Leopard gecko care ~ how to create the perfect leopard gecko habitat

Leopard geckos are known to be one of the easiest reptile pets to care for. That being said, it is still important to set up a proper leopard gecko habitat. Our little gecko pets require special housing if you want to keep the happy and healthy.

The following guidelines will help you build a decent leopard gecko habitat for healthy and safe lizard living.


LEOPARD GECKO HABITAT: A GLASS TERRARIUM

Plastic or glass terrariums offer the best type of leopard gecko housing. A terrarium simply means a container that simulates or replicates the natural habitat of your reptile pet. Glass is better than plastic, but both are fine.

Ideal terrariums are shallow and long. The smallest recommended size for a single leopard gecko is ten gallons.

What are the dimensions of a ten gallon fish tank or terrarium? In inches, that's usually 20" (width) x 12" (height) x 10" (depth). In centimetres, that's approximately 51cm x 31cm x 25cm

Two lizards will need a fifteen gallon tank and three to four leopard geckos will require about a twenty-gallon tank. I just did a quick ebay search and there's lots available. Love ebay!

Wire cages aren't a good idea. Unlike other geckos (the tree dwelling types), leopard geckos don't have those sticky pads on their feet and so they can't crawl up glass very easily and therefore they can't escape.

Make sure they can breathe though: the terrarium should have a wire mesh cover at the top for fresh air and circulation and to prevent escapes.


TERRARIUM TEMPERATURE


Leopard Geckos are ectothermic or cold blooded so they are not able to generate enough of their own body heat. Thus they require additional, external sources of heat. Your glass terrarium should be heated to 80 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit (26 to 30 degrees centigrade) during daytime with a basking spot of around 88 to 90 degree Fahrenheit (31 degrees to 32 degrees). Make sure there's a cooler spot too of around 70F (21C) And at night time, keep to around 70 degrees F (21c). You'll need a thermometer to check on this.


FURNITURE, LANDSCAPING AND PLANTS


This is where the fun begins! Now you can get creative and create an environment that simulates your gecko pets' natural home. I've seen some amazing constructions.

The more things for your leopard gecko to climb over and explore, the more motivation for him to move around. Although 'blinging' up your leopard gecko terrarium might seem to be the fun bit, it's also a key part of good leopard gecko care too.

Logs, rocks will make a natural living area and give him the areas for climbing and exercise. Artificial or live plants can also give your gecko more hiding spots and much natural feel, though you don't really need them. If you want to install a live plant, select them carefully as some plants can be poisonous to reptiles. Dry cactus skeletons work well.

Have a basking area (like a big rock) and a hiding area (to cool off). A basking area could be a piece of wood like a dry branch or a rock. There should be one basking area per gecko.

For the hiding spot, you can use an old cardboard box, inverted pots of clay, overlapping rocks or portions of curved barks. Like the basking area, if you have more geckos you should also have more hiding spots.


CLEANING YOUR TERRARIUM


Maintaining good hygiene is another key part of leopard gecko care. You should change the water every day and look around for any uneaten insects, mould or stagnant water pools and any other dirt. It shouldn't take more than 5-10 minutes to have a quick daily inspection. Then about once a week, have a more thorough clean out: change the substrate (floor covering), clean all around the terrarium and disinfect the water bowls. Remember that strong disinfectants and bleach can be very harmful to your leopard gecko, so take care to fully rinse every thing off with water.


There's so much more to say about leopard gecko care and creating the perfect leopard gecko habitat. I'll write more about it soon, but the key thing is to keep your terrarium clean, try to mimic a gecko's native environment (minus the hazards!!) and most of all, have fun with it! There is work to be done when you have a leopard gecko pet, but after a bit of practice it doesn't take long to clean out the terrarium and it can even be fun if you rope in one of the family or a friend! It can become your regular ritual. I've seen some very creative, stunning terrariums, so it's also a chance to exercise those creative juices!

If you're looking for a starting place to start designing a cool vivarium, here's my choice as the
Best Book On Vivarium Designs


Here's to your leopard gecko terrarium success!
GGG

What should I feed my leopard gecko?

What should I feed my Gecko?

Leopard Geckos eats insects. The most common insects available commercially are crickets, mealworms, super worms, wax worms and silk worms. If you use crickets and mealworms as the primary food and wax worms as treats, you should have a happy Gecko.


Crickets

Crickets are a good source of food and nutrition in your Leopard Gecko’s diet. You should “gut load” your crickets before feeding them to your Gecko. “Gut loading” is making sure the crickets are well fed. This way they pass the maximum amount of nutrients to your Gecko. You can feed the crickets’ commercial cricket food and liquid or just use a piece of potato and some oats. Crickets are very resourceful and are sometimes difficult for the Gecko to catch. If this is the case, you may have to remove the rear jumping legs of the cricket. It is always a good idea to leave a small piece of potato, carrot, or apple for the crickets to eat. The food will also draw out the crickets and make them easier to catch.


Mealworms and wax worms

Mealworms are another good food source for your Gecko. Feeding your Gecko mealworms is also a much easier task since they can be placed in a bowl. The bowl must be smooth to prevent escape. This way the mealworms are available whenever your Gecko is hungry. Leopard Geckos likes wax worms, but the worms are too fatty to be a part of the main diet. Wax worms makes an excellent treat and are a good way to fatten up a female after she has laid eggs.

Supplementing the diet

Vitamin and mineral supplements are an important part of your Leopard Gecko’s diet. Calcium is the most important mineral and should be available to your Gecko at all times by placing a dish with calcium powder in the cage. The feeder insects should also be coated with calcium powder prior to feeding. For adult Geckos coat the insects 1 to 2 times per week. For babies, juveniles, and breeding females coat the insects daily. Vitamins are also a necessary part of the gecko diet, but should be used sparingly and not on the same day as calcium. Feeder insects should be coated with vitamins once every 7 to 10 days. To coat the insects place them in a bag or cup with the vitamin or mineral powder. Shake the container around until all the insects are dusted with powder.

Geckos need water

Your Leopard Gecko needs water so keep a shallow dish with water in the cage. Water dishes that are too deep tend to trap and drown crickets, wasting the insect and fouling the water. It is best to use a dish that is shallow in order to give the insect a better chance of escape. You should clean the dish every few day to help prevent bacteria and fungus from growing.

Hope you've enjoyed these feeding tips!

As always...here's to your leopard gecko care success!!

Creating the proper habitat for your leopard gecko

How to create a proper habitat for your Gecko

Leopard Geckos are the easiest pets to care for. But, it is important to set up properly its habitat.

An ideal vivarium for a Leopard Gecko is from 10-15 gallon capacity. It is not ideal to use wire cages. They must live in vivarium that is made of glass (for their security and to avoid losing them). But unlike other Geckos, Leopard Geckos can’t climb in glass. However, its vivarium must have a wire mesh cover to give proper exposure to air and allows light to go through.

The things that you place inside the cage of your leopard gecko will facilitate in making his environment as natural as possible. Items like logs, rocks will make a normal living area and give them the climbing space areas for exercise. Artificial or live plants can also help in giving your Gecko more hiding spots and a much natural feel. If you want to utilize a live plant, select them carefully as some plants can be poisonous to reptiles.

You have to remember three things in making a leopard gecko habitat. It must be good for activity, basking and hiding. Activity spots must be an open area where the Gecko can exercise, climb and simply move around freely. While for the basking area, it must be a smooth or flat wood or rock underneath a light. And it should be one area for each Gecko. Therefore if you have more Geckos, you must provide them with a bigger/wider basking area .

For the hiding spot, these can consist of commercial boxes, inverted pots of clay, overlapping rocks or portions of curved barks. Like the basking area, if you have more Geckos you must also have more hiding spots.

Leopard Geckos are known to be ectothermic which means that they are not able to make their own body heat thus they require additional sources of heat. The vivarium of your Gecko must be about 80 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit during daytime and the basking spot must be about 88 to 90 degree Fahrenheit. At night, the temperature must be 70 degrees.

If you are unsure of your vivariums temperature use a thermometer (for a more accurate reading of temperature).

Lastly, it is important that you maintain your vivarium clean. It is necessary that you eliminate the debris, waste, shed skin and dead feeder insects. You also have to clean the objects that have fecal substance in them. Disinfect and clean the water bowls as often as you can.