Am I right for you?

Leopard Geckos are a beautifully coloured lizard; they have a calm temperament and make an ideal pet for reptile beginners

Where do I like to live?

• In a vivarium or terrarium; a glass tank so that the temperature can be controlled
• Always but the biggest home that you can afford for your new pet, as a baby they may seem not to need much space but once they are full size they will need a minimum of 3 foot for one Gecko
• The enclosure needs to be kept in your home in a warm room away from radiators and draughts. It should also be at a height where small children cannot open it
• It is best to get a vivarium that has lockable doors or buy an extra vivarium lock and ensure doors are closed and locked at all times to prevent escape

How do I stay healthy?

• Healthy diet; keep to a good balanced diet of varied live food
• Clean environment; clean the vivarium out every 2 weeks with a reptile friendly disinfectant
• Supplement dusts; a powdered vitamin and mineral supplement should be dusted on their live food
• Geckos shed their skin as they grow, this can be difficult in the dry conditions they are used to so to make it easier place dampened Sphagnum moss into a cave / hide out to help them
• Geckos need 10 - 12 hours of UV light so place a special reptile UV bulb in the top of the vivarium to simulate the Suns UV rays they would be used to in their natural environment
• Geckos keep their body temperature by basking and absorbing heat from the Sun; the temperature of the tank should be 24 degrees with an area for basking of 30 degrees

How do you handle me?

• Let your Leopard Gecko settle in and get used to the new surroundings before handling
• Handle them gently as they are nervous as youngsters
• Use both hands and cup them together so that they feel supported
• Do not lift them high, if they fall they can seriously hurt themselves

Never grab them by their tail as they can detach it if they feel threatened

What do I like to eat?

• A mixture of live food such as crickets, wax worms and locusts
• Make sure you vary your Gecko’s diet as much as possible as they can become very fussy and only eat one kind of food
• Feed the live food on a ‘gut loading’ supplement, this will keep the food alive for longer but will also enable the Gecko to get all the extra nutrients they need
• Tinned or dried crickets as an extra treat

Do I like company?

• Yes, however make sure that there is only one male in the tank as males together will get territorial and fight
• Remember that more than one Gecko will need a larger enclosure

Interesting facts:

• Leopard Geckos can live between 15 and 22 years
• They are nocturnal so will come out and hunt at night
• They can detach their tail when in danger or threatened by a predator; their tail will re-grow at a later stage

Shopping list:

• Vivarium
• Reptile sand
• Water dish
• Moss
• Moss box
• Food (crickets)
• Vitamin supplement
• Vivarium decoration
• Disinfectant
• A cave or hideout area
• A book
• Your Leopard Gecko