Gecko help for total newbie.

[Kelly1972]

Hello everyone.

I'm on here in the hope that you guys can give some very basic advice on caring for gecko's please.

A friend of mine has been landed with two gecko's due to previous owner neglecting them. However, she has no idea how much to feed them, or how often. Previous owner told her to just put 15-20 crickets in every two weeks and that's it.

Can you please advise on this? I know that she wants to give them the care they deserve.

Many thanks in advance

 

[The Snark]

Going by the geckos around here during termite swarming time, something less than fed until they start falling off the walls when they try to run.
Need some experienced keepers here but I'd say, keep that tail slightly plump and no more. Gecks are reptilian pigs and will eat themselves into a shortened life span.

 

[truecreature]

What species are they? There are quite a few care sheets you can find through Google

 

[Mastigoproctus]

Yeah a species is kinda a must know considering the vast variations in care requirements between different geckos.

 

[dragonfire1577]

I keep a bunch of gecko species if I knew what species you have I could definitely cover every aspect of care.

 

[Kelly1972]

Oh sorry! I didn't realise I'd not stated their species. They are leopard gecko's and are 5yrs old.
I've already googled care sheets but if they're anything like the spider care sheets that are out there, they'll be totally wrong! I preferred to get some advice off people who own them, hence this post.

I appreciate your comments. Thank you so much.

 

[viper69]

I've owned Lep gex. What would you specifically like to know?

I read the feeding, and I have never fed mine that way. I fed mine whenever they are hungry! Depending upon their size and the gex's size too, ~3-8 crickets every other day. If they don't eat I remove them.

As they are nocturnal it's believed they do not need calcium dusted crix. However I would always supplement my gex, esp if growing, with vitamin dusted crix once a week.

What you want to see in a healthy lep gex is FAT tail. They store fat reserves in their tail. A lep gex w/out a large tail is underfed.

They are some of the best lizards!

 

[Kelly1972]

Thanks for your comments. I'll pass it all onto my friend and hopefully she'll be able to better care for the gecko's she's inherited!

 

[Najakeeper]

As they are nocturnal it's believed they do not need calcium dusted crix. However I would always supplement my gex, esp if growing, with vitamin dusted crix once a week.

Mate, nocturnal animals need calcium as well. They "most likely" do not need UVB light as they don't go out during daytime. So yeah, I would include calcium and vita powders almost every feeding.

Also, one thing leos is that during shedding, they can loose circulation in their toes pretty easily so definitely include a humid hide with some moss.

 

[viper69]

Mate, nocturnal animals need calcium as well. They "most likely" do not need UVB light as they don't go out during daytime. So yeah, I would include calcium and vita powders almost every feeding.

Also, one thing leos is that during shedding, they can loose circulation in their toes pretty easily so definitely include a humid hide with some moss.

You know, when I typed that, I thought it looked wrong. Then I went to my feeding notes from over 10 years ago and was about to correct the change when life took over.

That is correct on the calcium powder need, good catch! Also true on the toes, but didn't mention it because the OP didn't ask.

To the OP this is calcium powder I used in the above top left, it contains Vit D3, warning there is another product by this company which doesn't contain D3. It's important you get the one that looks like this picture. It will last "forever".

For vitamins I used the same company's product w/a blue label called Herptivite. These have been around for eons this product so I've always used this one.

There are other products but I cannot speak to them, unless it's Sticky Tongue Farms. Great product for chams.

 

[eminart]

We have a trio of leopard geckos. We keep meal worms in a dish for them at all times, and throw in some dubia roaches 2-3 times a week. Basically, make sure their tails stay nice and fat. Our females eat like pigs, presumably because they're producing eggs. The male seems to require less food to stay fat. And as others mentioned, they do need calcium supplements.

 

[Kelly1972]

Thanks everyone. Appreciate your comments.