Leopard Gecko Care

2. Housing

Tanks

For an adult leopard gecko, a 20 gallon long tank is generally the best way to go, but a 10 gallon long tank can also suffice (though is not recommended). Unlike most gecko species, leopard geckos lack the ability to climb vertically against smooth surfaces, so getting them a tall tank would be of no real benefit. For babies, a 20 gallon tank can actually be disorienting and therefore stressful, so it’s better to start with a smaller tank, usually a 10 gallon long, and then upgrade to a larger one. 

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Housing Multiple Leopard Geckos

Sometimes reptile keepers like the idea of purchasing multiple leopard geckos and housing them together in the same tank. This can be okay to do, however the following combinations will very likely have disastrous results:
 

• 2 or more males*

• 1 male and 1 female*

• 1 adult and 1 baby*

The only acceptable combination, which is still a risk, is housing 2-3 females together. Leopard geckos are not naturally social creatures, so asking multiple to share a tank is unlikely to work well. If you want to get multiple leopard geckos, be prepared to house them separately, as housing them together seldom works well.

If you do manage to get 2 leopard geckos to share a tank, it will have to be larger than the standard 20 gallon long. The absolute minimum size for 2 adult leopard geckos is a 30 gallon long, though it would be optimal to provide them with even more space, such as in a 40 or even 50 gallon long tank.

* 2 male leopard geckos will  fight to the death, as they are very territorial and aren't naturally social, as previously mentioned.

* Housing 1 male and 1 female together almost definitely result in a pregnant female, so don’t attempt to permanently house this combination together.

* By housing 1 adult with 1 baby leopard gecko, it is possible that the adult will eat the baby.

3. Food and Supplementing

Food
If you have a fear of insects, a leopard gecko isn’t the pet for you. Leopard geckos are insectivores, which means that they eat insects, and insects only. There are a vast number of choices when it comes to feeder insects for leopard geckos, including but not limited to:

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• Crickets

• Dubia Roaches

• Mealworms

• Morio Worms

• Wax Worms*

Hatchlings (under 6 months): Must be fed everyday.
Juveniles (6 months - 1 year): Should be fed every other day.
Adults (1 year+): Should be fed every 3-4 days.

If you choose to use crickets as a staple, although dubia roaches or sometimes mealworms are also acceptable, then you should offer 5-8 crickets per feeding. Because babies require smaller feeder insects than juveniles and adults, 5-8 crickets serves as a general guideline for leopard geckos of all ages.

If you choose dubia roaches or mealworms as a staple, please do some more research to find out what the right amount is per feeding, per age.

* Wax Worms should only be offered to your gecko on occasion (as they are both addicting and high in fat), and should not be treated as a staple diet.

Water
Additionally, you must provide your gecko with a water source, this ideally being in a shallow water dish. This should be changed often, daily if possible, and whenever it appears to have become dirty.

Supplementing
Your leopard gecko MUST receive supplements with his or her food. Some people feel that they don’t need to provide supplements for their gecko as they are unimportant, however this belief is false and incredibly harmful to the well-being of any leopard gecko. The following supplements must be provided:

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• Calcium

• Multivitamin with D3*

Both calcium and multivitamin must be dusted over feeder insects before a feeding, in an alternating pattern. For example, if you’re feeding a hatchling leopard gecko, you should dust its feeders in calcium 5 times per week, and in multivitamin 2 times per week. By dusting, I mean that before putting feeders into your gecko’s tank, you shake them in a plastic bag containing either calcium or multivitamin powder, depending on the day.

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If you do not provide a multivitamin and D3 supplement, your gecko will develop Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD), a crippling disease that causes a leopard gecko’s bones to permanently contort by becoming soft and spongy.

You must also provide some calcium to be inside the tank at all times, so that your gecko can lick some up whenever it feels as though it may need some, as receiving it only through dusted feeder insects will not be sufficient enough. I use a clean cap from a sports drink, and put a small amount of calcium powder inside of it.

A helpful video, which explains everything to do with feeding and supplementing, plus provides an easy-to-follow schedule, can be found here.

*An alternative to using a D3 supplement is using a UVB bulb. This will allow your gecko to self-regulate how much D3 it gets, as some leopard geckos will lay under it and produce their own D3, rather than receiving it externally. This doesn’t necessarily work for all leopard geckos, and I recommend if you’re interested in using this method that you do some more research before committing.

4. Feeding the Feeders

Something that many first-time reptile owners seem to forget is that in order to give your reptile the maximum amount of nutrition, its feeder insects must be fed as well. For most feeders, fruits and vegetables will suffice as a food source, in conjunction with a source of water, such as water crystals, also known as bug gel.

It’s important to remember that the only purpose of water crystals is to hydrate your feeders, which otherwise has no nutritional value, and will therefore not suffice as a food source.

5. Heating

Heating Lamps vs Heating Pads

Chain pet store staff will tell you that using a heating lamp is what you should use for your leopard gecko, however this is not the case. Because leopard geckos are crepuscular, their eyes are made to operate under low light levels. The bright light produced by a heating lamp can be harmful to these sensitive eyes.

Additionally, leopard geckos don’t absorb heat through their backs, for example; as bearded dragons do. Leopard geckos absorb heat through their bellies, so not only will a heating lamp harm your gecko’s eyes, but the lamp won’t be serving its intended purpose: to keep your gecko warm during the day.

Instead of a heating lamp, use a heating pad. This goes inside or underneath your gecko’s tank, but should only cover 1/3 to 1/2 of the base. This is so that a heat gradient is created in the tank, which gives your gecko the option to be either warm or cool whenever it pleases.
 

Thermostats and Temperatures
If your heating pad doesn’t already come with one built in, you’ll also be needing to purchase a thermostat. Please, please, PLEASE do not assume that you can opt out of this. A thermostat is vital to ensuring that the heating pad stays at the right temperature, and doesn’t burn your gecko.

Most heating pads that don’t come pre-equipped with a thermostat will become too hot for your gecko to handle at length, so you must have some way to control the temperature. During the daytime, the hot side should be somewhere between 31-34°C (88-93°F), whereas the cold side should be okay at room temperature (between 24-28°C or 75-82°F).

During the nighttime, the temperature shouldn’t drop below 17°C (63°F), so try to keep the temperature somewhere between 19-23°C (66-73°F). During the winter, you may have to keep your heating pad operating for longer into the night, or lower the temperature and keep it on all night, depending on how cold it gets where you live.