What to Feed Your Gecko
- Crickets: These critters will form the backbone of most pet gecko diets. That’s not because they’re the healthiest—it’s...
- Mealworms: Mealworms are another main staple for leopard geckos, though they might be too large for some house geckos.
- Waxworms and Superworms: These insects are very rich. Use them as special treats and only offer them once a...
- Mostly insectivorous – feed a variety of prey items such as crickets, mealworms, superworms, phoenix worms, flies, roaches, etc., can eat an occasional pinkie mouse.
- Prey insects should be “gut loaded” with a nutritious diet for at least 12 hours prior to feeding to your gecko.
What vegetable and fruit can you feed your gecko?
What Geckos eat fruits and vegetables? Papaya, figs and raspberries have excellent calcium-to-phosphorus ratios, so they are preferred by most geckos. Although geckos may enjoy banana, peach, nectarine or cantaloupe, and although these foods are nontoxic, they have very poor calcium-to-phosphorus ratios.
What is the best baby food to feed a gecko?
What Do Baby Geckos Eat?
- Insect foods for baby geckos. Whether or not they supplement their diets with plant products, most baby geckos eagerly consume insects and other small arthropods.
- Plant-based foods for baby geckos. ...
- Baby food and commercial products. ...
- Safe food practices. ...
- Gut loading insects. ...
How often should I Feed my 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 is the best gecko for beginners?
Top 20 Best Pet Lizards For Beginners
- Bearded Dragon. The Bearded Dragon is an all-around popular, outgoing, and easy-to-care-for lizard. ...
- Leopard Gecko. Leopard Geckos are very popular and are widely known for being a great pet for beginner herpetologists.
- Crested Gecko. ...
- Blue-Tongue Skink. ...
- Green Anole. ...
- Argentine Black and White Tegu. ...
- Uromastyx. ...
- African Fat-Tailed Gecko. ...
- Chinese Water Dragon. ...
Do geckos eat crickets?
In fact, for most geckos, that’s all they eat. Even pelleted food probably won’t satiate, and your new friend most likely wants to hunt down his own crickets, too. That means you’ll need to be prepared to buy live insects for feeding, so make peace with that part before you dive in. Options include: Crickets. Worms.
Can geckos eat lettuce?
But here’s where it gets tricky: Most pet geckos cannot eat anything that you like to eat ( unless you enjoy crunchy insects). In fact, even the fruit or lettuce other lizards snack on will seriously harm or kill your leo. They simply cannot digest it because they lack the chemicals to do so in their little tummies.
Do geckos need calcium?
Make sure they chow down on it, though they almost always do. On top of this, geckos need calcium in large supply. Some of that will come from the gut loading or the bugs themselves, but we also recommend calcium powder. You can find this at any pet store and will need to dust it on their prey before they go hunting.
What do geckos eat?
Waxworms. Crickets and mealworms are usually the staple diets of geckos with the superworms and waxworms being more of a treat. Some gecko species do eat fruit and they are often given a formulated diet to meet their specific nutritional needs.
What to look for in a wild-caught gecko?
Look for a gecko that has clear eyes, skin without dry patches, all its fingers, toes, and its tail, as well as a healthy appetite.
How humid should a gecko enclosure be?
Humidity in a gecko's enclosure should be kept between 70 and 80 percent. Misting the enclosure with water is the most common method of achieving this percentage but providing a large water bowl will also help. A hygrometer can be used to measure how humid a gecko enclosure is.
What are the health problems of a gecko?
Common Gecko Health Problems. Geckos are not immune to health problems. Some of the most commonly seen ailments include: Stomatitis - Also called mouth rot, stomatitis is as gross as it sounds and needs to be treated as early as possible.
How much space do geckos need?
Most geckos only require a 10 or 20 gallon aquarium since they are small reptiles but larger species will need more space. To line your gecko's cage, use a substrate such as coconut husk or orchid bark, both of which retain moisture and will not be harmful to your gecko if ingested in small amounts.
How long do geckos live?
The geckos that are most often kept as pets are usually under a foot long and have lifespans between 10 and 20 years. Because of their small size and long lifespan, geckos have become very popular pets but their care can still vary some between species.
What is a leopard gecko?
Leopard geckos are great beginner pet reptiles. David A. Northcott / Getty Images. Geckos are usually small to medium sized lizards that are native to the warmer parts of the world. There are over 1,600 different species of geckos but not all of them are commonly kept as pets. The geckos that are most often kept as pets are usually ...
Gecko Backgrounder
Geckos are small lizards that you can find in warm climates worldwide. Most prefer temperatures between 72 and 78 degrees Fahrenheit, and some can grow to 24 inches or more, while others stay small and will be less than 1 inch long fully grown. In total, there are more than 1,500 species of gecko.
What Do Geckos Eat in The Wild?
No matter what species of gecko you have, your pet is an insectivore. In the wild, these reptiles will eat nearly any insect they can find, and their diet will primarily depend on what insects exist in the same part of the world as your gecko’s natural environment.
What Do Geckos Eat in Captivity?
Your gecko will likely eat mainly crickets with some mealworms and super worms thrown in for variety in captivity. Crickets are easy to find at your local pet store and are usually inexpensive. You can also raise them in the garage or basement to maintain a large supply, but they are quite noisy and smell bad.
How Much Should I Feed My Gecko?
The feeding amount will depend largely on the size and type of gecko you have, but most popular breeds will eat 5–10 gut-loaded and supplement-dusted crickets every other day, while baby geckos can eat up to 20 small crickets each day as they are developing.
What to Avoid
Avoid feeding food that is too large for your cricket to eat and only give fatty insects like the waxworm to your pet as an occasional treat or coax it into eating its food. While it may be tempting to feed your pet insects that you catch around the house, doing so can transfer dangerous parasites and bacteria to your pet that can make it sick.
Summary
While geckos eat a wide variety of insects in the wild, they will primarily eat crickets in captivity. Other foods like mealworms and super worms can help add variety to your pet’s diet but are often sold only in a freeze-dried state, and we recommend serving live food, when possible, to keep your pet active.
What Do Geckos Eat?
Why Do You Need to Gut-Load?
- Okay, so you’ve purchased some crickets, worms, roaches, and flies, for starters. Now what? As his parent, one of your tricky jobs includes getting your gecko the right nutrients, and, unfortunately, you will need to add a little something to his meal to do so. In the wild, bugs eat practically constantly and therefore contain all the needed vitamins in their bodies when they ar…
How Do You Feed them?
- If you bring home a baby or juvie, you’ll start by feeding him every day. Since many geckos are nocturnal (the day gecko being an obvious exception), they prefer a nighttime meal. You’ll want to get into the habit of feeding him at about the same time every evening. Once your pet gets a little bigger, you’ll switch to about every other day. And finally, at a year, you’ll cut it down to three tim…
Description
Types
Diagnosis
- If you want a pet gecko, it's best to acquire a captive-bred one from a reputable breeder. If you take in a wild-caught gecko you won't know what diseases or ailments it may be carrying. Look for a gecko that has clear eyes, skin without dry patches, all its fingers, toes, and its tail, as well as a healthy appetite.
Behavior
- Even though there are many kinds of geckos, some of them have similar temperaments and exhibit similar behaviors. For the most part, geckos are pleasant, docile pets but most of them prefer not to be handled by humans too frequently as it can be stressful for them.
Management
- Care requirements will vary some from species to species but for the most part, geckos need to be kept in enclosures that have branches available for climbing, a water bowl, a hiding place, and secure lids. Geckos can escape through small holes so an aquarium with a tight fitting lid is recommended for housing geckos. Most geckos only require a 10 or 20 gallon aquarium since t…
Risks
- To line your gecko's cage, use a substrate such as coconut husk or orchid bark, both of which retain moisture and will not be harmful to your gecko if ingested in small amounts. Paper towels and newspaper can also be used but some concerns with the bleaching and dying of these paper products lead reptile owners to more natural options.
Climate
- The ideal temperature range for most geckos is between 70 and 90 degrees but some require higher basking temperature areas into the 100's. These high temperatures are achieved through the use of heat lights and heating pads. A proper temperature gradient should be provided in the appropriate temperature range for the specific species of gecko you are caring for. This typicall…
Use
- Humidity in a gecko's enclosure should be kept between 70 and 80 percent. Misting the enclosure with water is the most common method of achieving this percentage but providing a large water bowl will also help. A hygrometer can be used to measure how humid a gecko enclosure is.
Diet
- Most geckos do not eat plants or vegetables so live insects are something you must be comfortable with if you want to have a gecko. There are several insect options and some are preferred by different gecko species over the others. The most commonly fed types of insects are: Crickets and mealworms are usually the staple diets of geckos with the sup...