Care Sheet for Geckos: LeopardAverage Rating Given To This Care Sheet Is 3.62 (1=lowest, 5=highest) Last Updated: 08/08/2004 |
Main Category: | Lizards |
Sub Category: | Geckos: Leopard |
Care Sheet Submitted By: | Jillybean |
Years Experience: | Under 1 Year |
Species: | Leopard Geckos |
Other Species or Phases this Care Sheet May Cover: | Albinos |
Sexing and Characteristics: | Male leopard geckos will have predominant pre-anal pores above their vent, which is the "poop shoot" so to speak. They will also have buldges below their vent, and females have neither the buldges OR the pores. Females have the pores, but they are very hard to see and are almost invisible. Some females may also have a slight buldge near their tail base, but male’s buldges will be larger and their pores will be brown in color. |
Mostly Active During: | Night |
Substrate and Water Needs: | Water
Leos need a shallow water dish and should be misted daily or every other day. They seldom drink because they can absorb water through their skins and, being a desert animal from desert areas like Pakistan and India, they are made to go a long time without water.
Substrates
Their is much controversy on this subject. I myself use sand, but I will not go without saying it isn’t risky. It IS WHAT MY VET RECOMMENDS! If you don’t already know, sand can cause impaction which happens when a leo ingests some of it’s particle-based substrate and the particles do not pass. This can be very dangerous and should be treated immmediatley or it can result in the death or serious injury of your animal.
Besides sand, you can use paper towels, reptile carpet, or bed-a-beast as a substrate. There are so many things out there, I suggest you go along with whatever you feel comfortable with. Also you may want to see what your vet recommends.
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Lighting and UVB: | Although leopard geckos do not require any kind of light, it is good to use a UV light. It enables you to see your gecko when they run about at night, and warms up the tank pretty well to.
ALSO: ALBINO LEOPARD GECKOS WILL REQUIRE A NIGHT LIGHTING AS THEY DO THEIR BEST HUNTING AT NIGHT BY SOME TYPE OF LIGHT... |
Temperatures and Humidity: | Temperatures in the day time should be from 80-90 degrees on the warm side and about five degrees cooler on the cool side then what you temperature is on the warm side. |
Heating and Equipment: | You will need an Under Tank Heater (UTH), lots of hides, a shallow water dish, a thermometer, and some moss or wet paper towels to make a humid hide. Humid hides are a necessity as the help with the shedding process.
To make a humid hide, you can put wat paper towels under a hide or moist moss under a hide, just so long as there is one small entrance to the hide. Also, I have a rock hide that soaks up water to make a humid hide.
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Caging Provided: | You need 10 gallons per leopard gecko, unless you have a twenty long in which case you can fit three leopard geckos, though it may be a bit cramped.
You cannot house males together because they will fight. You can, however, house females together. They should get along. You shouldn’t house males and females together unless you plan on breeding, because all the males will want to do is breed breed breed. |
Diet: | Carnivorous |
Description of Diet: | Leopard geckos will eat a wide variety of foods, ranging from crickets to pinkey mice. The most popular staple diet is probably crickets, with mealworms coming in a close second. You can also feed silkworms and superworms, and waxworms as an occasional treat. Be careful with the waxworms though, they are fatty and addictive like chocolate to us people. It is best to offer a variety of foods. I offer both crickets and mealworms, with the occasional waxworm...I am planning on adding superworms to their (my leos’) diet as well.
Feed superworms only after your leo has reached seven inches long, and feed pinkey mice to fatten up a breeding female or as a treat about once a month. Waxworms should make up no more then one fourth of your leos diet at all times, and it is best to feed the lighter colored mealworms as those are the ones who have most recently shed. |
Supplements, Nutrition and Usage: | You should gutload your crickets before feeding them to your leo, although it is NOT a necessity. I use repti-cal to dust my leopard gecko’s prey, and gutload with calcium-enrihed flukers cricket feed and cricket quencher.
Do not overdust your leopard gecko’s prey, as there CAN be too much of a good thing. I suggest dusting once every week while you gutload with something healthy. |
Maintenance: | Your leo will pick a poop corner that you will need to clean daily. You will need to clean out the water dish at least once a week and replace it with new water as well, and leopard geckos that you wish to put together should be quarintined (kept in seperate tanks) for at least sixty days to ensure they are all perfectly healthy. You should take them to a herp vet to be sure they are in good condition, and bring in fecal samples to be tested for parasites. |
Some Words on this Species: | This is a great gecko, they are a lot of fun. I enjoy my two alot. I find them very interesting and a lot of fun to have. I’m not allowed to have furry animals because I already have two dogs and two cats, and I am very happy with the newest addittions to my family, my leopard geckos. |
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