Day Gecko Diet

C

combo_breaker

New member
Sorry I keep making all these threads, its just I haven't cared for a Day Gecko in years and I am trying to make sure I do this right. I have 2 old bottles left from an old breeding trio of Grandis, and I was wondering how I go about feeding this to a Lygodactylus Willaimsi? Do I feed them it by mixing it with a fruit blend (I mixed mango's, and banana's mostly), or do I do what it says on the bottle, and gradually switching them over to the product purely (no fruit added, just the power+water)? And if I do happen to get them feeding on this product, can I stop the feeding of feeder insects? I know in the wild there is day geckos that have been known to feed only on fruit and nectar, can I do this with a Willaimsi? Or are insects important to their diet, along with fruit? Thanks.
 
Last edited:
M

Matt K

New member
All of my Lygodactylus eat exclusively insects, though a long while back they had fruit mush in addition to the bugs but did not seem to feed on it much .... I would be interested to know if they could / would feed on fruit or day gecko diet exclusively though and if that makes any difference for them. Interesting question!
 
C

combo_breaker

New member
hmm, well I get my male on Tuesday, so I will try first to see if he will take any of the fruit blends I give him. Then if he does, I will gradually start adding the Day Gecko diet. I don't see why a Lygodactylus wouldn't take some sort of fruit supplement. I am sure they come across some nectar in Tanzania correct?
 
W

WingedWolfPsion

New member
My williamsi are ravenous chow-hounds. They refused Repashy CGD when I first offered it, but on a tip from Switzer, I offered them peach baby food--this, they loved. So I mixed some with the CGD, and they went insane over it. Now they're eating plain CGD and dusted insects.

I'm not sure if these lizards can be maintained exclusively on CGD. I want to say I have some reservations--in the wild, they must be primarily insectivores that occasionally eat flower nectar/pollen. It's hard to fathom that they would have the opportunity or ability to eat fruit very often, if at all. They appear very healthy with CGD as part of their diet. I'm going to do some feeding trials with them, when I have the opportunity, and I will let everyone know how that goes.

At the moment, I would recommend continuing to feed dusted insects as a major part of their diet. They will eat until they look like they are going to explode, though, so you will need to control the frequency of feeding, and possibly the quantity, once they're over importation stresses and are up to a normal weight. I think these lizards would very QUICKLY become obese if offered food continually, no matter what food it is.

I do feel that Lygodactylus do better with sugar in their diet. The reaction I got when I gave them the CGD/peach mix was phenomenal--their colors exploded, they were diving around the tank, courting, and having a great old time. They did calm a bit once they got used to it, but their activity level is still notably higher than it was on insects alone, particularly their breeding behaviors. I will also note that they liked the CGD/peaches better than they liked the peaches alone, and they now appear to love the plain CGD as well.

As for your old bottles of food, take care that they haven't expired! These powdered diets have a shelf life of 6 months to a year (depending on brand), then the vitamins will start to degrade and they will no longer be sufficiently nutritious. If they have been kept refrigerated, they will last longer.
 
C

combo_breaker

New member
Well I picked up last night, 2 small glass jars of banana/mango baby food, as my other Day Geckos loved this fruit combo. I checked the T-Rex Day Gecko MRP, and it seems it is out of date. Damn, hopefully my local petshop has some in stock. Can I ask why your use the Crested Diet, instead of the Day Gecko Diet? I have both Rep-Cal Calcium, and Multivitamins, I will mix the Calcium D3 with the baby food. Does the Rep-Cal go bad? I read all over the bottle, plus checked their website, and found nothing saying that it expires...if they do then I will be aggravated much :D. How often do you give your willaimsi fruit? Once a week? Once every 2 weeks? Once a month? Also I am going to dust the insects (lets say I start Monday) with Multivitamins, then the rest of the 6 days of the week with Calcium D3...is this much? Or should I have feedings where I feed them w/o the powder? Thank you.
 
W

WingedWolfPsion

New member
Well, they are not Phelsuma--the normal CGD has banana flavoring, I believe. They really loved the peaches, and gravitated to it immediately. So if they don't like the kind you got, try peaches.

I don't give fruit to mine any longer--I only use the CGD. They get CGD every other feeding. I alternate it with dusted fruit flies, or silk worms, or phoenix worms, or dusted mini-mealworms. I've been feeding them every other day, but I'm still figuring out how to adjust their feeding schedule to prevent them from becoming too round--their appetite is unbelievable.
 
W

WingedWolfPsion

New member
"Day gecko" is a common name for Phelsuma, but some folks do use it to apply to any diurnal gecko. That only means they're awake during the day instead of at night.

But, just because Phelsuma like something doesn't mean Lygos will necessarily like it. I suspect the issue I had was because the smell of the CGD wasn't quite right to trigger them to taste it. The peaches did. Perhaps any real fruit would, but I just don't know. Once they tasted it, though, they gobbled it up, and recognized it after that as being food. If it's food, a lygo will stuff it in until they have to roll off the platform, lol.... (At least, williamsi will).
 
C

combo_breaker

New member
hmmm, ok I will try my banana/mango baby food. Hopefully they will take it, if not I will go for peaches. If my petshop doesn't have the MRP that I need, I will mix the Rep-Cal in with it. Also, do you know if Rep-Cal, or calcium at all goes bad? it shouldn't...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top