LEOPARD GECKO HABITAT

Preparing Your Leopard Gecko Habitat

Caring for a leopard gecko seems to be easy and simple. But there is something important that you certainly have to attend to, that is the leopard gecko’s habitat. You probably know that geckos are desert reptiles. And it would be very logical that you should prepare a habitat that resembles the native desert of this reptile, where it can live healthy, safe and feel like a comfortable home

So, how does the gecko native desert look like? Do not imagine that the desert of a gecko is a sand desert. As a matter of fact the desert of Afghanistan, Pakistan or India are dry and rocky deserts, cold at night and warm during daylights. Like almost every desert, it has very short supply of vegetation and with minimal rainfall.

Having this picture in your mind, that is how you are going to set up the right habitat for your gecko. You are going to set up an enclosure, or cage or terrarium, whatever you like to call it, which should be suitable for your gecko to do its daily activities, which is: hiding, climbing, moving around and shedding. Let us look at some aspects of a habitat that meet the requirements.

Enclosure. This is the place where your gecko will be kept. It should be long and shallow, with a minimum size of 10 gallons just for one gecko. Adjust this size if you care for multiple geckos; 15 gallons for a pair, 20 gallons for two pairs and so on. Avoid wire enclosures, use the glass cage instead. Most geckos are not able to climb glass, thus avoiding them to escape or get hurt. However, the cage lid should be made of wire net to provide good ventilation and sufficient light.

Substrates. These are materials that you will use in the bottom of your terrarium. Use substrates that are non-irritating and non-abrasive, since geckos have sensitive skin. Other requirements for a good substrate: easy to clean and replace, and does not create dust of any type. Suggested substrates are artificial grass, newspapers and paper toweling. Sand should be used with caution since sand may cause some problems. Materials to avoid: pine, cedar, gravel, hardwood chips, sawdust, cat litter and corncob bedding.

Landscaping. The objective of landscaping is to provide the gecko with a natural environment. This includes putting rocks and logs where your gecko can hide or climb. Plants, live or artificial, can be used to create more hiding places. Use living plants carefully, since some maybe poisonous to your gecko. It is advisable to ask an expert or veterinarian about which safe plant to use.

Temperature. The body temperature of your gecko depends on its environment, because a gecko is not able to produce its own body temperature. It is important to provide your gecko with extra heat sources in the basking areas. If necessary you can use an under tank heater and set it at 80º – 85ºF at daytime and around 70ºF during night time. Use a thermometer to monitor the temperature.

You should provide different temperature gradients outside the basking area. This is to make it possible for your gecko to choose the desired body temperature or what is called by thermoregulation. If it needs to warm up is body temperature it will move to the warmer area and vice versa.

Light. In summer, geckos need to stay about 14 hours in daylight and 10 hours of darkness. While in winter, they are used to 12 hours daylight and darkness respectively. You can set timing with the help of an automatic timer. Remember that geckos are nocturnal creatures and do not like bright light, especially if they are exposed to white light there is a great possibility that they become tensed.

Make use of the black heat lamps and red lamps, and avoid the UV lamps. Make also sure that you place the lamps outside the enclosure and in such manner that there are some dark spots for your gecko to hide.

Humidity. This is also an important requirement, since high humidity will make your gecko more susceptible to diseases. The ideal humidity for a healthy gecko is at the level of less than 40%, which will prevent possible dehydration and facilitate proper shedding. To monitor humidity you can use a hygrometer.

Cleaning. This is a must. Several things can be done on a daily and weekly basis to maintain a healthy leopard gecko habitat. Your daily cleaning task should include removing waste, remains, dead insects and shed skin. Remove and clean all objects that are contaminated with the gecko’s feces. Water bowls should be cleaned and disinfected. Remove and replace dirty substrate

Your weekly task should include cleaning and disinfecting the whole enclosure completely, including its decorations, feeding items, water bowls as well as to replace dirty substrate. When doing this, avoid using cleaners that can be poisonous to your gecko e.g. pine scent and phenols.

Water. Your gecko needs continuous clean water supply. Water should be presented in a flat and shallow bowl and should be kept clean by changing it every day. Even if you find something spoiling the water, like feces or drowned insects or feeder you should immediately replace it with clean water. Using deep bowls will make it difficult for your gecko to reach the water, and at the same time will put your gecko into the danger of drowning.