How can you help you leopard gecko shed skin off
its toes?
12. How many male leopard geckos can you keep in one
cage?
13. When is a leopard gecko most active?
14. True or false: It is acceptable to mix
different species of reptiles
together in
one enclosure.
15. How will you clean and disinfect the cage?
How often?
(what do
you all think - clean weekly, disinfect quarterly?)
16. Does your leopard gecko need a hide box? If
so, what will you use?
If
not, why not?
17. How often should you feed your leopard
gecko?
18. What will your leopard gecko be fed?
19. What is the scientific name for the leopard
gecko?
20. What is thermal gradient, and how will you
achieve it in your leopard
gecko's cage?
21. What is the life expectency of a leopard
gecko? What will you do with it
when
you go off to
college?
Liz & the lizards
One
earth, let's do our best......
