Leopard Gecko Care
The leopard gecko, also known as Eublepharis macularius, is hands down the most popular pet gecko in captivity. A combination of beauty, docile temperament, and relative ease of care has made these little lizards a hit world wide. Growing just under 8 inches they are fairly small; however, their approximately 15 year lifespan makes them a real responsibility.
Leopard Gecko HousingLeo housing requirements are fairly rudimentary when compared to other lizards that require complex set ups. If you don't have a great deal of space, then a 10 to 20 gallon tank will suffice. A 10 gallon would be suitable for one lizard, while a 20 gallon would make room for company.You may want to consider a reptile proof enclosure with a sliding mesh top to keep any other animals you might own from making a meal of your new reptilian friend! Only keep one male to a tank. Males can be aggressive towards one another, and we don't want anyone to get hurt, or worse, killed. Other than the tank, you will need a few things The ideal leopard gecko tank setup would have a hiding spot at each end of the enclosure on top of a newspaper substrate. An under the tank heating pad would be under one end of the tank, with the water dish on the opposite end. The reasoning behind the hiding spots is that we want to provide a safe secure place for your leopard geckos to "get away from it all". If they don't have a place that feels safe, the only alternative is to feel vulnerable and exposed. We want our pets to be relaxed, and at ease! :) Newspaper as a substrate is recommended because of its convienience. It is both cost effective, and safe! Avoid substrates that are strong smelling, or small grained / dusty. If it smells to strongly, it may cause respiratory problems. If it is too small, it may be accidently swallowed and kill your pet (this iscalled impaction). Stay away from these substrates in particular In time you will find that your Leo(s) will pick one particular spot to poop in, which makes life that much more easy cleaning wise. Other than removing any poop every two days, or replacing the substrate every few days if you opt to use newspaper, you will have to deep clean the enclosure every few months. One part bleach mixed with 25+ parts water seems to be a very effective, and relatively safe deep cleaning method.
Heating, Lighting, and HumidityAs far as heating is concerned an under the tank heating pad should be all that is needed. If you feel tempted to purchase a heat rock, I would urge you to reconsider. Heat rocks have had a terrible reputation for badly injuring and killing reptiles in the past. When they malfunction, heat can be very concentrated in some areas.Daytime temperatures should vary between the low to mid 80's (degrees fahrenheit). Nightime temperatures should be around 75-80 degrees if at all possible. It is important to provide a temperature gradient so that the leopard gecko can thermoregulate (that is, control its own body temperature). Without the ability to indirectly control their body temperature in their enclosure, they will have trouble digesting foods and functioning properly. Enzymes in their stomach work optimally at specific temperatures. Too high, or too low of temperatures will inactive the enzyme, or cause it to be less productive in breaking down food. Generally speaking, room temperature, if your house has an air conditioning and heating system, in addition to an under the tank heating pad covering 1/3rd of the tank will work out just fine. Because leos are a desert species, they require very low levels of humidity; however, this does not mean you need to neglect this aspect of husbandry, as it is fairly common for leopard geckos to have poor sheds and lose digits on their toes. :( A light misting from a water bottle with a spray nozzle once in the morning should be all thats needed, but if you are still seeing poor sheds, then there is something more you can do. You can pack a hiding spot with store bought moss, and spray it daily. That way there is always moisture available when your gecko needs it most. You can make a humidity hide out of an empty tupperware container by cutting a hole in it. If your lizard is still having bad sheds, then it might be time to visit the veterinarian! Leos, being primarily nocturnal in nature, do not need special lighting from ultra violet bulbs. I'm sure it wouldn't hurt, but it isn't necessary and will set you back a few bucks. The heating pad is all they need.
Leopard Gecko Feeding Time!Leos will thrive on a diet consisting of primarily crickets, meal worms, and wax worms. All of these can be found in the pet store, and all should be gut loaded for 24 hours before they are offered to your gecko. There is little nutritional value in eating a malnurished insect, so we want them to eat healthy insects.As a gecko pet care rule, food items should not exceed the width of your lizards head to make sure everything goes down smoothly. You can expect hatchlings to eat 1 to 2 times a day, while sub adults may eat daily. Adults should be offered food every other day. As they grow, their metabolism slows a bit, so we don't want them to become too overweight! Once a week you will want to dust food items with an appropriate vitamin supplement made specifically for reptiles. You will only want to offer as many insects as your reptile can eat in the span of a few minutes. Remove all excess crickets from the enclosure. Crickets do provide good exercise forcing your leo to hunt, but if your lizard isn't hungry he may become the prey! Hungry crickets will nibble at your leopard gecko and stress him out, so be sure to not leave them in the tank for too long.
Sexing! Boy or Girl?Sexing a leopard gecko is not difficult once you have a positive identification under your belt. Sub adult males several months of age will have a profound V shaped row of pre-anal pores. At the base of the tail you should see large hemipenal bulges.Females, in comparison, will lack the hemipenal bulges; however, they will have a less conspicuous V shaped pre-anal pore row. Even if you know what you are looking for, it can be difficult until you have had a look at the undersides of a confirmed male and female. Leopard Gecko BreedingLeos rank among the easiest reptilian pets to breed in captivity. I would not recommend breeding your geckos until they are at least two years of age. I've known of people that have tried it sooner with success, but it isn't recommended. If the females physically are not ready to breed, there may be complications requiring a visit to the veterinarian. Less severe complications include stunting of growth, and infertile eggs.All you will really need to get the breeding process under way is a healthy male and female, a nesting box lined with vermiculite, and an egg incubator. You can find the incubators at most any farm supply and feed stores. Once your female lays her egg(s) mark the top of the egg with a pencil. This is very important because the egg will not hatch if it is turned upside down. Remove the egg(s) from the nesting box you have provided and place them into the incubators. Now the fun begins! You have a very good probability of dictating the sex of the hatchlings simply by setting the incubation temperature. As you can see, very small temperature fluctuations can have a dramatic impact in the lives of these reptiles! Really makes you realize how delicate life is.
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