Written by Andrea Brewer (aka Crested Gecko Girly)
Housing:

A medium/large Kritter Keeper is perfect for a 0-9 month old Crested Gecko. While your crested is growing it is best to keep it in a smaller enclosure. This allows for ease of finding and catching food. When your Crested Gecko reaches adulthood (about 9 months or 25+gram-whichever comes last) a 10-20 gallon aquarium with a screen lid is sufficient. If you are keeping more than one crested in the same environment, a 20 gallon is recommended. A 20 gallon is perfect for a breeding pair or trio. Just be sure to get the 20 gallon high, since Crested Geckos are arboreal and therefore like to climb. It is not advisable to keep a single crested in a cage larger than 20 gallons because this could make hunting and finding food difficult.

Whether you have a new crested, or a young crested, paper towels are the best substrate to use. They are easy to clean (simply throw them away), and the white color allows you to easily spot their poop. This lets you know they are eating, and you can also make sure they are free from any kind of parasite.

For adult animals (after a period of quarantine), I personally prefer to use cage carpet as a substrate. Moss, coconut bark, and many other substrates are also acceptable, but I prefer cage carpet because it is easy to clean, and your geckos won’t eat it a long with their dinner (which could be an issue with other substrates).

Crested Geckos will typically spend most of their time off of the ground. For this reason, synthetic plants attached to the walls of their enclosure with suction cups are ideal. You can also use a variety of live plants, but if you are just starting out, I would suggest using synthetic plants first. They come in plastic as well as silk varieties. The choice between the two is more personal preference than anything-silk plants are going to be much softer.

Crested Geckos also spend some of their time on the ground. For this reason, ground hides are also important. You can buy coconut huts or small caves, but paper towel or toilet paper tubes work just as well.

You will need to also provide a shallow water dish for your gecko. Although daily misting is suggested, a water dish will ensure your gecko always has ample supply to drinking water.

Food/Feeding:

Cresteds Geckos do well on a variety of food. The easiest thing to feed is Repashy’s Crested Gecko Diet (CGD). This contains all the vital nutrients your gecko needs. Some geckos will readily eat crickets, and some will not. A juvenile gecko may start off not eating insects, but eventually like them as it ages. The reverse can also happen. For this reason it is important to keep track of whether or not your gecko is eating his/her crickets (if you choose to feed them). Do not leave crickets in the cage for an extended period of time as this will stress your gecko, especially if they have decided they are no longer interested in the insect as a food source. It is important to note that crickets are not a complete food source. They can be fed in addition to CGD, but cannot be fed alone.

If you decide to offer crickets, they should be gut-loaded before you feed them to you geckos. This ensures that the cricket is a highly nutritious food source. Also, be sure to provide crickets with a water source. I suggest using gel (also refered to as 'cricket crystals') since you won’t loose any crickets to drowning this way.

Dust your crickets. A calcium dust containing D3 is very important. D3 is necessary for your geckos to process and utilize the calcium in their diet. Without it, calcium is excreted without being absorbed into their body. Your gecko will get sick without it-and could even die. So, DON’T FORGET the D3!!! Read the label of the particular product you choose carefully and follow the recommended dosage because Crested Geckos can also overdose on D3. Two products that contain sufficient amounts of D3 are Repashy's SuperCal MeD (medium amt. of D3) and Rep-Cal Calcium WITH D3 (pink label). Another great product is Repashy's Calcium Plus ICB (Insect Cricket Balancer). It has the added bonus of a fruit smell that many geckos seem to be stimulated by it. It is meant to be dusted on the crickets at EVERY feeding, so it is much less complicated in some ways.

Crested Gecko Diet really is the main staple of any growing or adult crested. Crested Gecko Diet (CGD) is a Meal Replacement Diet (MRP), so it contains everything your gecko needs. Fruit can be given, but is more of a treat option than a staple diet. Even as a treat you need to make sure no added preservatives or sugars are added to the fruit. Just be sure to check the label. If using Baby food as a treat, make sure that it has no additional sugar added to it (corn syrup, etc.). Peach and Pear seem to be the favorites with my geckos.

The newest formulation of CGD really is best used mixed as the label instructs. There have been many improvements to the formulation including additional honey and nectars, so the geckos really don’t need fruit, etc. added to entice them. Remember that by adding anything to your gecko’s diet other than the water the CGD instructs you to mix it with, you alter the nutritional ratios. This means you will need to supplement with a calcium containing D3. If you mix fruit rather than water, or if you add crickets to the diet, you must supplement with calcium/D3. However, a gecko fed solely CGD requires no additional supplementation.

Water:

Mist your geckos 1-2 times a day with de-chlorinated water using a spray bottle.

Provide clean drinking water in a shallow dish at all times. A dish ensures that the gecko always has water to drink, plus aids in shedding (many geckos like to soak just before they shed).

Temperature/Lighting:

Crested Geckos do well with a temperature around 72-78 degrees (approximately room temp). Never allow your cage to get any warmer than 80 degrees. At temperatures above 80 degrees cresteds stress, and much above 82 will die.

Make sure to give your gecko a dark environment approximately half of a 24 hour day. Crested Geckos are nocturnal, so, if you want to observe them, use a red light in the evening so you don’t disturb them. Their eyes do not appear to detect red, so they won’t be bothered by it.

In the winter time you may want to add a heat lamp to make sure your crested stays warm enough (if your house is significantly cooler). A 40 watt red night light works best for this. Try to keep a low wattage so that it doesn’t get too hot in your gecko’s cage. Be sure no part of the cage gets above 80 degrees.

Be advised that if you use a heat lamp you need to have a ‘cool’ spot in the cage. This means, place the heat lamp on a far side of the cage. This way, your gecko can move to the opposite side of the cage away from the heat if it gets too hot. This will prevent overheating. If you’re using a heat lamp, you need to keep a thermometer in the cage to monitor the temperature (although, even if you aren’t using an additional heating source, a thermometer is a good idea). Be sure that the temperature does not go above 80 degrees.


Handling your gecko:

Crested Geckos are very tame creatures for the most part. With regular handling, your gecko should become very calm. At first hold your gecko no longer than 5 minutes at a time. For the first week especially, don’t handle your gecko very frequently. It needs this time to acclimate to its new environment. After the first week you can gradually increase this time as desired.

The main thing to keep in mind is to never pick up a Crested Gecko by its tail. In fact, avoid touching the tail for any reason. If Crested Geckos become frightened they can and will drop their tail, and, unlike most lizards, it will not grow back.

Sexing:

Males and females can be visually sexed by 20 grams. A male gecko will have a noticeable hemipenal bulge. Some males will exhibit signs of a hemipenal bulge at a much lighter weight. Sexing at a smaller weight is possible using a magification loupe. Usually by 12 grams of age you can have a good idea of the sex of a gecko by using a 30 X loupe. A male will have two full rows of pores. Some males will develop pores at a much smaller weight, but others will show no signs of them until they are closer to the 12 gram mark. It is worth noting that on rare occassions a gecko will show no signs of pores, even at 18 grams, but then suddenly develop them and a hemipenal bulge-seemingly overnight. Spur size can give some indication of sex, but is not fail proof. Typically a male will have much larger spurs than a female.

A Basic Guide to Morphs:

Patternless—A patternless gecko is just like it sounds, void of any pattern.

Tiger—A tiger morph looks like a patternless, but will have tiger striping a little darker than the base color on the back, sides, legs, or all of the above.

Dalmatian—A dalmatian is a gecko that possesses spots. This morph can co-exist with any other morph except for a patternless (a ‘patternless’ with spots would simply be a dalmatian).

Flame—A flame morph is a gecko that has a flame pattern on it’s back. The gecko can have additional coloration of this kind on its sides, but will lack mottling on it’s legs.

Harlequin—A harlequin is a flame that also has mottling on it’s legs. There are mixed definitions on this morph, some feel that extra patterning on the sides is sufficient to classify a gecko as a ‘harley,’ but the true definition requires mottling on the legs.

Pinstipe—A pinstripe has two lines running down the length of the back. A pinstripe can either have lines filled in or lines by themselves. Geckos possessing some striping are known as ‘partial’ pinstripes.

Reproduction:

One of the most important factors in ensuring the health of your gecko is to avoid breeding it prematurely. Geckos must be a minimum of 30 grams AND 12 months old. That means, even if an 8 month old gecko is 30 grams; it is NOT ready to breed. If a 12 month old gecko is not 30 grams, it is also NOT ready to breed. Keep in mind that all geckos grow at different rates, so it could take your gecko until its 2nd birthday to reach breeding weight. Crested geckos have very long life spans (12-20 years), so don’t rush it. It’s not worth the consequences. The longer you wait, and the more the gecko weighs, the better off they are. My females weigh a minimum of 35 grams, and are at least 18 months old before they are bred.

Crested geckos do best when bred in pairs or trios (1.1 or 1.2). It is usually most productive to use a group no larger than four (1.3). As previously mentioned, a 20 gallon is fine for a pair or trio as long as sufficient hides are provided. A 1.3 group will require a larger cage—a 30 gallon will provide adequate space. Breeding animals are not usually overly aggressive towards one another, but the more vines, plants, and hides you provide them with, the less likely any fighting will occur. If excessive fighting does occur, remove the male.

Typical mating behaviors can include clicking noises produced by both male and female as well as trembling and tail twitching. The male will usually latch onto the female’s neck prior to mounting. Some geckos are very secretive, so you may not catch them mating.

After mating has occurred it will take 25-90 days for the female to produce her first clutch of eggs. Females in their first breeding season tend to take longer to lay than proven females. After the first clutch another should appear in 21-45 days.

Provide your female(s) with a lay box that contains a moist substrate. Lay boxes can be constructed from many things, a deli cup with a hole cut in the lid works—basically anything that will hold humidity and is large enough for the female to get inside to lay will work. Substrates can range from coconut fiber to mosses. One note is that coconut fiber can damage the shell of the egg, so if you use that as your substrate you will need to check the lay box more frequently as it is best to remove eggs within 24 hrs to avoid any shell damage. Always be sure to leave the egg in the same orientation in which it was laid because rotation can kill the embryo.

To incubate the eggs, remove them from the lay box and place into moistened incubation medium. Incubation medium is also personal preference, Hatchrite and Superhatch are newer brands on the market, but things like perlite and vermiculite work as well. Eggs should be incubated at room temp (72-78 degrees). Incubation time will depend on the degree at which it was incubated at, but typically ranges from 60-100 days. Incubating at higher temps will lower hatch rates (if not killing all eggs), shorten incubation period, and result in small, weak hatchlings that are slow growers and prone to health issues.

After the 40 day mark check on the eggs daily just to be safe (this allows for temp variance and also collection time errors). Remove hatchlings immediately from the incubation medium. Gently remove any incubation medium that has gotten stuck to the hatching—wet q-tips work well for this. Hatchlings typically shed within 24 hrs of hatching, so it is easy for them to ingest any medium that is stuck to them; this could cause impaction. The best time to first offer food is after they have completed their first shed (1-2 days after hatching). It is best to feed CGD until 3-4 weeks of age. Then appropriately sized crickets may be offered with caution. Housing individually is recommended. This allows for better observation of each individual eating/pooping, as well as avoiding any tail nips or fights.

Calcium containing D3 is extremely important for egg laying females and must be given to them regularly. Females do best when they lay for no more than 8-10 months at a time. A minimum rest period of 3 months is required between breeding seasons for females. Crested geckos can retain sperm for 2-4 months, so remove the male no later than month 6 to ensure that your female only lays for 8-10 months. The better you treat your animals, the healthier they will be, and the longer they will produce for you.

Additional Concerns:

For any emergencies, please seek the help of a local herp veterinarian.