Crested Gecko Care/Health/Breeding etc.

**JessJohnson87** · 02-17-2016, 06:08 PM

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I have seen too many posts as of recent, between forums and social media, of crested geckos with signs of health issues when it's almost too late. I do not mean this post to be hateful or bashing other, but informative from one keeper to another. Keeping these animals is not very hard, but maintaining the environment they live seems to be the popular trend that I'm noticing. Once established, these guys can live for around 15 years. They come from a naturally humid environment, so dehydration can happen very easily. I also see a trend of using food that is not a complete diet. Pangea, Repashy, Black Panther Zoological are all complete diets that should be fed to your crested gecko with occasional insects (avoid mealworms and superworms, they are too hard for them to digest). There are amazing care sheets available for these guys that will answer all questions you have regarding their health and well being. I will link a couple of them below:
Crested geckos care sheet (Correlophus ciliatus) the basics - Contributed by GU's Thorrshamri
Crested Gecko Care Sheet & Guide | moonvalleyreptiles.com -Courtesy of Moon Valley Reptiles
JB's Crested Gecko Info - Courtesy of JB's Cresties.

On to breeding. I am not a breeder, but there are a few on this forum, and they cannot stress enough that males and females need to be of a certain weight before they can breed. Anything under 35 grams cannot be bred. This can cause health issues and unnecessary stress on the animals. Owning a male crested gecko, I have noticed how much of a horn dog he is just being alone! Add a female that is underweight or not yet ready to breed and this will cause too much stress for her. I'm also going to advise that if you want to breed, do your homework! These are little lives you are going to take into your care and have to find homes for. There are plenty of geckos out there that need homes, so if you don't plan on keeping the babies, please don't breed (not trying to sound like a Sarah Mclauclan SPCA commercial or PETA). If you are ever in need of a qualified reptile vet, this is the link you should use: ARAV

I love these animals and it tears at my heart to see them suffer, sometimes I get a little teary (which is rare for me when it comes to death in general) when I see that one has passed on from health issues that could be prevented.

We are here to help answer questions that the care sheets may not cover, advise against what to do or what not to do, give general tips for minor health related issues and show off pictures of the quirky things these animals do. But please do your homework when looking to buy an animal of any species, some are more high maintenance than others. Crested geckos are very hardy animals if husbandry is within the guidelines, but very fragile once a health issue starts to set in. So if you notice something off about your little dude, ask the question when you first notice it because if the problem is left unchecked, they will go downhill quite fast.

I'm going to reiterate that I am not trying to be hateful, bash others or start a discussion that could turn ugly, I'm just trying to help others understand that you cannot cut corners with these animals. They depend on us to thrive and if we can't provide the necessary husbandry, then they will not thrive. Thanks for reading and mod's, please excuse me I just had to speak up about the issues I've noticed.

**Yoshi'smom** · 02-18-2016, 10:08 AM

Thanks so much for this Jess.
As someone who truly loves caring for and breeding this species, I know that this needs to be put out there.
The fact is that this species is very easy to care for and that should not be the reason someone chooses to breed. It requires passion and heart and knowledge. I always encourage people who express interest in breeding to take a good hard look at their financial situation and be sure that they can care for all animals that are hatched. I see too many geckos on resale sites that need a good home because people no longer wish to care for them. It breaks my heart to see so many in need of a good home. I really wish I could take them all in, but I have to think of my own limits as well.
Care is simple and often times there's contrasting information out there as we're still learning about husbandry. But yes, it's easy and requires little effort but it also requires love and attention. I may be all fluffy on the inside for it, but in my opinion, even geckos need a little TLC.
I would also stress that if someone is interested in this species that they do their homework. It doesn't take much. But consider everything that will go into your new pet and be prepared.

**JessJohnson87** · 02-18-2016, 10:15 AM

Exactly. I meant this to be an open discussion on care, breeding and anything else related to the species(other Rhac species can be included since care is similar) to get other's inputs as well. It's not a complete care sheet by any means but others experiences and knowledge is always helpful.

I wanted to rant on Facebook but I knew I would exceed the character limit and probably get bashed by other people or have the post deleted. Since this forum get's a lot of foot traffic, I decided to post it here. I may copy and paste it to other forums I'm a member of as well, still undecided on that.

**Yoshi'smom** · 02-18-2016, 11:25 AM

I feel that the forum atmosphere is a better place for discussions like this. I'm on a few facebook pages and honestly people are way too quick to judge on there.
I'm glad to share knowledge and I love to help on here. It's wholly my duty as a breeder to inform. I share as much info as I can so that other's geckos can live a happy, long and healthy life. I also provide caresheets to people who purchase my animals and always offer to take back the animal if they ever find they are unable to care for it.
I care for the well being of the captive population. Because if we mess up the captive population then there's little success for the wild populations that are already teetering on the endangered/extinct list.
I don't want to come off as rude, but when people say they're just going to breed their geckos, it really grinds my gears. I wish people would think of the long term ramifications of breeding low quality animals. I've spent quite a large sum of money so that I could get high quality, healthy animals so that I can add to the health and beauty of our captive gene pool.
So my opinion will always be, Yes- breeding crested geckos is quite easy but it requires attention to detail in the most unexpected ways. And just because you can breed your geckos, doesn't mean that you should. If you want more geckos, PLEASE rescue one from a resale sight. Give that gecko a chance. Lord knows, it needs it.