u/AttorneySuitable4420

Since they are not a commonly kept species, and there isn't too much care information on them, I am providing all I have found taking care of these geckos. They are known to be communal species in the wild, which is why cohabitation has been possible for many people.

These are my two female western banded geckos, that live in this 30 gallon. For substrate, I use. patio sand, excavator clay, and reptisoil. I got them from a breeder, who was raising them in the same enclosure with other geckos. As you can see on one of them (#2), she has a shorter tail due to a tail nip under the breeders care.

I have not observed any aggression towards eachother, except when #2 occasionally thinks #1’s long tail is a worm. she always does some extensive licking before she realizes it‘s not a worm.

When I first got them, it was apparent there was a power imbalance, #2 would always lay in their preferred hide, and she’d always eat all the worms whilst #1 cowered.

I fixed this problem by separating #1 into her own tank for a few weeks, then reintroducing her and bringing the sand with her scent into the main tank. This showed great improvement in their dynamics, and they now will both come out to eat together, sleep in the same hide together, and never tail wave at eachother.

There are 6 “hides” total in the tank, some of which have multiple nooks and crannies for them to squeeze into, which they do. I will often observe #1 climbing up the background to sit on the flat top of it as well. The one with the longer tail is a much better climber, which I presume is due to better balance. Having enough hides allows for them to be away from eachother, although I often find them sharing a hide anyways.

It is very likely they are two different subspecies, due to their different patterns and builds. As you can see on the last 2 slides, #2 has a shorter stockier build, with light centered dark stripes, and many spots on her head and sides. #1 has a much longer more slender body, with solid stripes and minimal spotting. Despite them both eating the same amount, their bodies are very different shapes.

These geckos are also very smart, as you can see them looking at me in some of the photos. They have come to recognize the sound of me walking by, and will run the the front of the tank and look at me for worms. #1 is much less shy, and has been hand feeding recently. Despite their friendliness towards me, they do not like being touched or picked up. I have tried a few times, and every time they let out a loud squeak and run away. Sometimes they will try to walk out the front doors when they are open, but I assume thats more out of curiosity than to get to me.

I feed them mostly young crickets and mealworms, dusted & gutloaded. They are incredibly agile hunters, and will thrash their prey into the ground to kill it. They both use the same spot to defecate, which is in one of their hides.

Occasionally I will observe defensive behavior towards me if I spook them, in the form of curving their tails over their bodies and waving it back and forth. It is said that this is intended to mimic scorpions, and I can definitely see how that theory came about.

They do tend to come out and lay around more during the night, and hide more during the day, but I do occasionally laying around during the day. They actually love humidity, despite being a desert species. Their waterbowl is situated on a clay based area of their tank, and I will pour water around it to soak the clay. Within minutes they will come out to lay on the wet clay and fall asleep. They have a humid hide, but the clay is situated near the heat lamp, and I think they like to feel the water evaporating. When their water is low I will also sometimes catch them laying in their water bowl. I add reptile electrolytes to all of my reptiles’ water, which seems to entice them all to soak and drink from it.

If you are planning to cohabitate western banded geckos, I suggest you provide a large amount of variable level hides, and environmental enrichment. Always make sure your geckos are getting along, and seperate them if you see any issues. My method to solve their issues isn’t guaranteed to work for anyone, it has only worked for my two specific geckos. Make sure you are providing a humid hide and plenty of interesting spaces for them to explore. I wouldn’t house 2 in anything smaller than a 30 gallon.

Feel free to ask me any questions!

I will likely make another post with some videos of their behavior.

The second to last of her on her tippy toes is my fav. She loves her grub pie!

was sitting there with my friend and he was scrolling thru his voicemail, when he noticed this. he doesn't remember a call at all for that day cuz he was up. the area code is nowhere near us, and the language spoken is unrecognizable. my friend is a 19 year ild plumber and would have no reason to be getting a voicemail like this.

if anyone knows what the words say or if this voicemail is a scam or copypasta or something of that sorts, please let us know. this is super unsettling. I hope whoever is in the voicemail is ok.

I have a year old bearded dragon, and I love to cuddle with her, but I feel like shes just too dirty.

Her skin is always dark with dirt and shes kinda stinky. I give her atleast 1 bath a week, and I’ve ever tried sceubbing her with a soft towel and a baby toothbrush. When she sheds, her new skin is significantly brighter than her normal dirty skin.

I wanna cuddle with her but I feel like shes just kinda dirty 😭

Her enclosure had about 4 inches of reptisoil mixed with sand, and the soil is pretty dark. (she has an 100 gal tank, planning on building a 150 gal before she reaches full size. Shes rather small still bc winter slowed down her growth)

If I dont feed her on time, she’ll throw a fit and run around in the dirt, then bury herself. Thats the only time she uses the dirt.

I feel like it makes it hard to pick out feces because it blends into the dirt, which contributes to her stinkyness. I do my best to keep her as clean as I can but I feel like this dirt makes it impossible.

Is it unethical to take away the dirt? Is there something else I could use?

I was thinking maybe I could do the bottom with excavator clay, because that wouldn't get all over her, and then add a dig box. Is this a good idea?

Thanks yall!