CARE SHEET - General Information for Leopard Gecko
Leopard Geckos belong to the family Eublephridae, which includes all geckos with moveable eyelids. The member of the family Eublepharidae, also lack toe pads (subdigital seatae-pads of tiny, hairlike scale projections on the underside of the toes). Therefore, these lizards are not able to climb smooth, vertical surfaces. The scientific name of the leopard gecko is Eublepharis macularius (Etymology of the name: Eu = good, true; blephar = eyelid; mucularius = spotted). The leopard gecko is found in Afghanistan, northwestern India, and Pakistan. (SIZE) Adult leopard gecko can attain a maximum length just over 8 inches.
HOUSING
The most commonly sold reptile enclosures (vivaria) in the pet trade are all glass tanks with screen tops less readily available are reptile enclosures with sliding glass fronts that provide easy access to the contents of the vivarium and facilitate maintenance for display purposes, a standard 10 gallon(20 inches long) vivarium in adequate for a single leopard gecko. A standard 20 gallon vivarium (24 inches long) readily accommodates a pair or a trio (two females and one male).
HEATING ENCLOSURE
Like most reptiles in captivity, leopard geckos fare best in environments that provide a heat gradient, allowing for thermoregulatory behaviors. Cold-blooded animal like leopard gecko must have warmer and cooler areas within their enclosure in order to regulate their own temperature.
SUBSTRATES
In the wild leopard geckos can be found in the rocky areas with clay-gravel soil covered by sand in captivity, the first substrate choices of many breeders, particularly for baby leopard geckos, are newspaper and paper towels. These are inexpensive, relatively sterile, and easy to monitor and replace. There have been some reports of leopard geckos, mostly babies, ingesting sand and dying of sand impaction. for this reason, many breeders recommend that babies initially be kept in paper and later, when they have reached a length of 6 inches, be switched over to sand. I personally recommend Chinchilla sand.
FEEDING
Leopard geckos typically feed on live, moving insect prey. Before the consistent availability of commercially raised cricket, many herpetoculturists successfully primarily of mealworms. SIZE OF PREY As a general rule, food items such as insects should not be more than the length, and less than half the width, of the lizard's head. DIET SELECTION The best diet for leopard geckos consists of appropriately size, commercially raised crickets and mealworms. As part of a varied adult diet, occasionally include wax worms. WHEN TO FEED for rapid growth and good weight maintenance, many leopard geckos owners and breeders keep a mealworm filled dish with powdered supplement in the enclosure at all times. Again, this diet can be supplemented once or twice a week by offering crickets or other food items Such as mealworms and wax worms. WATER offer clean water to your leopard geckos every day using a shallow container.
SHEDING
Like other reptiles, Leopard geckos periodically shed their entire epithelial skin (outer layer of the skin). Between shed cycles, when leopard geckos replace the superficial layer of their skin, the skin of leopard geckos is in a resting stage that ends when the cells that generate the new skin begin to divide. This starts the actual shed cycle and as can be expected, the process affects the coloration of leopard geckos. As the shed cycle begins, the skin becomes duller. The skin becomes progressively dull until the underlying new skin is fully formed and the superficial old skin begins to separate from it. At this point, the gecko look like it is covered with a thin papery membrane. The old skin then starts detaching itself in sheet like sections, much like skin peeling after sunburn. Like many geckos, leopard geckos seize the peeling section in their months and consume them, possibly to ingest certain nutrients contained in the skin.
BREEDING
Leopard Gecko breeding season starts from Feb-Sep and female may lay up to 8 clutches of two eggs a clutch some time only one egg. Your pair of breeding geckos has to be in good health before you mate them, especially the female. I recommend that the female is at least 50 grams and around 1 year old. Once you are happy with your breeding pair place the female into the males tank for few hours Once mating has finished return the female back to her own tank .I place my females in to males tank at night and take them out the next morning if they live apart. As they mate the male will appear to bite the female around the head neck and tail this is normal. During one breeding season the male and female only need to be mated once. She will use sperm from her first matting stored and use them for rest of her breeding season.
EGG-LAYING and INCUBATION
The female will lay eggs between 2 to 5 weeks after the first mate. Place an empty cricket box inside the viv with half damp Vermiculate. You will notice the female climbing into this and start digging. Hopefully soon she will lay her eggs there. If you dont place such a box into the tank you may find she will lay her eggs into the water bowl. Once you notice the eggs have been laid you need to remove them ASAP into an incubator. Leopard geckos sex depends on temperature. If you incubate the eggs at 80-82F almost all of the geckos will be female, at 84-86F they will be half and half and around 88-90F they will almost all be male. 90F and above will produce a hot female which mean they are very aggressive and very hard to breed. Depending on incubation temperatures, Leopard gecko eggs will hatch between 45 to 60 days.
HATCHLING CARE
Newborn Leopard gecko usually hatch between 2 1/2" to 3 1/2" (6.5 cm to 8 cm) in length and weighing approximately 1.5 to 2.0 grams. Baby Leopard geckos will shed within 24 hours of hatching. If the baby Leopard gecko does not completely shed its skin it must be removed as soon as possible. Gently hold the gecko and thoroughly moisten the areas of dried shed skin with a spray of water. Once the skin is softened, it can be eased off with your fingers or carefully removed using tweezers. Leopard gecko hatchlings will not eat for 3-5 days after hatching. The absorbed yolk sac sustains them during this time. Hatchlings should have food available every day. Either with a dish of small mealworms or small crickets.
HYGINE
Geckos have to live in a clean environment to keep them happy healthy and disease free. I clean my geckos out ones a week by scooping all their vast and dead food and give them fresh water every day. Every 2 to 3 months I completely clean out my tanks removing all the old sand and replacing it with fresh one.
