Looking into Leachies....

[CaptiveCreations]

Hello,

I'm new to this board. Didn't realize there was a mini forum just for leachies! Cool! I'm generally a Leopard Gecko breeder and wanting to get into another gecko species. I love the Rhac. and was thinking Cresteded's, but i already have a gecko species that EVERYONE breeds, so i wanted something a bit more exotic and challenging.

I don't plan on getting my leachies until next summer, but was wondering. Who exactually sells leachies? The only two times I have seen Leachies in person was once at Tinley Park this year, when Nerd sold off a breeding pair, and then at a friend's shop. Still a juvie though, the ones Nerd had looked adult, or close.

I do own the rhac book and am slowly making it through the chapter of leachies. There is a lot of localitys for them!

I just wanted to ask one other question. What do you feed your leachies. I have heard fruit mash vs ****food as well as pinks but not a whole lot on insects...

Thanks! :)

[SanSkrit]

Welcome to the forum!! :)

Leachies aren't big insect eaters which is probably why most people don't talk about what they would eat within that category. Leachie prefer pinkies to insects and they prefer other lizards to pinkies. (If you didn't have a problem feeding some of your hatchling leopards to your leachie then you'd be all set!) For someone really dead set against feeding pinkies or lizards there are always roaches. Roaches have a better meat/shell ratio than crickets and many non-climbing species used as feeders get big enough to be worth eating. Also, if pinkies are used they can't be fed as a staple because they have a high percentage of body fat. This is another advantage to feeding lizards/geckos. Since the lizards will have very little body fat the leachie can eat them on the same schedule as insects would be fed. When using insects many breeders have found that juvenile growth rates are slowed. According to what I've been told by a few breeders, growth rates jump when pinkies are fed and jump a bit more when lizards are fed. (Those results may not stand true for all leachianus breeders.) It's recommended that you use a meal replacement powder or a supplement in addition to the live prey. You can use T-Rex leachianus diet and not have to use any feeders at all if you choose.

People who breed leachies: Allen Repashy (Island E only if I'm correct), and the infamous Phillipe DeVosjoli. Phillipe has a website (giantgeckos.com) but you'll find updates to his available list on kingsnake.com. (I believe he has some Nuu Amis, and some GT hybrids available at the moment.) They fetch a bit of a higher price but the price compared to quality actually makes it a fantastic deal.

If you have any more questions don't be afraid to ask :) .

[CaptiveCreations]

Thank you so much Marina, for the warm welcome and response! :) I personally really like the locality Island D, as they have a very nice green color! But i also do like the Nuu Ana and Nuu Ami's as well.

I don't have any leos that i breed that i think i could feed off, as they all are kinda on a higher end price tag (not just normals or albinos) but i will keep that in mind! I have a monitor lizard that i also try and feed small lizards too.

Like i said i am slowly making it through the Leachies chapter of the Rhac book. (Whew, leopard gecko season is almost over for me! It's been exhausting lol) As the locality section is taking me a good amount of time to read through.

This is an exciting new project for me. I will probably fall back into the shadows for a bit until i learn more about this wonderful species. Just wanted to say hi! :)