Hi, in this edition of leopard gecko advice. Pet Engineers interviews Rebecca, the owner of the Leopard Gecko YouTube Channel. Let’s begin.
Can you give us a short introduction about yourself?
My name is Rebecca, but I’m commonly known as ‘Leopard Gecko Talk’ or simply, ‘Leopard Gecko’ on Youtube.
I have owned leopard geckos for the past 16 years, and have been running a channel dedicated to their care for the past 10 years.
What’s the most important piece of advice when it comes to caring for reptiles, to be specific leopard geckos?
I would say the most important thing you should know about caring for leopard geckos, or reptiles in general, is how important dusting feeder insects with supplements is.
Many people see the word ‘supplements’ and feel the items are just optional add-ons, however, these powders are essential to keeping your animal healthy.
When I first started my channel I’d see so many poor leopard geckos suffering from MBD due to a lack of essential vitamin C and D3, thankfully I am seeing less and less of this now.
But we must also be aware of what all the other vitamins and minerals do to the body and why it is important we provide them.
Without this understanding, you can have the best setup in the world, but your animal with not thrive and could suffer from easily preventable illnesses and diseases.
What’s the first thing to do when I get a new leopard gecko?
Prior to getting your gecko, make sure you have everything set up, the tank is complete, the heating and lighting are set and everything is working correctly.
This makes things a lot easier when you first bring home your leopard gecko, as you can simply add them to the tank and leave them to decompress and settle in.
The first few days, sometimes weeks can be quite stressful on these animals as they adapt to their new environment.
What do leopard geckos need when it comes to making a habitat for them?
Firstly, a leopard gecko would need a heat source that is connected to a thermostat to ensure the correct temperature is being provided.
Lighting is optional, though I would recommend using a ShadeDweller 7% UVB lamp to not only help them distinguish day from night but also to allow them to produce their own vitamin D.
I prefer to provide my geckos with a loose substrate and find EarthMix Arid to be a great option (sadly this is not available in the US).
Then you want to add at least 3 hides, one hot, one cold (room temperature) and one as a shedding hide.
There should be a temperature and light gradient throughout the tank, so one end is bright and warm, and the other is shaded and cooler, so the animal can thermoregulate.
How big should a leopard gecko’s habitat be?
For many years I kept my leopard geckos in 2ft long vivariums, which were fine, however, in recent years I have been upgrading to 3ft long vivariums (60 and 80 gallons) and have found these to be excellent sizes for leopard geckos.
I strongly believe that a 10-gallon tank, which is often recommended for leopard geckos, is far too small for anything other than a few-week-old hatchling.
So my leopard gecko is underweight and not eating what do I do?
It’s always best to see an exotics vet if you’re worried about your gecko’s health as many sinister things such as parasites and impaction can cause your gecko to stop eating and rapidly lose weight.
There are a few things you can check at home to ensure you are providing the correct care for your animal, as certain problems with their diet, nutrition and environment can cause them to lose their appetite.
Firstly, you want to make sure your feeder insects are gut-loaded prior to being fed to your gecko, they must then be dusted with the appropriate supplements when fed to your gecko, you’ll also want to check that the gecko is hydrated and that its tank is heated correctly.
Another cause of appetite- and weight loss is ovulation. I originally started to document this on my channel quite a few years ago as I couldn’t find anything on the internet or in books about this phenomenon.
Every spring and summer, I observed my female geckos going off of their food for long periods of time and gradually losing weight. Usually, these periods ended once an infertile egg was either laid or reabsorbed.
Since publishing my observations many other keepers have reached out to me to let me know they have observed a similar thing. This doesn’t occur with every gecko, but it could occur if you have an adult female.
Are commercially prepared leopard gecko diets good?
No. You can’t beat live food, it provides both mental and physical enrichment. There are alternatives that can be very helpful to a gecko that is recovering from an illness, in need of weight gain but struggling to eat/catch live food, these diets include Arcadia Reptile’s InsectiGold and Repashy’s Grub Pie.
When should you take your leopard gecko to the vet?
If you’re ever worried about your gecko’s health you should get them checked by a vet. Unlike pets such as dogs and cats, you don’t have to take them for yearly checkups, but if you’d feel more comfortable checking in with a vet frequently that is also fine.
How to know if my leopard gecko is healthy?
Generally, a healthy leopard gecko will have a plump tail, bright eyes and healthy-looking skin.
If a gecko has spongey or lumpy bones, a weak jaw, and marks around its vent that suggest it may have diarrhea, then these are indicators that the gecko needs to see a vet.
What final piece of advice can you give us on leopard geckos?
Leopard geckos are wonderful pets to keep, however, please keep in mind that they are crepuscular and therefore are best left to rest during the day, which isn’t always ideal for every reptile keeper.
They aren’t going to play like cats or dogs, and they aren’t as active as rabbits and guinea pigs, but with the correct research and care, you can have many years with a placid, scaly friend.
IG: @ leopardgeckoyoutube
FB: @ OfficiallyLeopardGecko
YT: www.youtube.com/leopardgeckotalk
We also have a little etsy shop where we make and sell items for geckos, frogs, inverts, etc www.etsy.com/shop/thebeardedshrimp
