Adding a New Crestie

[tricia]

Hello all,

I just got a couple new gargs and a crestie this weekend and I wanted to house the crestie with another one about the same size. Is a 12x12x12 large enough for two cresties? And if the first one was just moved in a day earlier, is it safe to put the second one in with him or do I need to clean the cage out again to remove scent?

Thanks for your input!

[samanthajane13]

First of all, you need to quarantine the new gecko for 30 yo 90 days-no matter where you got them from, and even if they're both females, they may fight, or one may bully the other.

You want to quarantine to watch for signs of disease, but also to make sure they're eating, drinking, pooping and acting normally.

Also, you don't say how old they are...and if they turn out to be male and female, they may breed-too early.

The rule of thumb from most people's point of view is about 10 to 15 gallons of tank space per gecko.

And if you got the gargs from different places, they have to be quarantined, too.

My own quarantine rule is-

30 days for breeders I've purchased from before-including Anthony, Black Ink Reptiles, The Valley Reptiles, Tony Terradas, and a few others.  I know these people from previous orders, got healthy herps and would buy from them again.

90 days-PetCo, PetSmart, any other pet shop, herp shows and dealers I've never bought from before.

All it takes to wipe out a collection is ONE sick reptile.

Now-if you got the gargs at the same place, and from the same tank, they can be quarantined together, but I'd still separate them any way, so you know they're both eating and pooping.

[tricia]

Thanks for your advice! One of the cresties is 5 months, and the new one is 4 months, neither one showing male development so far. I have them separate for now, so I'll be sure to keep them that way until I know the new one is healthy. After that, was hoping maybe they could live together...

I did get the gargs from the same place, but was thinking to keep them separate anyway since they are 9 weeks and babies seem to have a reputation for eating each other's tails.

[samanthajane13]

Glad I could help!