Tell me everything about leopard gecko?

Question

I'm going to buy one but i have questions first. How large can they grow? How big should the tank be. Do they bite? Do they smell bad? And everything you know. Or give webside about them. Please I need help fast!!!

Answer 1

They can live their entire lives in a ten gallon tank but we all know that anything will enjoy as much space as possible. They can bite, but most are pretty social and it wont hurt. They will only smell bad if you don't take care of them as with everything else, you dont clean your hamster cage, it smells. If you don't wash your dog, it smells. You just need to clean the tank regularly. Here is a great care sheet. And the site also has a great Leopard gecko forum if you would like to become a member.

Care sheet: http://www.repticzone.com/caresheets/906.html
Forum: http://www.repticzone.com/forums/Geckos-Leopard/index.html

Answer 2

Another good site is www.reptilerooms.com. Read the forums care sheets and Q & A's. Very good info. Buy the bigger size tank, like a 20 gal if you can. 3 hides (1 moist, 2 dry) and make sure the moist and 1 dry on the warm side. You need an under tank heater for that--kept at around 90F. Use a digital indoor/outdoor thermometer with a probe to measure temps. Stick on or dial kind are very inaccurate. No lighting is necessary. A water dish and a small dish of plain calcium powder. A few fake branches to climb on. NO loose substrate on the bottom--it will cause impactions. I use non-adhesive shelf liner (no glue) as it looks nice and is easy to clean. Feed crickets (no bigger than the space between the eyes) and mealworms. The insects have to be kept correctly, and gutloaded before being used as food. You need to research insect care as well as Leo care!

Answer 3

The leopard gecko gets its common name from the adult coloration of wild specimen, which is a cream to yellow ground color with black spots or stripes. However, selective breeding has produced many color morphs, including high yellow, tangerine, striped, patternless (no spots or stripes), lavender, blizzard (which are solid white or gray), and albino (no black pigments in markings).


Patternless and Hypo Leopard GeckosThe leopard gecko is one of the few geckos that does not have pads: the visible "flat" areas on the toes, which are covered with microscopic hairs and improve the gecko's climbing abilities. Instead, the leopard gecko uses its claws for climbing.

The average size of Leopard Geckos is 6-8 inches. In captivity, some have reached 9-11 inches[1].

Leopard geckos are one of only a few gecko species (all of them members of the subfamily Eublepharidae, a small family of tropical/subtropical species found in the Americas, Africa, and Asia) that have eyelids. This helps the gecko keep its eyes clean and particle-free in its dusty environment (most geckos clean and moisten their eyes with their tongues). Many believe that this also gives the leopard gecko more personality, perhaps contributing to its popularity as a pet.

Unlike other gecko species, leopard geckos have small claws instead of adhesive toe pads, which prevents them from climbing vertically. However, their claws give extra traction on the ground and are helpful in digging.

Like all geckos, they shed their tail, in a process called caudal autotomy if frightened or disturbed. Muscles at the base of the tail constrict to snap the vertebrae, severing most of the tail. The tail distracts the predator (wiggling and writhing on the ground) as the gecko makes its escape. Although they will eventually grow a new one, the regenerated tail will differ from the original, appearing bulbous and inferior. If handled often as a baby, they may become accustomed to handling.

In its natural environment, the leopard gecko lives under rocks or in small caves to avoid temperature extremes. Like many desert dwelling species it is nocturnal. It hunts spiders and small insects. Occasionally they will hunt very small mammals.

Incubation temperatures of 78-82 degrees produce females, 82-84 degrees produce both sexes, and 84-90 produce males.

As pets, sometimes leopard geckos gradually become diurnal, especially with frequent daytime handling. It is sometimes best to keep their nocturnal habits, as they can see better in the dark. The leopard gecko's diet would normally consist of crickets and meal worms. They also enjoy eating butterworms, silkworms and at times pinkie mice (baby mice) as a variety in their diet. Waxworms are also acceptable, however due to the high fat content of the worms they are not recommended as a regular item in the gecko's diet.

Since Leopard Geckos are naturally found in the desert, it is important that their dwellings in captivity mimic the dry environment which they are used to. Leopard Geckos do NOT fare well in humid environments. For this reason, it is recommended that any source of excess moisture be avoided in their enclosure (i.e. use fake plants instead of natural plants, and do not spray the enclosure as you would for some other types of lizards). Excessive humidity can lead to respiratory infections in Leopard Geckos. Also, make sure you do not roughly handle your leopard gecko, because if you do, their tail might fall off. Once their tail has fallen off, it will take some time to grow it back. When it does grow back, it will be bigger and more bulbous than the original. *Also, make sure that if your gecko is not eating his food(especially crickets), make sure to take the crickets out after a day because they will nibble on your gecko's legs and cause excess stress.*

Leopard Geckos in captivity should be provided with a continual source of calcium, as they are quite prone to bone problems when calcium is not supplemented. A calcium powder can purchased from any pet store which sells leopard geckos. It can either be sprinkled onto their food or it can be left in a dish in their enclosure, for them to help themselves to when needed. It is also important to note that many commercial sand companies include calcium in their sand for this reason, however there are risks involved in using these sands in the enclosure. Many geckos will eat the sand in order to obtain the necessary calcium, and in doing so will damage their bodies when the sand hardens inside of their intestines. There are many cases of leopard geckos dying from sand impaction within their bodies. It is best to avoid this risk entirely, and use substrates other than sand, while also providing additional calcium supplements. Slate tiles purchased from a hardware store work very well for this.

Answer 4

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 two to three times a week 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 in six to fifteen weeks.
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.