Lillith's Leo Lovables

So, you've decided.

You can't stand the unbearable cuteness anymore.

Or perhaps it's a loved one who has fallen head-over-heels, inexplicably; but you're all for it.

You are going to make leopard geckos part of your family.

So......what do you do with it?

What does it need?

Where can I find out more?

There are literally dozens of caresheets out there on the Internet that can tell you what to do. I've tried to collect some here for you. These are the most user-friendly ones I have found:

http://www.vmsherp.com/LCKeepingLeopards.ht

http://www.leopardgecko.com/leopard-gecko-care

http://www.geckosetc.com/htm/care.htm

http://www.fallenangelgeckos.com/

(click the 'Caresheet' link on the left)

avianexoticanimalhospital.com/documents/LeopardGecko.pdf

(this one requires Adobe Acrobat or Reader)

(All sites used by permission of their respective owners)

In addition, here is our basic setup, to ease the transition for your new geckos:

• We use paper towels as our substrate, we've found this to be the most hygienic and easy-to-clean.
• We also provide at least two hides; a wet hide and a dry hide. We usually use simple gladware or butter tubs (sanitized first), but we also have mock rock structures and log hides.
• We use cocofiber, moss, vermiculite, or even damp paper towels in the wet hides, depending on the gecko. Some will prefer one hide substrate over another, they will let you know by either hanging out in there peacefully (likes it!) or digging it all up and kicking it all over their enclosure (doesn't enjoy so much; conversely, they may be enjoying it TOO much).
• Our geckos do seem to enjoy having their environment changed a little for enrichment purposes from time to time; but it is important not to change everything all at once, as this can be very stress-inducing for them.
• We feed mainly mealworms, which we raise on our own top-secret gutload and rotating fresh veggies. We also provide roaches and waxworms occasionally as treats. We will sometimes provide our breeding females with a dusted pinkie mouse to keep her healthy throughout her egg laying cycle.

• *We use the Rep-Cal supplements Herpitivite and Phosphorus-Free Calcium with D3 (mealworms provide a lot of phosphorus, and it is important to keep the calcium to phosphorus ratio between 2:1 and 3:1 for leopard geckos to prevent metabolic disorders). We will initially dust our feeders, but we also leave a pinch of each in the feeding dish; we also provide an additional capful with about a teaspoon of each supplement in the enclosure at all times. This allows the geckos to self-regulate their nutritional needs to some extent, and is most important for growing geckos (up to about 18 months of age).

• It is imperative that breeding females have this extra amount readily accessible at all times.

We hope this information and the related links are helpful. If you have any questions that aren't answered here, we will be happy to correspond with you about it: janece@lillithsleolovables.com

There are many online forums for reptile enthusiasts, we encourage you to look into them and find some that suit you. These can be very supportive and wonderful online communities.

Thank you for taking the time to research your pets' needs before purchasing. They will be grateful for it and give you gecko-loving-goodness for years to come! Thanks for considering our geckos!