How to Make a Gecko Habitat
Leopard Geckos are without a doubt the most popular gecko house pet, but before getting one you must make sure that the aquarium mimics their natural gecko habitat. Geckos are easy to care for but there are a few rules you must follow when setting up their cages. You will want to make sure your gecko is comfortable with its surroundings to insure a long happy life.
All geckos are found in tropical areas, like rain forests and deserts and they all have a warm yearly climate. So when you prepare the cage you must have either a heat rock or heat light to keep the temperature at 85 to 90 degrees. You will also need a source of direct lighting to the cage and have it on for at least 14 hours a day.
Geckos are well known for their non movable eyelids and they also have pads on their feet that make climbing a breeze. They have no problem scaling up a wall and can even hang and walk on the ceiling. So you will want to purchase a glass enclose such as an aquarium, so that the gecko cannot escape. You will also have to put a mesh screen over the top of the tank.
In a gecko habitat, a way the geckos get food is to rob other animal’s eggs from any nest. Their ability to climb and hang on in tight conditions helps geckos retrieve food. They also eat and hunt for insects. So the aquarium will have to be at least 15 gallons. When you feed your geckos live insects, it is healthy for them to hunt these insects and be able to move around the cage and stay active.
Geckos like humidity and in their natural gecko habitat, they need it for their tender skin and to stop any dehydration. But too much humidity is not good either and can promote illness. A good way to keep a good balance is to have peat or sphagnum moss inside the aquarium.
You can place things like rocks and artificial plants to mimic the gecko habitat inside the cage also. These things give the gecko a place to hide or something to climb on and this makes them feel at ease. Geckos love to bask in the sun during the day on a big rock, so you can add one to the cage for a sitting spot. Place the rock directly under the light source.
Water must always be available to the gecko. Use a small shallow dish that sits evenly on the floor of the cage. The water should be change at least once a day and always make sure that it stays clean.
There are 65 different types of geckos but the most popular geckos that people choose as house pets are leopard geckos. They are receptive and even friendly unlike other reptiles. They are beautifully colored and are nice pets but there can be a problem when two or more males are present in the same cage.
If you have two or more males in the same aquarium at mating time, they will fight. If your aquarium or cage is 30 gallons or larger, you might be able to place the 2 geckos together. But if they feel as though there aren’t enough females to go around, they might get into that bad gecko habit of chucking and flailing their tails. Although the fight may seem life threatening, the geckos rarely fight to the death. It also does not matter if the geckos are different species. No matter how big or small the geckos are, they will attack and fight each other. It is best to just have the one male gecko per 15 gallon aquarium.