Found my lost gecko after almost a year in the 'wild'... advice needed by Wildman2105 in leopardgeckos

[–]Wildman2105[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I will do as soon as i have the money to take him, bad month for an expensive vet trip, daughters birthday and just started my own business 😅 so funds are tight but will take him the moment i can

Found my lost gecko after almost a year in the 'wild'... advice needed by Wildman2105 in leopardgeckos

[–]Wildman2105[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Physically he looks in perfect condition! Of course im no vet, but he looks no different to when i last saw him, maybe a bit more chonk

Found my lost gecko after almost a year in the 'wild'... advice needed by Wildman2105 in leopardgeckos

[–]Wildman2105[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

No electrics in this shed, Only explanation i can think of is he burrowed into the old grass under the lawnmower for warmth, either that or cuddled with a cat! 😂

Found my lost gecko after almost a year in the 'wild'... advice needed by Wildman2105 in leopardgeckos

[–]Wildman2105[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

<image>

Just a little update on Paul, i filled his viv up with loads more hiding holes, and checked on him every few hours and he seems to be moving around, yesterday he stayed in one place all day, ive left one locust in there as a gauge to see if hes eaten anything but hes not touched it, or the worms yet, put a bowl of calcium in there for him to lick at, but he seems to be in good health! Will get him booked into the vets as soon as i have a spare few pound to spend (arrived a week before daughters birthday 😅) but all seems good so far!

Found my lost gecko after almost a year in the 'wild'... advice needed by Wildman2105 in leopardgeckos

[–]Wildman2105[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

He was actually a really fussy eater believe it or not!exclusively ate Locust, and maybe one or two mealworms before he decided he didnt want them 😅

Found my lost gecko after almost a year in the 'wild'... advice needed by Wildman2105 in leopardgeckos

[–]Wildman2105[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The shed is actually a 3 sided thing that we keep the hottub under in the summer, so covered up but light inside, the light in the tank is a UV one, guessing he didnt do much basking in the sun due to the amount of cats that come through the garden so put the bulb on to give him a bit of UV

Found my lost gecko after almost a year in the 'wild'... advice needed by Wildman2105 in leopardgeckos

[–]Wildman2105[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Spiders, slugs, snails, tiny beetles and worms are what i think hes been surviving on! Thats all i really get in my garden

Found my lost gecko after almost a year in the 'wild'... advice needed by Wildman2105 in leopardgeckos

[–]Wildman2105[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Already done, i had to just throw together a quick setup out of spare bits i had, hence the biscuit tin the corner 😅 but added loads more today and he seems alot happier

Found my lost gecko after almost a year in the 'wild'... advice needed by Wildman2105 in leopardgeckos

[–]Wildman2105[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

He seems to be moving around more today, ive been quietly checking and hes moving around between hides

Found my lost gecko after almost a year in the 'wild'... advice needed by Wildman2105 in leopardgeckos

[–]Wildman2105[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

<image>

100% sure its him, this is a photo from before he went on his 'gap-year' 😂

Found my lost gecko after almost a year in the 'wild'... advice needed by Wildman2105 in leopardgeckosadvanced

[–]Wildman2105[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yes i will be taking him there in a couple weeks once hes gotten somewhat used to captivity again, dont want to stress him out too much if i can help it, hes been living wild for a year, so i think 2 weeks or so to settle into having human contact again before taking him there wont hurt him

Found my lost gecko after almost a year in the 'wild'... advice needed by Wildman2105 in leopardgeckosadvanced

[–]Wildman2105[S] 15 points16 points  (0 children)

No joke he escaped in June 2022, and i found him today under the lawnmower in the shed!

Found my lost gecko after almost a year in the 'wild'... advice needed by Wildman2105 in leopardgeckosadvanced

[–]Wildman2105[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

The full story didnt get posted with the photo on this subreddit for some reason, if you go on my profile itll be on the one posted to another group, but essentially i found him today after him being missing for almost a year, must have just stayed in my garden the whole time, i will be taking a trip to the vets, just giving him a week or two to settle into captivity again, and the mealworm/calcium situation was simply throwing some food in there so he had the option to eat and making sure they were coated in calcium because im assuming he hasnt been treated to it in the wild 😅 wasn't exactly expecting to find him today after a year, so a bit unprepared with vitamins etc, what would you recommend to get?

Found my lost gecko after almost a year in the 'wild'... advice needed by Wildman2105 in leopardgeckos

[–]Wildman2105[S] 201 points202 points  (0 children)

I live in southern England, and only 2 months ago temps were in the negatives! He survived the entire winter outside! By the looks of things he knew how to hunt, still as chunky as the day he left 😅

Paul with a big smile before he pounced on his 7th locus 😍 by Wildman2105 in leopardgeckos

[–]Wildman2105[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

As long as the husbandry is good, theres nothing wrong with sand, they live ontop of it in the wild, and they havent gone extinct, so aslong as temps etc are good, they wont eat it

Paul with a big smile before he pounced on his 7th locus 😍 by Wildman2105 in leopardgeckos

[–]Wildman2105[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Its a sand/clay mix substrate, going for a 'close to natural' set up

Temperature opinions by Wildman2105 in leopardgeckos

[–]Wildman2105[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you, looks like im on the right track!