Leopard Gecko Care Sheet

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AllanonsWrath

Sub-Adult Member
Leopard Gecko General Care

Housing:
1 or 2 FEMALE geckos may be comfortably housed in a 10 gallon aquarium. 2 Males should not be housed together as they will fight, being very territorial animals. A male and female gecko should not be housed together... unless you want babies...
You *Can* successfully house around 4 female geckos together, however it would require that you monitor their size and weights accordingly. One female could become dominant and hog most of the food.

3 hides should be provided in any enclosure. 1 on the warm side, 1 on the cool side, and a "moist hide" in the middle. The moist hide is most easily made with a small plastic container with a lid. Cut a hole into one side and smooth the edges so that the gecko doesn't get hurt. You can use a piece of repti-carpet, paper towel, or an old soft washrag cut in half to line the bottom. Moisten the substrate with water and snap the lid into place. Change the rag/paper towels out every 3rd or 4th day to keep the moist hide clean.

Lighting:
You may use a soft light to brighten the enclosure during the day. Geckos are nocturnal and do not require bright basking bulbs or any other bright lights. You can use a soft red or blue bulb to illuminate the tank for a day and night schedule, but it is not required. I find my geckos do really well with the light in the room left on during the day and turned off at night with no extra lighting.

Heating and Temps:
Heating can be effectively achieved using nothing but an UTH. You may need to use a CHE if you live in very cold climates or just cannot acquire the proper temps with an UTH alone. The gecko should have a hot spot between 90 and 95, with the ambient temp on the hot side between 80 and 90. The cool side should stay around 75. The geckos enclosure should never drop below 65. Geckos need proper heating gradient to digest food and thermoregulate.

Substrates:
Acceptable substrates include: paper towels, newspaper, butcher paper, reptile carpet, ceramic tile, etc.
Do NOT use any substrates that your gecko may be able to swallow (I.E. Sand, crushed walnut, shavings, etc.) most substrates of this type can cause impaction and be very uncomfortable / painful for your gecko.

Feeding and Diet:
Geckos are insectivores and only eat live feeders. You should never feed your gecko anything larger than they can comfortably eat.
Geckos can be fed once a day. Offer them as many crickets as they will eat within a 5 – 10 minute time frame.
Do NOT feed your gecko anything you catch in your yard or outside. Any wild caught insects will most likely be carrying parasites that can be transferred to your gecko.
Pet store crickets, roaches or worms should be fed to avoid parasite infections.
Live prey should be dusted with calcium powder at least 4 – 5 times a week. You should also dust on non-calcium days with a multivitamin supplement at least 1 – 2 times a week.
Do not leave prey items in the enclosure with your gecko. Any uneaten prey should be removed in order to keep a clean enclosure and to not stress your gecko.

Water and Bathing:
Geckos should have a small water dish available to them at all times. They will drink whenever needed. You may bathe your gecko once a week to help with shed bathe as necessary.

Disinfecting:
Disinfecting can be done in any number of ways. Using a mixture of bleach and water is one of the simplest and easiest ways to disinfect. Use a mixture of about ¼ Bleach and ¾ Water. You can use a spray bottle for easier application or use a steamer as well. You will want to let the mixture sit on the tank for at least 10 – 15 minutes for the bleach to do its work. After that, you can take a washrag or dish towel and wipe down every surface. Make sure to get any old food or feces removed. If you do use bleach or any other harmful chemical, you will want to rinse the enclosure thoroughly. You will not want to smell the chemical any more.

Disclaimer and Thanks:
I am not a vet, nor am I a very experienced owner at the moment. I have taken what I have read and done researched on and compiled it into this care sheet. If anything I have stated is incorrect or needs an adjustment or caveat, please let me know.
 

Jess

Extreme Poster
Well, personally I think that a 20 long should be the minimum for 2... a 10 gallon is pretty small, and you need extra hides if you want multiple geckos.

And I would suggest using a thermostat or a dimmer with a UTH, because they can get pretty hot if you just plug them right into the wall.

Looks good though! :D
 

AllanonsWrath

Sub-Adult Member
Original Poster
Depends on the UTH. Mine will only heat to 90* But yes that is good advice. A 10 can be used for 2, but I wouldn't house any more in it personally. Mine stay in the moist hide about 80% of the time :p I do want to get a bigger enclosure for them though. Just don't have the room at the moment. Looking into building a custom enclosure for all my little buggers.
 

strhunter2

Hatchling Member
your right that 2 females can be housed in a 10 gallon, alltho i do like to say with 10 gallons per gecko.
 
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