Need knowledge about mixing species

[NewtB]

So I started out with 3 Long-toed salamanders. We added a tree frog. They are all from the wild and get along without issues. However. We have just been given a Tiger Gecko. He's 10-15 years old and captive bred. His diet has consisted of medium-sized crickets. But his head is about the size of my little tree frog, and therefore much bigger than my salamanders. The salamanders mostly stay underground, but do venture out on rare occasion. Picture below...

(Tiger salamander front and center, tree frog top left corner)

Here are my 2 concerns:
1. Will the Tiger Gecko attempt to eat the salamanders given the chance?
2. My wild-born friends are in a habitat made of the outdoors - dirt (complete with red wiggler worms), possibly a few snails and wood lice (if any of either are left), moss, sand and tree bark - all of this from my yard. My new captive-bred gecko is on a grass mat along with other store bought items. Am I putting him in danger if I add him to their outdoor habitat surroundings? What are the possible ramifications? And if there is a problem with this, is there a way to get him use to these "germs"?

Thanks to all who are able to share their knowledge of such things!

 

[Azhael]

O_O
Do you realise that leopard geckos (Eublepharis macularius) are a desert species from India/Pakistan? There is no way in a thousand hells that you could possibly keep those species together without killing them, let alone very seriously sacrificing their requirements. This is trully an absolutely awful idea...i'm struggling to think of other combos that could be worse...

 

[Asevernnnn]

Leopard geckos should be housed in at least a floor space equivalent to 10 gallons, for one. Substrate should be paper towel, slate tile, or a different non loose substrate, calcium sand and normal sand is NOT okay.

They should have 3 hides, a cool hide, a moist hide which can be a little plastic tub with a hole in the lid with moist moss/cocofiber or paper towels inside, and a hot hide which should be placed over a heat pad.

A heat pad is required as these geckos use heat to digest their food, getting a thermostat for it is recommended but personally i just use two 5 gallon heat pads so they don't get too hot. I usually have the heat pad at around. 86F

Water should be provided, and there should be a little like water bottle cap filled with Calcium(no D) and should be in the tank at all times.

For feeding, I recommend dusted mealworms, with D3 every other or every two feedings, and just regular calcium the rest of the time. I don't waste money on those fancy mealworm feeders, I just use like a sauce dish that they use at restaurants and they dont crawl out, I've heard that ash trays work as well. Waxworms can be given to fatten up or as a treat, not as a staple. Crickets work too, using the same dusting rule, but mealworms is a lot easier imo. And these geckos WILL attempt to east basically anything that moves, mine tend to snap at my dog when it walks in front of the tank.

 

[slowfoot]

I saw your picture and freaked out, but I see others have already given good advice. Get that gecko out of there!

Eta: Are you confusing the "tiger" gecko for a tiger salamander?

 

[NewtB]

Thanks guys. I only had the gecko in that tank for the picture of comparison to the frog. He's in a 50 gallon tank with all his requirements. Sorry for freaking you all out. And I was told he was a tiger gecko from the people who gave him to me... but after a lot of research last night discovered he was a leopard gecko... so thank you all for confirming that! I guess he will continue to reside in his current tank. No mixing. Got it.

 

[Asevernnnn]

I've also read that if they're in too big of a tank they stray away from the hot side and fail to digest their food or something like that, which is why I stick to 20 longs and 10 gallons

 

[NewtB]

By the way, I wasn't going to say anything, but I just have to. I understand the concern for the creatures, however I was asking for advice and "knowledge" for a reason - because I really had no idea but wanted to make sure I cared for him appropriately. Along with the advice I received, however, I also got a TON of flack and condemnation about how I'm treating him. Which, I might add, had no actual basis, as the gecko was never in this terrarium for more than 30 seconds. Again, I appreciate the concern for the creature, but I certainly felt accused and like I was a horrible person for doing such horrible things. All that, when the purpose of my post was so that I WOULDN'T do horrible things to it. Maybe, just maybe, as a community, we could be a little gentler in our comments and sharing of our knowledge to those who are trying to learn and may not know better. You can certainly highlight the importance of your message without being rude, assuming, or pointing fingers. You want to increase your members, not scare away the ones you do have. Just be nice.

 

[NewtB]

O_O
Do you realise that leopard geckos (Eublepharis macularius) are a desert species from India/Pakistan? There is no way in a thousand hells that you could possibly keep those species together without killing them...

Rodrigo - if I'd "realized that" obviously I wouldn't have had to ask. I also was unaware I had a Leopard gecko, as the lady who gave him to me said he was a Tiger gecko. From the small musings I had done online, I found 2 kinds of tiger geckos, and both wanted humidity to some extent... which is why I thought of combining them. :-/

 

[slowfoot]

I'm sorry you feel 'attacked', but please realize most people here speak out of concern for the animals and not to make anyone feel bad.

Also, I think five minutes of googling or speaking to the person you got the gecko from would have given you some idea of what sort of animal you have and how to care for it. When I get a new pet, I'll spend quite a lot of time researching how to care for it, even if it's a free pet or unexpected. If I still have questions about something, then I ask for advice before I do the thing, usually.

 

[Azhael]

So one comment on a forum making it unambiguosly clear that it is a terrible idea constitutes TONES of abuse now? I didn't even attack you personally and say you were a bad person or anything, i attacked the preposterous idea of mixing these three species, and that's fully justified because it is a really bad idea....
I'm sorry if criticism makes you feel abused...but it is your responsability as a keeper to provide adequate care for your animals and before you even knew what it was you had in your hands, you were thinking about mixing it with other animals. That makes me angry, i have no problem admitting it and it definitely doesn't trigger a desire to handle the subject with kid gloves, but rather to make it absolutely clear in no uncertain terms that it is an insane thing to even consider. So, no, i wasn't particularly nice and patient about it and i didn't guide you by the hand. That's because a) this was a surreal thing to read and b) i prioritise the well being of your animals over your feelings...sorry....
I'm sure i'm making it much worse with this post, no doubt.

 

[Autumncrossing]

On top of what everyone else has mentioned your tree frog habitat is most definitely sub par. Tree frogs love to climb and have places to hide, all you have in that ridiculously tiny tank is a rock, a toy frog by the looks of it and a dirty water bowl. That is animal abusive in my opinion, if you are going to keep a wild animal at least give it a decent home and invest some time, money, and research into it. Also I think it is insane because you are even thinking of putting a desert animal into a tropical habitat. We aren't out to attack you but you are just simply not thinking, you should have done research prior to getting your first animal.

 

[Azhael]

Don't get me wrong...i sympathise, you arrived here not being aware of how terrible your plans were and didn't expect to be told so, but instead of demanding that people make an unwarranted effort to be overly nice and make their criticisms in the sweetest way possible so as not to offend you, you should perhaps consider that you have responsabilities that you have neglected and are keeping your animals in inadequate conditions and came here planning to take that to a whole new level of abuse. It should be no surprise to get honest responses of shock in a forum full of people who care deeply about animals.
The real problem here is not that i was abusive (which is hyperbolic in the extreme, come on), it's that you are being abusive to your animals. But that can change and we are willing to help you do that.

 

[sde]

On top of what everyone else has mentioned your tree frog habitat is most definitely sub par. Tree frogs love to climb and have places to hide, all you have in that ridiculously tiny tank is a rock, a toy frog by the looks of it and a dirty water bowl. That is animal abusive in my opinion, if you are going to keep a wild animal at least give it a decent home and invest some time, money, and research into it. Also I think it is insane because you are even thinking of putting a desert animal into a tropical habitat. We aren't out to attack you but you are just simply not thinking, you should have done research prior to getting your first animal.

The setup is relatively okay, though more hides would be appreciated. These aren't actually treefrogs at all, they used to be called that but a ( much appreciated ) revision happened, and they are now chorus frogs. They went from Pacific tree frogs ( Hyla regilla ) to Pacific chorus frogs ( Pseudacris regilla ). I think there might have been another Latin name in-between the two, that got changed a second time.

NewtB, the best way to make a setup for a species native to your area is to simply go out into their habitat, look around, and form a mini version in a tank. To me, your setup looks pretty good, but I would suggest adding a few more hides, like bark, and maybe a bushy shrub clipping.

 

[Stupot1610]

I've seen this a lot on online forums regarding reptiles and amphibians. Often, it is somebody who had been misinformed about the animal they have taken into their care and, they get a lot of replies very quickly. This can make them feel like it is a personal 'attack' when actually it is just a group of well meaning people who really care about their animals. Basically, what I'm trying to say is, some of us may have come across as horrible or 'abusive' but actually we really do mean well and only want what's best for the animals in question. Please don't be put off using the forum as it is full of useful info and very knowledgeable people. You may have had one bad experience, we all have them sometimes, but no harm was intended from any of the members, please continue to use all the resources available on the forum. We really are a friendly bunch!

Stuart

 

[NewtB]

Thank you Stuart. You comments are appreciated.
Seth, I appreciate your words as well. And you can't see it from the picture I posted, but the frog does have a couple other hides.

Once again, however, many misjudge. You cannot see the whole setup from the picture not to mention it was a horrible picture to start with. The frog has a bark hide as well as a grass hole hide he enjoys. Plus that "toy frog" actually has another hide underneath it's toadstool. And, as Seth mentioned, if the one who made the comment about tree frogs had done THEIR research (believe it or not I actually DO look into these things - again, that's WHY I originally posted - to ASK for knowedge) you would find that what Seth found was true. These frogs aren't actually found in trees. They find hides along the ground and in cool places. And that's what he has.

As someone mentioned I might spend some time Googling to find answers - I spent a good 4 hours straight trying to learn what I could - which is how I figured out the original owners had told me wrong about what kind of gecko he was. I don't see how calling them up and asking them more questions might help as they already told me how they cared for him and that obviously wasn't entirely perfect conditions for him. I actually HAD made a call to a reptile keeper I know who is vastly knowledgable in such things, but again, I was working off of the idea I had a tiger gecko at the time...

My problem is not that I personally feel attacked (although I do, even more-so at this point), but that EVERYONE should be considerate in their words. You CAN show concern for a creature without attacking the person. We're here to learn, otherwise why would we be here. I won't say I'm done with this site entirely, as I have had good experiences here, but I am not sure I'll be back either. There are plenty of other places to find info that wont attack an addmittedly bad idea (it WAS bad - but again, I was misinformed, AND that's WHY I asked BEFORE I implemented it!) People are even accusing me of implementing this before finding the answer - which is just ridiculous, as I thought I have been clear that that is just not true. I'm sorry for posting a picture that freaked people out. I was Literally just hoping to give you a size comparison. And I'm sorry for having a crappy idea. But people. BE NICE!!!! And as the saying goes, IF YOU CAN'T SAY IT NICELY, DON'T SAY IT AT ALL! I do believe the reason for that saying is this: when you can't say things nicely, peole tend not to listen to you anyway. Post what you want at this point, but I'm done.

Thank you to those who did give me the info I needed to keep him properly. I have already began to implement changes to the environment he came to me in. Sorry for making such a stink, but I won't tolerate places that don't respect people.

 

[Coastal Groovin]

The frog shouldn't even be in with the salamanders.

 

[Azhael]

I won't tolerate places that don't respect people.

And i won't tolerate people who don't respect their animals enough to find out what species they are (as if finding tones of information on leopard geckos required any effort whatsoever, yet you still were calling it a tiger gecko and a tiger salamander while already putting it in with the other animals to take pictures and thinking about mixing them permanently). Let alone people who are more worried about someone on the internet saying something that is not sufficiently covered with honey for their taste rather than the fact that they are clearly not doing things right with their animals, which for any decent human being should certainly be the focus here...
Again, though, i very clearly attacked your idea, not you, and make no mistake, you were the first one to not be nice. Sure, you didn't use any "rude" words or anything, but it's certainly not nice what you are doing to your animals...If there are any victims in all of this so far, it's them...

Edit: By the way this is the full extent of what was required to find out what species your gecko was: write "gecko" on google images. Done.

 

[slowfoot]

People might have laughed a little bit and then given some good advice if you just asked about mixing them, but you posted pictures of all of them in the same cage! That counts as already doing it, to me at least.

 

[Azhael]

There are plenty of other places to find info

Yes, there are, particularly for leopard geckos. Next time you should check out at least one of them before you mix animals to take pictures and waste time thinking about mixing them permanently.

 

[Autumncrossing]

Oh and that is NOT a tree frog you apparently don't listen to correct information given to you anyways. I was going based off of what you said when you told us it was a tree frog, the picture is so dark so I gave you the benefit of the doubt (figures you would have both your species of animals wrong which proves the point on how little research you did). I live in Florida and have tree frogs in my back yard so I can tell you for a fact what kind of habitat that species would require. However again your frog is a pacific chorus frog as Seth has corrected.