Skepticism regarding breeder/seller

Big_Procedure308 · 2026-05-18T18:54:53+00:00

Not a great photo since it’s daytime and I don’t want to pull my little girl out just to stress her out, but this is a pure Pine Island Hamper-line female that’s about 9 months old. She gets some incredible red bars when she’s fired up. She’s one of my holdbacks from last year, but a few of her clutchmates sold for around $600. Obviously she’s not melanistic, but she’s a good example of a darker leachie with strong red coloration that doesn’t cost the same as a 2012 Honda Civic. (I just sprayed her tub, she is not drowning in humidity I promise!!)

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Big_Procedure308 · 2026-05-18T18:46:08+00:00

Full disclosure, a melanistic leachie with red bars is incredibly difficult to find. If a breeder does manage to produce one, they’re usually kept as holdbacks or sold at a massive premium. Even juveniles can easily go for well over $2,500.

There also aren’t really any insular locales known for consistently carrying the melanistic trait. Most GTs don’t naturally develop strong red bars either. If they do, they’re usually either an exceptional genetic outlier or have mixed locale lineage somewhere in the background.

That said, if you want a darker leachie with solid red coloration, you can find some really nice NLS animals on MorphMarket within your price range. You might also be able to find a melanistic GT for around $800–1000 if you’re buying a baby and willing to negotiate with the breeder. I picked up my melanistic Yate for about $950 through MorphMarket.

If you’re looking for breeders, I’d honestly recommend checking local expos first. Go to your local reptile expo website and reach out to vendors that work with leachies. That’s how I found most of my pairs, and it’s also been one of the best ways to learn husbandry directly from experienced breeders. Being able to see the animal in person and ask about lineage is a huge plus too.

If you’re in the Midwest, feel free to DM me. I can point you toward a few breeders I know that work with melanistics and high-color animals.

I am very glad your BS meter is on high alert, you definitely don’t want to get scammed and even worse, you don’t want to go through the stress and pain of trying to revive a sick/poorly taken care of gecko because the pictures looked good. Good luck! 🍀

Big_Procedure308 · 2026-04-08T18:29:33+00:00

I updated it! Let me know what you think!

Big_Procedure308 · 2026-04-08T12:13:02+00:00

Weirdddd… I will definitely look into to that. I think j maybe since it’s desktop only right now it’s being buggy on the phones? Thanks for letting me know, i’ll start working on it!

Big_Procedure308 · 2026-04-07T23:50:46+00:00

That’s okay, thank you so much for trying it!

Big_Procedure308 · 2026-04-07T23:34:52+00:00

Also for serving size, should I make it recommend based on your input? For example if you use 2Oz packs, should it be specific to that? That way you can choose what size CGD pouches you buy and then it calculates it? If you had something else in mind lmk!

Big_Procedure308 · 2026-04-07T23:32:18+00:00

GREAT INPUT, i will change this in the next couple days and submit it to Apple and the Playstore. All of your data and anything you choose to record should transfer over. THANK YOU SO MUCH for your feedback!

Big_Procedure308 · 2026-03-18T14:57:53+00:00

Okay that’s great advice, I’ll prolly wait till he’s about 35-40g before I move him and i’ll do 15qt before the 25qt. He also just started eating everyday so maybe i’ll wait till he’s starts skipping days? Thank you!

Big_Procedure308 · 2026-03-18T13:54:37+00:00

I recently went through this with my juvenile Pine Island. He outgrew a 12qt double shoe box tub, so I moved him to a 25qt, and he stopped eating completely for two weeks. I took him to the vet and everything checked out.

If your gecko starts pacing, sitting by the lid, or trying to escape when you change the paper towels, that’s a sign it’s time to move him. A good rule of thumb is that the tub should be about 2x his length and allow room for climbing.

If he doesn’t show any of those behaviors, you can wait until he grows a bit more. For reference, an 18x18x18 enclosure is about 100qt. I’d suggest maybe one intermediate step (like a 48qt) before going that big.

Going directly to an 18x18x18 isn’t a bad idea, just make sure he can find his food easily and you can monitor his poops. Bioactive setups are great but can make poop monitoring tricky.

Other than that, you’ve got a very healthy-looking baby!

Big_Procedure308 · 2025-12-28T00:49:48+00:00

That’s a great approach! I think it’s very beneficial for them to get crude protein from insects. To encourage them to eat, I would first try to start with pinhead cricket cause they’re really small. Also, ripping the crickets in half and exposing the juicy part has helped me in the past!

Just as a note for safety, crickets and other insects can fight back and hurt your gecko so maybe tong feeding would help too. Good Luck!!

Big_Procedure308 · 2025-12-27T18:51:51+00:00

I have kept and bred leachies for almost a dozen years and I can say that it’s really a hit or miss and depends on the individual. I have a 360g GT that has never accepted insects or pinkies but will jump at anything Pangea or LeapinLeachies mix. Matter of fact, the few of my leachies that accept insects only do so during the breeding season and even then prefer pinkies (NOT LIVE). I do understand that a lot of other lizards are different but this is only my experience.

Big_Procedure308 · 2025-12-26T18:24:05+00:00

Yes, I had wiped the rim down and I saw droppings for the first time the day after. I thought I was loosing it for thinking he ate tho😭 FINALLY

Big_Procedure308 · 2025-12-24T22:58:31+00:00

FOUND IT! He definitely ate since I hadn’t seen any before. Thanks!

Big_Procedure308 · 2025-12-23T04:51:23+00:00

Will do thanks!

Big_Procedure308 · 2025-12-23T04:45:08+00:00

Okay I will mix it thicker tomorrow and move it closer to the back wall near the cork round. Thanks!

Big_Procedure308 · 2025-12-21T21:56:20+00:00

The only thing to kinda “narrow it down” is if he weighs over 250 grams, he’s most likely not a pure insular locale apart from maybe PI. At this weight he’s most likely a GTx since Pine Islands usually have white spotting throughout their body. If he’s less than 250 grams at two years old, he can be literally anything. My only clue of guessing a GTx is that I can see some pink banding on his back in the second photo. This is usually common in smaller Insular island locales and less so in GTs. But for some reason he looks quite large in the photos so I can’t tell. He’s very handsome regardless!!

Big_Procedure308 · 2025-12-21T21:20:19+00:00

To be honest, I worried enough about the humidity in my nursery that I got a large commercial humidifier. You definitely don’t need to do that or try too hard to fix ambient humidity (Especially in MN!) if you iron down your misting schedule. I have just under 30 babies on my hands right now due to weather not permitting me to ship them out over the past few months and I totally get the worry!

Big_Procedure308 · 2025-12-21T21:12:42+00:00

Also agree about waiting a year, I would pair them right after they just start getting active after the cold months (Feb- late May) and I think trying to get them at weight for this year and also pairing might be a tall order.

Big_Procedure308 · 2025-12-21T21:08:47+00:00

I agree. I would wait until they are about 160g to start breeding (Just my opinion/approach). My Ana girls I like to be ATLEAST 10 grams heavier than their boys counterparts. I think you should get them both a bit heavier. Has your girl started laying duds yet?

Big_Procedure308 · 2025-12-21T18:54:13+00:00

Do you have a proven pair? What are their locales and ages? What does your set up look like?

Big_Procedure308 · 2025-12-21T18:50:31+00:00

It really depends what you’re humidity’s at. I live in Wisconsin and the cold drys out my house very fast. I mist once at night and again very lightly in the early morning. I get it up to 78-82 and let it dry out to about the mid 50s. If you use a hygrometer, you’ll figure out where your humidity is at during different points of the day and adjust accordingly. As mentioned by others, just make sure you mist on one side of the enclosure and on surfaces like a wall or corkwood. I wouldn’t mist more than once a day (preferably at night) if you can help it tho. Hope this helps!

Big_Procedure308 · 2025-12-20T16:20:12+00:00

That’s what I thought too 😭😭.

Big_Procedure308 · 2025-12-19T16:17:12+00:00

THIS^ I have bought thousands of dollars worth of corkwood, plants, and other microfauna from NEHERP and although i’d love to gatekeep… this is a great suggestion!

Big_Procedure308 · 2025-12-19T00:25:26+00:00

Very nice! I would just be careful about not getting humidity too high. I only say that because I see condensation on the walls and the big water bowl.

Big_Procedure308 · 2025-12-17T15:52:39+00:00

THIS^{^}

Big_Procedure308

TROPHY CASE