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what to feed a juvenile leopard gecko

by Alivia Reynolds MD Published 3 years ago Updated 2 years ago
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How Often You Should Feed Your Leopard Gecko

Leopard Gecko Age Frequency of Feeding
Baby (0-6 months) Every day
Juvenile (6-12 months) Every other day
Adult (12 months +) Every 3-4 days
Apr 23 2022

Baby Leopard Geckos should be fed 5-7 small crickets or mealworms every day until they reach about 4 inches. Larger food should be offered every other day until they become full grown in about 10-12 months. Adults can be fed 6-7 large crickets or mealworms 2 to 3 times a week.

Full Answer

What is the best diet for a leopard gecko?

  • What does a wild gecko leopard eat?
  • What is the Best Food for a Leopard Gecko? #1 Crickets #2 Mealworms #3 Waxworms #4 Silkworms #5 Dubia roaches #6 Locusts #7 Wild insect
  • How to supplement vitamins for leopard gecko?
  • How much does a leopard gecko eat?
  • How should Leopard gecko drink water?
  • Conclusion

How often should you feed a leopard gecko?

What To Feed Your Leopard Gecko

  • Staple Insects. Staple insects are the ones you will feed to your leopard gecko at every meal. ...
  • Insects as Treats. These insects are generally very high in fat and offer very little nutritional content. ...
  • Foods You Should Never Feed to Your Leopard Gecko. ...
  • Gut Loading Feeder Insects. ...
  • Water. ...

What fruits and vegetables can you feed your leopard gecko?

What Kinds of Fruit Do Geckos Eat?

  • Fruit-Eating Geckos. While crested geckos ( Rhacodactylus ciliatus ), day geckos ( Phelsuma spp.) and a handful of other species consume fruit, many other commonly kept species, such as leopard ...
  • Types of Fruit. Berries such as raspberries, blackberries and blueberries. ...
  • Calcium-to-Phosphorus Ratio. ...
  • Offering Fruit. ...

What fruit/veg can I Feed my leopard gecko?

Fruits That Leopard Can Geckos Eat Berries: raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, etc. Tropical fruits: pineapples, figs, papayas, etc. Pitted fruits: pears, apples, and cherries, and so on. Grapes, Melons, etc.

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Do Juvenile leopard geckos eat every day?

How often do Leopard Geckos eat? Leopard Geckos younger than one year should be fed every day. Healthy adult geckos should be fed every other day.

How do I get my juvenile leopard gecko to eat?

To take care of a leopard gecko that won't eat, make sure it has a cool area in its enclosure that's around 74 degrees Fahrenheit and a warm area that's around 90 degrees Fahrenheit since geckos might not eat if they're too hot or cold.

When should I feed my new leopard gecko?

It's easy to remember how much to feed your gecko: Offer 2 appropriately-sized bugs per 1 inch of your leopard gecko's length, or however much they can eat in 15 minutes. Juveniles should be fed daily, and young adults fed every other day/every 3 days.

What time should I feed my baby leopard gecko?

The best time of a day to feed your leopard gecko is the in the evening, when they naturally start hunting. Feed hatchling and baby leopard geckos (up to 4 months old) every day – they will eat around 4-8 crickets or 1-3 worms per feeding.

Will a leopard gecko starve itself?

A leopard gecko will not starve itself to death. It might refuse to eat when it has stored enough energy in its tail but will start eating again when that energy is used up. Leopard geckos that refuse to eat even though they are starving are usually sick or suffering from an incorrect tank setup.

How do you bond with a baby leopard gecko?

Place your hand flat in the tank and let them explore, sniff, and lick your hand. They may climb into your palm, or they may show no interest at all. Either way is fine. Just leave your hand there and let them get used to you and understand that you're not a threat.

How many wax worms should a juvenile leopard gecko eat?

You should feed between 2 and 5 wax worms per treat day. The size of the wax worm that is right for your Leopard Gecko plays a big part in portion control.

How old is a juvenile leopard gecko?

After reaching two months old, they are officially considered juveniles. At this point, most juvenile geckos are around 5 inches long and 15 to 25 grams in weight. They will remain in the juvenile growth stage from 2 months to around 7 months of age.

How big is a 3 month old leopard gecko?

Leopard Gecko Growth Chart – LengthAgeLength1 month4-5 inches2-3 months5-5.5 inches4-5 months5.5-6 inches6-7 months6-6.5 inches4 more rows•Mar 10, 2022

Is it OK to leave crickets in with my leopard gecko?

While crickets cannot seriously harm your leopard gecko, they can spread pathogens or start biting your lizard, which can cause an injury and potentially an infection. Be sure to monitor your leopard gecko's eating habits and feed it as many crickets as it can eat and remove the leftovers after that.

Will a gecko eat dead crickets?

Leopard geckos are insectivores, meaning they only eat insects, and that too, live ones. So, if you try feeding your pet a dead roach or a dead and silent cricket, they won't eat it. Their diet is really important, and you need to be careful about their eating habits to maintain their health.

How do you know if a leopard gecko is hungry?

If your leopard gecko explores his tank, goes back and forth between the warm and cool spot, and approaches the glass whenever he is hungry or sees you, he is likely really happy. If he looks bright and alert, that is even a better sign. In contrast, an unhappy leopard gecko will be really lethargic and sluggish.

Why won't My Juvenile leopard gecko eat?

The number one reason why leopard geckos stop eating is that they are too cold. Perhaps your heat bulb burned out, perhaps the heat mat stopped working, perhaps there's a draft going into the cage, or maybe you never had a heat source for your leopard gecko and now it's just gotten too cold.

What do I do if my leopard gecko won't eat?

The best way to address the loss of appetite would be to provide the proper heating and lighting in your Leopard gecko's enclosure to ensure proper metabolism and digestion. Leopard geckos are by nature, hunters, so they usually eat moving insects.

How long can a leopard gecko go without eating?

ten days to two weeksMany adult leopard geckos can go without food for ten days to two weeks because of the fat storage in their tails. It is completely normal for leopard geckos to go without eating for long periods. Unlike mammals, reptiles do not require food every day to survive, particularly during the winter.

Should I hand feed my leopard gecko?

Hand-feeding your Leopard Gecko is a positive way to build a trust relationship and work on handling. It is also necessary to aid Leopard Geckos who are sick or blind. But, hand-feeding is not as enriching as allowing your Leopard Gecko to hunt and deprives them of exercise and natural behavior.

What is the best food for a leopard gecko?

Crickets are the most popular food choice for your leopard gecko. Don’t choose crickets that are too large, don’t place too many of them in a cage, and never leave them in gecko’s vivarium for more than a day.

What do leopard geckos eat?

You can feed your leopard gecko insects and animals such as beetles, flies, grasshoppers, spiders, mealworms, crickets, small locusts, waxworms, silkworms, snails, some types of cockroaches, and that’s what they eat in the wild. In the wild, they also consume other insects that they can kill of find dead.

What kind of worms do leopard geckos eat?

Hornworms are amazing for your leopard gecko. They are quite large, so you will need less of them to make a meal. Tomato hornworms are soft and can be easily digested. You need to gut-load them before feeding to you leopard gecko.

What kind of crickets are in leopard gecko?

There are different types of crickets: Acheta, black crickets, Banded crickets. Banded crickets have a higher protein content than other two types (around 20% vs. 15%). Also, you must note the size of the crickets that you are feeding to your leopard gecko.

Why is my leopard gecko getting fat?

Your leopard gecko is becoming fat if its belly is too round and the tail becomes too wide. A plump belly will be touching the floor.

How to make a leopard gecko more active?

Of course, feeding your leopard gecko live food will make it active, increase its attention and encourage it to hunt. Your leopard gecko will be more engaged and happy if you feed it live foods more often. Live food should be prioritized, so try to offer live food at least every other day.

Can you feed a leopard gecko mealworms?

You can also offer superworms or giant mealworms to your adult leopard gecko, as an occasional treat. With live mealworms, keep them in a Kritter Keeper and gut-load them 24 hours before feeding to your leopard gecko. If feeding freeze dried mealworms, dust them with calcium supplement at every feeding.

What are the best insects to keep leopard geckos healthy?

Silkworms. Phoenix worms / calci worms. Waxworms (occasionally) Superworms / morio worms. Nutrients. Some insects (such as mealworms, and waxworms) have a really low nutritional content and lack the essential vitamins required to keep leopard geckos healthy. It is important to “gutload” the majority of insects at least 24 hours before feeding them ...

Can you feed a leopard gecko?

Leopard geckos are easy to feed, as long as you don’t mind feeding them live insects only. Here are some things you will need to know if you need to understand the basics of feeding a leopard gecko.

Do leopard geckos eat insects?

Leopard geckos will not eat any dead insects (many seem to not bother with insects unless they are wriggling and moving) and will not eat a plant-based diet. Some of the most popular insects fed to leopard geckos are: Crickets. Mealworms. Locusts.

The Best Time Of Day To Feed Your Leopard Gecko

Unlike diurnal species, which are more active during the day, leopard geckos are crepuscular reptiles.

What To Feed Your Leopard Gecko

Leopard geckos are insectivores, which means their diet is made up entirely of insects.

How Often To Add Supplements

It is crucial to add calcium and multivitamin supplements to your leopard gecko’s diet to prevent health issues.

How Much to Feed Your Leopard Gecko

There are two schools of thought when it comes to how much to feed your leopard gecko.

Feeding Supplies For Leopard Geckos

Whether you decide to feed your leo by hand or use a food dish, there are some basic supplies you will need to make mealtime easier for both you and your gecko.

What is the best food for leopard geckos?

Regular 1-inch mealworms–Tenebrio molitor, not crickets–are the best food choice for baby leopard geckos raised in this type of caging. Place 5 mealworms in the jar lid every other day. Crickets tend to jump out when the shoebox is opened, hide under the cage paper, and can aggravate resting geckos.

What is the best way to cover a gecko's floor?

Paper towel serves as the floor covering. The use of sand or other particulate substrates should be avoided until young geckos reach six inches in total length because of the risk of intestinal impaction. As a water dish, nothing works better than a plastic peanut butter or instant coffee jar lid.

How long does a leopard gecko hatch?

From the day a leopard gecko (Eublepharis macularius) hatches it’s best raised singly in a simple shoebox setup until it reaches a total length of seven inches. This type of rearing enclosure is ideal since stress is minimized by the ready availability of water, food, heat, and shelter in a small area (see photos). Heating cable or narrow heat tape are the best methods for heating shoebox rack systems.

How big do leopard geckos get?

( Typical shoebox rearing set-up allows young to grow without competition up to 6-7″ (15-17.5cm) in length. Normal size mealworms are presented in a shallow lid with Vionate supplement. Keep the water and food dishes away from heat source.)

What do leopard geckos eat?

Leopard geckos like to eat all sorts of insects. The most common insects used to feed leopard geckos are crickets, mealworms, roaches, and waxworms. Make sure the size of the food isn’t too big for your leopard gecko. Measure the distance between your leopard gecko’s eyes.

What to do if your leopard gecko is losing weight?

In the opposite scenario if your leopard gecko seems to be losing too much weight then increase the portion of food provided .

What does gut loading mean for geckos?

Gut loading means raising the bugs with a properly nutritious diet so that they can pass it on to your gecko. Don’t just use bug gel. That won’t provide enough nutrition. Try to feed the bugs different types of fruits and veggies as well.

Can you feed a leopard gecko the same thing?

Feeding your gecko the same thing over and over again will bore them out. So, use different sorts of insects for mental stimulation. Don’t forget to gut load the bugs before feeding them to your leopard gecko. Gut loading means raising the bugs with a properly nutritious diet so that they can pass it on to your gecko.

Can leopard geckos eat waxworms?

But one thing I might add is that don’t feed waxworms, pinkies, or any other fatty food too often.

Do leopard geckos need calcium?

Leopard geckos need calcium and multivitamin supplements to survive in captivity. If you don’t do this then your leopard gecko is sure to suffer from health issues . Especially young leopard geckos need plenty of supplement powder to grow up healthy.

How often do leopard geckos eat?

Leopard geckos need to eat every other day as adults and every day as juveniles and babies. They need to eat two appropriately-sized insects for every inch they are long. Check out the rest of the article for more details.

What are the most common insects that leopard geckos eat?

The most common insects with leopard geckos are crickets and mealworms . Learn more about what leopard geckos eat.

How many insects per inch for a gecko?

The rule of 2 insects per every inch is the hard and fast rule. It’s not good to overfeed your pets (more on this later). Measure the gecko from the nose to the base of the tail. Don’t measure the tail.

Why is it dangerous to feed a leopard gecko?

This is extra dangerous if the gecko has lost its tail recently because there isn’t a place to store the extra fat and calories.

Can you feed a leopard gecko?

It’s OK and good for taming a leopard gecko to feed them by hand. Keep your fingers on the end of the insect, and don’t jerk your hand away when the gecko bites at it. Quick movements may startle the reptile, and in worst cases, make it drop its tail.

Can leopard geckos eat crickets?

With young and small leopard geckos, not every common insect will work. These are often too big. Crickets are usually the best with this size of a gecko. As they get bigger, the geckos can expand their diet into other areas, including the popular dubia roach.

What do leopard geckos eat?

They have even been documented to eat scorpions, thread snakes, newborn mice (pinkies), and baby birds that are a few days old (nestlings).

How to get a leopard gecko to like new feeders?

To get your leopard gecko more accustomed to new feeder insects, dust both the familiar and unfamiliar insects together in the same bag or container. By doing so, the scent of familiar insects will rub off onto the new ones and make them less intimidating.

How to get a picky crested gecko to eat?

Here are 5 simple ways to get picky crested geckos to eat less preferred food items: Add a drop of something sweet (e.g., honey, coconut water) to stimulate appetite.

How to toughen up leopard geckos?

Toughen up leopard geckos by repeatedly exposing them to the feeder insects it has had bad feeding experiences with. Ideally, the “bad” feeder insect should be presented alongside your gecko’s other prey in the vivarium, which is a safe and familiar place for your gecko.

How to avoid geckos rejecting feeders?

To avoid having your geckos refuse feeder insects it has never rejected before, make sure to continuously offer your gecko a wide variety of insects in one feeding and not just one type per session. One of my friends in the UK, for example, makes sure that his geckos get at least 3 types of live feeders each mealtime.

What kind of worms do leopard geckos eat?

Solution. Whenever feeding a picky leopard gecko with a solid-skinned live feeder insect, such as mealworms and superworms, select a worm that has only recently finished molting its exoskeleton.

How often should I feed my gecko?

If a juvenile starts being picky after getting fed every single day of the week, reduce feedings to only 3 days per week. Many pet parents, myself included, can testify that leos typically stop becoming picky when they are fed less often.

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