Help feeding crickets!

[Aliraw1234]

Hi! I recently got a juvy Leo. He is eating crickets however I was wondering on the best way to put them in his cage- I only put 2 or 3 in at a time however he really struggled to catch them as the vivarium is 22 gallons and hes only a baby. I really dont want to leave the crickets in with him for a sustained period of time because I've heard they can annoy or bite him.i was thinking about putting them into a medium container with the crickets and just him in but in the vivarium so he can easily catch them without them running too far away and if anyone else has had any experience with them.

Also if I release the crickets into the vivarium they seem to hide in all the crevases in the vivarium and I dont want to stress him out by moving all his tank stuff to re catch the ones he doesnt eat
Thanks!

 

[SpottedDragon]

Put them in a smooth sided feeding dish and use a pair of sharp scissors to snip off the jumping legs - I snip right at the "knee". This keeps them alive and moving but they can't get out of feeding dish. If you let them run loose they can still run fast and get under rocks and such.
If you have trouble catching them to trim you can put them in a baggie in the fridge for 2-3 min, the cold really slows them down - but much longer than that and they die

You can also feed dubia roaches in a dish, they can't climb well at all

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Welcome to Geckos Unlimited!

What SpottedDragon has described is exactly what I do. I snip those "jumper" legs off right below the "knees". That keeps crickets contained in a feeding bowl. The "jumper" legs are the 2 back legs.

In this video you'll see 2 clear over-sized glass tealight candle holders used as both a feeding dish for a young gecko and a water dish. Those are super sturdy. For my leo Cha (and many other geckos) I use clear glass, 8 ounce, Anchor-brand storage bowls for crickets and dubia. I add a rock ramp when necessary to help the gecko reach the bowl's lip.

(click to enlarge)​