Leopard Geckos

I have been keeping Leopard Geckos for about 7-8 years. They are one of my favourite reptiles as they have wonderful characters, cute looks and as long as their needs are well provided for they are low maintenance and easy to care for. I would recommend that anyone looking to buy a leopard gecko does a lot of research into how to care for them properly as there is alot of conflicting advice available on the internet - there are a couple of good forums stacked full of people who are experienced in keeping them and are happy to advise you on how to care for them properly.

Leopard geckos come in a HUGE range of morphs (colours and patterns) which makes them very desirable. You could have 50 Leopard Geckos and have no 2 look identical! Most first time keepers tend to get a 'normal' type leopard gecko which you can expect to pay up to £20 for from a breeder, whereas enthusiasts will pay hundreds for a 'top end' morph.

Leopard geckos are known for being easy to care for and whilst I agree this is true, it does NOT mean that any less care and attention needs to be given to them. Like all reptiles they require the correct temperature, space and habitat, diet, calcium and vitamin supplements etc. As long as everything they need is catered for properly they really only require a couple of minutes daily attention (feeding, cleaning out).

Handling is usually very easy as long as you pick them up properly and handle them with care. They can drop their tails if startled though this is not very common during handling, it is more likely to be due to a cage-mate biting their tail.

Because they are known as a great starter lizard, they are also one of the most over-bred and many new keepers become bored of them. To put it quite simply, Leopard Geckos do not 'do' much at all.. they eat, sleep, come out at night, sleep, eat. If you can handle the fact that they are not the sort of reptile to be visually entertaining all day long then they are ideal.

They do not need a huge amount of a space (2ft vivarium is suitable for 1 adult leopard gecko). They are best kept on their own rather than in groups or pairs and males must never be kept together as they will fight very badly, causing injury and death.

Some people find their diet off putting.. leopard geckos eat live insects which includes but is not limited to crickets, mealworms, roaches, locusts. They do not eat any fruit or veg and their live food needs to be dusted with a calcium and vitamin supplement powder regularly to avoid metabolic bone disease.

My review may sound like there are quite a few negatives to keeping leopard geckos and you may be wondering why I keep them myself. I keep them because they are charming, interesting, funny, easy and one of the most addictive reptiles you can keep. I class myself as an enthusiast and whilst I love them dearly, I hate that some people get them without knowing what is really involved in keeping the gecko happy and healthy, hence this truthful review of the Leopard Gecko, my favourite reptile.