Fashion Flirtation

Did you know that the best way to keep your reptiles happy, healthy and go with you for so long is frequently clean their cage? If you are keeping a leopard gecko, it is the good news that they do not require the daily cage maintenance like some other reptiles.

You should create the cleaning schedule and spend your time cleaning out the leopard gecko cage. The most difficult part of this work is the cleaning of substrate for leopard gecko.

The frequency of cleaning and replacing substrate will depend on the material of the substrate that you are using. In this post, we will discuss how to clean a leopard gecko substrate and cage.

How often do you need to clean the substrate?

In order to prevent the growth of bacterial, mold or any viral infections, it is better to do the cage maintenance daily if you have time.

Cleaning dirty spot where your geckos go for the toilet every day and remove any waste of food and poop that you can see.  The frequency of changing or cleaning substrate will depend on the material of substrate:

Paper towels

You need to replace paper towels for once or twice times per week, replacing the wet or dirty spots as it is get soiled. Should only placing about 1 or 2 layers of paper towels. Do not put too much or if the paper towels get pretty wet, it will become paper pulp

Paper towels are the best leopard gecko substrate for those who have a limited budget.

Newspapers

Similar to paper towels, newspapers also should be replaced once or twice per week. It is recommended to put 5-6 layers of newspapers in the cage for the substrate sturdy and good at absorbent.

Reptile Carpet

Beside daily remove wastes and poop, reptile carpet should be clean for 2-3 times per month. You also should replace it after 3-4 times washes or when the carpet fibers is loose. Washing the carpet with antibacterial soap and then hang it until it is dry.

Reptile carpet is thebedding for leopard geckos since it does not harm your pet.

Ceramic Tiles

Tiles floor needs to be cleaned once per month and removed the waste every day. Tiles should be washed with hot soapy water and steam cleaner.

Loose Substrate

If you are using a loose substrate, it is extremely easy to clean. Using a scoop to find and remove any poop or excess food and feeder. It is just a little amount of loose need to be replaced in each time of cleaning. However, you should replace the entire loose substrate for every 3-4 months.

Bearded dragons cage not only the place to keep your pet but also the safe home that they spend most of their time in it and allow them to do all the natural behaviors.

If you are a DIY fan and thinking about DIY the cage for your bearded dragons, so the wooden terrarium will be the best ideal for you. So how to build a bearded dragon cage out of wood, this post is a basic guide that might suit your needs.

Planning your bearded dragons cage

Your bearded dragons should be kept the horizontal cage. All the cage sides are made using plywood with the glass install on tracks.

Your bearded dragons require enough space to move and hide in the cage.  It also has room for install lighting, heater, substrate, etc. Bearded dragons are small reptile but they move around a lot, so they will need 8-32 square feet of space.

Once you have decided on the size and shape of the cage, you should create a sketch of your cage to avoid any mistake and plan what you need to buy. With the wooden cage, you do not need a lot of tools. You will need a bag of screws, a drill and silicone adhesive.

Row material you will need

With the enclosure about 4’ wide, 2’ deep, 2’ tall, you will have an ideal size cage for an adult bearded dragon. The raw materials you will need for this DIY cage out of wood are:

2 sheets of wood with the same size use for the top and bottom of the cage that is 1200mm x 610mm x 10mm.

1 sheet used for the back that is 1200mm x 630mm x 10mm.

2 sheets with the same size use for the sides that are 610mm x 610mm.

2 glass sheets used for the doors of the age that are 610mm x 605mm x 5mm.

2 Glass runners are 1000mm long and about 10mm high.

To ensure the success of the cage, you can buy the pre-cut sheet of wood; you will have very little things left to do. You can buy these wood pre-cut in any DIY shop.

Construct the cage

Attach all the walls of the cage using a screw. This step is quite easy for everyone. Then the next step is to add the runners by using silicone adhesive. You should leave these runners for 12 hours before installing the door.

Install the door by place it into the top runner and fall into the bottom of the runner. Add the second sheet of the cage and you will finish your DIY wooden bearded dragons cage.

We all know that heat is particularly important for reptiles. Heat is essential for reptiles to maintain their internal doing, and to digest their food.

They also need heat to be able to reproduce, improve the circulation of blood and increase a healthy immune system.

There are some different types of reptile heater out there such as heat pads, heat lamps, heat tape, heat cables, heat rock, etc. But whatever types of heater you are using, there are also some safety tips that you should keep in mind.

#1 Create the thermal gradient

In the natural, reptiles move around their environment to the warmer and cooler area to find the temperature that they need at this time.

In the enclosure, you also should give them a chance to adjust their own body temperature like that. Allow them to seek heat when they need and taking the heat off as well.

Setting up the tank so the temperature will gradually decrease from one side to the other side, is called a thermal gradient. You can create this environment by placing the heater on only one side of the tank.

#2 Thermometer

You may need more than a heater in your enclosure. In order to ensure the temperature is proper and curacy, you should monitor the actual temperature by using the thermometer. And not all the best reptile heat mat comes with a thermometer so you need to invest in a separate one.

There are varieties of thermometer for reptiles available such as a stick-on thermometer that attach to the outside of the tank. Digital thermometers with a probe placed inside the tank and connected with an LCD display outside.

And temperature guns which will allow you to measure the temperature at any specific place.

#3 Thermostat

If you really concern about the exact temperature insider your vivarium, you can add the best reptile thermostat to your reptile heater systems. Too hot or too cold can also be very dangerous to your reptiles.

A thermostat is especially promoting its effects if your heat source is producing too much amount of heat. This device will allow you to control the intensity of your heat source.

It is not a good signal if your reptiles basking under the heater all day. Because of the temperature that they like not the best temperature for their health.