Cage Cleaning Day

Today is Saturday which means... CAGE CLEANING DAY!

Yes, that's right. Today everyone's cage/tank/habitat gets cleaned.  New bedding.  New water.  Whatever is needed.  We'll also head to our local pet shop lady for some crickets later today.

Here's some of what needs to be done:

• Chinchilla - wash fleece blanket floor of cage, exchange out food and water, clean litter tray where he urinates, sweep up the poop from the cage and floor, wash hammock, wipe down ledges
• Hedgehog - change bedding and water in playpen (plywood box) and cage, wash dishes from cage and playpen, wash bed from cage, wipe down cage and toys
• Toads and lizards - rinse out water dishes and add water, change bedding, wash off plants and/or driftwood
• Cat - litter box, wash out food dish, wash bed
• Dogs - wash food dishes, wash beds
• Fish - add water or do water exchange if needed

Of course there is also a lot of sweeping and vacuuming, too. It takes a while, but it keeps the animals healthy.  

Introducing: Hugo

Hugo is a gargoyle gecko and the first gecko we owned.  Definitely a learning curve!  At first we fed him crickets and fruit baby food.  However, as a result of a calcium deficiency he developed floppy jaw.  After doing some research and finding out his nutritional needs, he has recovered almost completely.  The only sign of his ordeal is a slight deformity in the hinge of his jaw.  Other than that, he's happy, healthy, and getting big.  We feed him crested gecko diet with a few dusted crickets here and there to keep him active. His name was inspired from the gargoyles in Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame: Laverne, Hugo, and Victor.  His name was originally Laverne after the feisty gargoyle until we discovered that Laverne was a "he", hence the name Hugo.

Introducing: Bob and Ago

Bob and Ago are crocodile geckos.  When we picked them up from the pet store, Ago decided to bite the pet shop owner.  According to Google, Ago means "jaw" in Japanese.  They're really cute and look like miniature crocodiles!  Ago and Bob use their jaws to gobble up crickets.

This picture was taken as we brought them home.  They're hard to photograph together as they like to hide on the underside of the driftwood in their tank.

Introducing: Stumperella

Stumperella (aka Stumpy) is an ablino fat tail gecko.  When we got her, she was in a tank with two other fat tails a lot bigger than she.  She lost her tail in a feeding frenzy as the bigger geckos were going after crickets and accidentally got her tail.  We decided to buy her since we felt sorry for her (and she's really cute, too!).  She loves to eat crickets.  We're happy to report that her tail is growing back!

Introducing: Rufus

Rufus is a leopard gecko and full of personality.  Whenever someone walks past his tank, he comes out of his hidey hole looking for food.  He'll look at us and turn his head in a questioning manner as if to say, "Hey! Where's the food?"  The only time we're able to pick him up is when he's gorged himself on crickets and doesn't feel up to running away.