Leopard Gecko Behavior Questions - long story

[Gecko Newbie]

Hello gecko community!

As you can see by my name, I am new to all this gecko stuff. I am a first grade teacher and was given 2 leopard geckos (one male - his name is Ironman because his original owner was a 6 year old boy, but I'm going to change it, just not sure to what yet... and one female - formally known as The Hulk but is now being called Lola). In true teacher fashion, I have been doing non-stop research about my new little creatures. My kids researched them and each one wrote a report about leopard geckos, so we do know a lot about how to care for them, but there are not a lot of things out there about "typical" behavior.

Originally, both geckos stayed in their respective hides (the male under a fairly open curved log hide, Lola inside this shell looking hide that completely hid her on the warm end). I figured it was A) because they're nocturnal and I'm only in my classroom during the day and/or B) they were hiding from the 25 faces peering into their home (with only whispering voices!). Then, they started coming out during the day - much to the kids delight. Lola just sat around, but the male climbed over his log and they both attacked the crickets put in the cage.

I'm on Spring Break, so I took them home. They were SUPER active - out and about a lot - and then I caught them mating...oops. NOW, Lola lays outside her hide (which I put moss in and made humid thinking it could double as nesting box) almost all day and sometimes it looks like the male is blocking her from going in there - he now spends ALL DAY in this hide which was originally her hide on the warm side and RARELY goes into his own on the cool side (I know they don't belong to each one, but...it seemed like they each had a preference before). PLUS, the male seems to not be eating much, while Lola is eating more AND visiting the little dish of calcium a bunch. She's also taken to sitting in the water dish (even though the humidity is at 50).

I DON'T want baby geckos, but can't afford another tank (yet) to separate them. I'm just worried that these "oops" babies - which, don't hate me, I was going to just take out of the tank and throw away because I can't afford to house/breed/feed baby geckos are going to hurt Lola because I'm not doing something for her - because I'm not prepared to be breeding geckos.... And the male seems so moody - though I know they don't really have emotions, but...I can't describe it any other way.

Is this stuff normal? Shouldn't Lola be hiding out waiting to lay her eggs? Is her little shell thing not a good enough nesting site and I need to give her a new one? (The 20 gallon tank will need to lose a hide if it's going to have a nest box...which do I take out - his or hers??) And how do I regulate their feeding when one is eating well and the other isn't - cause I hate having to catch the left over crickets! Why isn't the male just going along as usual - surely male geckos aren't affected by their female's hormonal changes like men are....??? :roll:

Sorry my story was so long! I felt it was important to give all the details. Any advice is welcomed!!

 

[Riverside Reptiles]

The short answer to most of the above questions is that they need to be separated. If kept together, they WILL continue to breed and she WILL continue to lay eggs. Laying eggs of course is hard on the female. So if you don't want babies, don't let them breed. I can understand money being tight, but a 10 gallon tank is only about $10. And if you can't afford that, try putting an ad on craigslist.com in the pet section looking for "used tanks for cheap or free". You'd be surprised how many people have tanks kicking around that they would love to just get rid of (especially if it's for a good cause such as a classroom project). My opinion is that you should hatch out the eggs as yet another project for the kids.

 

[Gecko Newbie]

What about her behavior and his eating?

Thanks! I was thinking I needed to get another big tank like the one they are both in, but I guess I can just have one big and one little tank. I'll go pick one up today and separate them.

But what about her behavior? If I give her a better nest box, and she continues to lay out in the open (she sleeps with her belly flat on the warm sand) should I be worried?

And what if the male doesn't start eating more again? I've only had them for about 2 weeks, and I had been told to give them 10-12 crickets A DAY (5-6 each) and then 6-8 mealworms on Fridays to hold them over on the weekends. They didn't eat all the crickets and we kept having to fish them out, plus I read adult geckos could be fed 2-3 crickets each EVERY OTHER DAY, so I switched to that, but now he's not eating.... This may sound silly, but could what I be feeding the crickets (oranges and lettuce) be making him not like them? It's really only been since I started gut-loading them (I had been under the impression they were fat enough bought from the store) that he stopped eating them - though that was also when they mated.

Neither geckos are skinny looking, they both LOOK healthy, but I don't know how they are supposed to be acting...

Thanks for your help! Could I have some more??

 

[Riverside Reptiles]

If you separate them I can almost guarantee that the male will start eating again. Lettuce and oranges will keep your crickets alive, but remember the old saying, "You are what you eat". So you should invest in some high quality cricket food OR feed a nice variety of fruits/veggies/grains/etc as the gut contents of the crickets directly relates to the nutritional value of the crickets themselves. You should also be dusting the crickets with a calcium supplement if you're not already.
As for the female, some will use a nestbox and some will not. Let her decide where and when she wants to be. Read through old posts in these forums. You will find a plethora of advice, opinions, and information.

 

[Gecko Newbie]

Thank you so much!

You've been very helpful! I've got a new tank, I just need to put the whole thing together (light, substrate, etc.).

I have been dusting the crickets (is it possible to put on too much?). I do the "shake and bake" thing in a little container before putting them in the tank.

I've also been spending a lot of time looking through this forum as well as others. There are so many varying opinions on things....it makes it hard to choose the way I'm going to do things.... I figure - majority rules and I've been going on what I read most often about feeding and whatnot.

Thanks again!! :biggrin: