Tips on taming a juvenile leopard gecko?

[mrhellboy218]

Hi All !! , so I have a 2 month old gecko I've had her for 5 days now and she is eating. And as a start to taming her I'd just lay my hand inside and she would come over smell/lick me and then just walk away she seems ok with my hand. She comes out of her hide at night but not very much though. She stays in her warm hide a lot so if anyone has any tips ? :biggrin:

 

[matt0101]

i don't have any tips but your gecko sounds a lot like mine. he will sometimes come out and lick my hand lol, it's hilarious. he spends most of his time in his warm hide, sleeps there during the day, but comes out at night a bit to check out the humid hide and his mealworm dish. i'm having difficulties taming him as well. many sources online just say to allow them time to age and adjust to their home. apparently they will calm down with age whether or not you make an effort to tame them.

 

[GeckoManiac91]

i don't have any tips but your gecko sounds a lot like mine. he will sometimes come out and lick my hand lol, it's hilarious. he spends most of his time in his warm hide, sleeps there during the day, but comes out at night a bit to check out the humid hide and his mealworm dish. i'm having difficulties taming him as well. many sources online just say to allow them time to age and adjust to their home. apparently they will calm down with age whether or not you make an effort to tame them.

It's partially true they will calm down with age however if you don't put in the effort to handle them at all when they're younger then most likely they will still be skittish and even aggressive when you do want to start handling them. It's like this: A younger gecko is easier to "tame" and get used to handling where as if you take an adult that's almost never been handled in their lives then chances are it will take them longer to get used to being handled, if at all. If you never make an effort then they'll never really open up to being handled.

Regardless of what people think I don't believe geckos enjoy or like being handled at all. They just tolerate it, and some species, like leopard geckos, tolerate it more than others.

 

[matt0101]

i'm trying to "tame" my gecko but he just doesn't seem to care, and he seems really bothered when i put my hands even close to him. sometimes i'll put my hand in front of him and poke his tail so he'll walk forward onto my other hand, and when he's in my hand sometimes he'll just chill and won't seem to mind it much. other times he'll start trying to climb up my arm really fast or jump out onto the floor of his tank (i always hold him inside his tank only a few inches higher than the floor of it, i don't plan on taking him out of it until he's good and ready.)

it just doesn't seem like any progress is being made. it's entirely possible i'm not giving it enough time. it's also totally possible i'm going at it all wrong.

 

[cricket4u]

It's partially true they will calm down with age however if you don't put in the effort to handle them at all when they're younger then most likely they will still be skittish and even aggressive when you do want to start handling them. It's like this: A younger gecko is easier to "tame" and get used to handling where as if you take an adult that's almost never been handled in their lives then chances are it will take them longer to get used to being handled, if at all. If you never make an effort then they'll never really open up to being handled.

Regardless of what people think I don't believe geckos enjoy or like being handled at all. They just tolerate it, and some species, like leopard geckos, tolerate it more than others.

Just so that you know, I never tried handling 2 of the ones I have and after a while they were not skittish or aggressive when I reached for them, therefore that's not true. The one I tried handling,(only because I kept a closer eye due to arriving with calcium deficiency), never has tolerated handling. He was only a few months old when I received him I think 12.5 (have to look at my book) years later he if super flighty.

 

[GeckoManiac91]

Just so that you know, I never tried handling 2 of the ones I have and after a while and they were not skittish or aggressive when I reached for them, therefore that's not true. The one I tried handling,(only because I kept a closer eye due to arriving with calcium deficiency), never has tolerated handling. He was only a few months old when I received him and I think 12.5 (have to look at my book) years later he if super flighty.

Really?I always figured geckos that as a juvenile never being handled would be harder to tame or more skittish if you tried as adults. I suppose it depends on the gecko as well, eh?

 

[GeckoManiac91]

i'm trying to "tame" my gecko but he just doesn't seem to care, and he seems really bothered when i put my hands even close to him. sometimes i'll put my hand in front of him and poke his tail so he'll walk forward onto my other hand, and when he's in my hand sometimes he'll just chill and won't seem to mind it much. other times he'll start trying to climb up my arm really fast or jump out onto the floor of his tank (i always hold him inside his tank only a few inches higher than the floor of it, i don't plan on taking him out of it until he's good and ready.)

it just doesn't seem like any progress is being made. it's entirely possible i'm not giving it enough time. it's also totally possible i'm going at it all wrong.

I wouldn't touch the geckos tail to get him to move on to you. Simply place your hand in the tank for about 15minutes a day and let him do all the moving and exploring

 

[cricket4u]

Really?I always figured geckos that as a juvenile never being handled would be harder to tame or more skittish if you tried as adults. I suppose it depends on the gecko as well, eh?

Yes, the majority will calm down with time, but there are a few that will never change. I've had more, I just used these as examples. It is super difficult dealing with the ones that remain flighty. I hate when enclosure cleaning time comes around and I have to move him. He's tries to commit suicide (jumping out of my hand) and trust me I was very gentle and patient from day 1 and he has never changed. He walks on my hand ,not knowing any better (tree branch:biggrin but once I slowly start removing him, he freaks out.

 

[Geckologist.tj]

Try getting a pair of plastic forceps/ tweezers. When the gecko comes out and smells (that's basically what it's doing when it licks) your hand, offer it a feeder with the forceps. When it gets used to looking to the forceps for food, hold food over the other hand lying in the cage so that the gecko walks onto your hand to get the food. Keep doing this and eventually it will associate your hand with treats.

Two points of caution:
1) If you use small plastic tweezers, it may make the gecko associate your fingers with food and this could lead to nipping at your fingers later on.

2) If you offer the gecko food too often, it will eventually become almost entirely dependant on you feeding it, and that becomes anoying pretty quickly so limit it to 1 or 2 feeders per meal, and let the gecko catch the rest on its own.

 

[Conched]

I would let it get a big older before you handle it. They are still pretty fragile at 2 months old. I'd hate for you to have a mishap and have that pretty tail drop off.

Place the enclosure on the ground. Sit down next to it and gently "scoop" the Leo out of the enclosure.

Keep it low to the ground so that in the event you have a jumper it does not get hurt.

Once you have it in you hard it will eventually want to start walking. Let it walk from "hand to hand".

Try this once or twice a week.

Eventually your leo will take a less aggressive posture and stop "barking" at you.

When handling try not to squeeze the leo, even a gentle squeeze will cause a "flight" response.

You'll get the hang of it.

 

[Geckologist.tj]

It is also good to remember that, especially with juveniles, a hand that moves in unseen from above or behind will cause an instictive reaction from the gecko such as jumping and/or barking.

I have a gecko just under two months old which comes out of hiding when she hears her enclosure open and steps into my hand voluntarily looking for food. IMO, 2 months is not too young as long as you are aware they may jump, and you keep them no more than several inches from a suitable surface like soft carpet, a couch, or a bed. The fact that you have only had her 5 days, and trying to handle or is more of an issue in my opinion. It usually takes close to two weeks and sometimes more for the stress of a new environment to wear off, but I'm pretty sure we already covered that in another post.

 

[cricket4u]

I would let it get a big older before you handle it. They are still pretty fragile at 2 months old. I'd hate for you to have a mishap and have that pretty tail drop off.

Very good point Conched and very common, tail drop. They are also more prone to stress which means they are more likely to remain hidden after a stressful episode at a young age. This can lead to failure to leave their hides to eat and thermoregulating properly.

Moving the enclosure to the ground may not be such a good idea. The second you move their enclosure, anxiety is triggered. They are sensitive to changes and the second they feel their world moving, the stress begins. Perhaps taking precautions such as laying down pillows underneath the area and slowly moving them to the floor?

This is one of the reason I highly suggest an enclosure which opens in the front, especially for the first time owners that are not familiar with their flighty movements. Sadly there has been many accidents, not only dropping the gecko, but also furniture being dropped on the leo during cleaning.

The gecko will become familiar with your scent just by maintaining their enclosure. I'm not telling anyone not to handle them at all, only that a great part is scenting. Even my "normal" or calmer ones react differently to my approach on the days I went out for dinner and sprayed perfume.

 

[Geckologist.tj]

"Moving the enclosure to the ground may not be such a good idea. The second you move their enclosure, anxiety is triggered. They are sensitive to changes and the second they feel their world moving, the stress begins."

I have a 4 year old male that is probably the calmest most even tempered leo I have ever been around, and he still gets very stressed if his enclosure is moved. It is also a good point you made about scent. I believe my geckos recognize me by my scent and even my voice better than by seeing me. I could be wrong but I'm pretty sure to them we all look alike.

 

[mrhellboy218]

Hmmm these are some great tips guys I'll definately keep them in mind, Thanks

 

[Conched]

I would let it get a big older before you handle it. They are still pretty fragile at 2 months old. I'd hate for you to have a mishap and have that pretty tail drop off.

Very good point Conched and very common, tail drop. They are also more prone to stress which means they are more likely to remain hidden after a stressful episode at a young age. This can lead to failure to leave their hides to eat and thermoregulating properly.

Moving the enclosure to the ground may not be such a good idea. The second you move their enclosure, anxiety is triggered. They are sensitive to changes and the second they feel their world moving, the stress begins. Perhaps taking precautions such as laying down pillows underneath the area and slowly moving them to the floor?

This is one of the reason I highly suggest an enclosure which opens in the front, especially for the first time owners that are not familiar with their flighty movements. Sadly there has been many accidents, not only dropping the gecko, but also furniture being dropped on the leo during cleaning.

The gecko will become familiar with your scent just by maintaining their enclosure. I'm not telling anyone not to handle them at all, only that a great part is scenting. Even my "normal" or calmer ones react differently to my approach on the days I went out for dinner and sprayed perfume.

I agree with you moving the cage to the ground is stressful for the leo. So is picking it up. I am just trying to consider a 4 foot drop vs a one foot drop. The leo is small at 2 months a big drop would not likely end well. I have seen allot of pics of leos with regenerated tails. I have pretty good idea how it happened. Not knowing the OP's experience level with handling reptiles leads me to a very cautious approach.

Either way I think the OP has some good advice.

 

[cricket4u]

At 2 months old, I would not recommend handling at all. They're just too small and so much can go wrong. It would be a terrible age to lose their tails. I'm sure everyone has heard of someone mentioning their young leo dropped their tail, stops eating due to stress and takes a turn for the worst.

To clean the enclosure, I would suggest that the OP places a small container inside the enclosure, gently push him in and transfer him that way.

 

[Redstyx]

As a juvi, wait until they get a bit bigger, I think 25-30 grams is ok. It's just a matter of being persistent once they are big enough, but I don't personally believe geckos like being handled...... they just tolerate it. I have a female that is just vicious, she was like that when I got her but I decided I would be able to calm her down after awhile. I was wrong. If I put my hand in the cage, she will run to attack it. Despite lots of time spent trying to "tame" her.... it just never took. My 130 gram giant male on the other hand, was a bit nippy at first, but he is totally mellow now. Both were purchased as adults.

 

[XoVictoryXo]

I just have some honest advice. Do not be disheartened if you find your leo never does like to be held. no matter how much effort you give, some of them just do NOT like humans! I feel like they simply just tolerate us to a certain extent and enjoy the heat that comes off our hands.
You can still enjoy them as a pet. but they arent really holdable pets. Limit yourself to one handle a week, check them out, and clean up their messy tank. no matter how tempting it is, do not handle them daily. it is for their own benefit because they are so easily stressed.

 

[mrhellboy218]

well actually XoVictoryXo she's actually pretty calm around me she even walked on my hand so yea I think she'll be ok with handling