#care_guides

[redeyereptiles]

Care Guide: Crested Gecko

Crested geckos (Correlophus ciliatus), also called Eyelash Geckos (after their pointed, lash-like crests), are perfect beginner pets due to their ease/simplicity of care. Originally hailing from New Caledonia, this is a widely available captive bred species across North America. These small-bodied geckos typically reach 8″ to 10″ in length and live an average of 15 to 20 years in captivity. Here is everything you'll need to know about taking care of a Crested Gecko.

Diet and Feeding:

Crested geckos should be fed Crested Gecko Diet (CGD- powdered food that gets mixed with water) as their staple food source. This includes a number of different brands like Repashy, Pangea, Exo-Terra, Clark’s, Zoo-Med and Arcadia. Since these geckos tend to have a fairly picky palate, you may need to try multiple different brands before finding the one your animal prefers.  Often times, the animal will only ever eat the first brand it was offered, so be sure to ask the breeder/store you’re buying from. CGD contains a powdered fruit puree, ground insects, vitamins and minerals. Many brands offer flavours that don't contain insect protein, these can be used only as a treat to give your animal some variety. The flavours without insects should not be used as a staple diet unless you are heavily supplementing with insects. Tip: look for the words "Complete Diet" on the packaging.

Sometimes Crested Geckos can get fussy and refuse to eat their CGD altogether, in favour of live insects.  If this is the case with your gecko, stop feeding insects immediately until you get your animal to eat the CGD. Once it resumes eating the powdered food, you may slowly introduce live prey back into it's diet. If you are struggling to interest your animal in the CGD, try mixing the powder with apple juice (no sugar added) instead of water or add a small drop of honey to the water/powder mixture. Do so with caution as your picky gecko might get hooked on the sweetness and refuse to go back to its regular mixture. Only use these tips if absolutely necessary.  Try not to cave in too quickly, a Crested Gecko will almost never starve itself, you may not even notice the small amount it is eating when you aren't watching (especially babies!) If the animal is defecating, it is eating. Never feed your animal human baby food, despite what you may see in many online care guides, it is not species appropriate in any way.

Crested Geckos spend most of their life in low tree branches, so naturally, they will find their food quickly and easily with the use of an elevated feeding ledge. Small disposable condiment cups are a common option, these vary widely in size and can be found to fit any feeding ledge you choose. You can also opt for a reusable food cup, which is more environmentally friendly. Crested geckos should have CGD available to them at all times. You should change the food out for a fresh mixture every other day for adults, and daily for babies.

It is a commonly regurgitated myth that Crested Geckos can thrive on CGD alone, with no need for insect supplementation. This is not the case, they may survive on it, but they wont thrive.  Crested Geckos require insects in their diet, though less than fully insectivorous animals.  Your gecko will need insects one to three times a week to maintain a healthy protein intake.  You’ll want to be feeding babies more protein than you would an adult.  Live insects are also a way to provide your animal with enrichment and stimulation, a well exercised animal is a healthy one. Additionally, this is your opportunity to supplement with valuable minerals.  The insects can be dusted with calcium w/D3 (each feeding) and multivitamin (once a week). Five crickets (or equivalent other insect) is a reasonable amount per feeding. Once in a while, you can give your gecko a treat in the form of mashed mango, papaya, banana or other low-acidic fruits. Our geckos love watermelon.

Water and humidity:

Another long standing myth that circulates online care guides, is that Crested Geckos don't drink from a water dish, that they only drink from droplets misted on the decor. They will absolutely drink from a water dish, and one should be provided to ensure they stay properly hydrated. This can be provided on a feeding ledge, or at the bottom of the enclosure (or both), they will find it when they want it.  Our geckos have a bad habit of soiling their water bowls immediately, they really like to poop in water.  We’ve started offering two water dishes per cage to ensure they have access to clean, fresh drinking water at all times.

Crested Geckos require significant humidity because they live in tropical rainforests in the wild. This humidity can be achieved by providing a large water dish, and misting the enclosure daily or twice a day depending on the atmosphere of your home.  Ideally, you want the enclosure to have a chance to dry out mid-day, this fluctuation in air humidity is vital for the respiratory health of your gecko. Your substrate should feel lightly damp but not dripping if squeezed.  Misting options include hand misters (pressurized and pump designs), and misting systems (Mist King, ZooMed Reptirain, Exo-Terra Monsoon, etc). We recommend adding a water conditioner like Reptisafe to any water used in the enclosure to remove chlorine, chloramines and other impurities from tap water.

Enclosure and Substrate:

Crested Geckos are arboreal animals, this means that they spend most of their time in the trees. In the wild, they tend to stay between one and six feet off the ground. They will require a reasonable amount of height depending on the size and age of the animal. Adult Crested Geckos do well in 18″x18″x18″ or 18″x18″x24″ enclosures (If you can go larger, do it! They’ll use it). Hatchling Crested Geckos are happily housed in 5 to 10 gallon enclosures or a large Faunarium.  The reason you want to house baby geckos in smaller tanks is mainly so that they may find their food with ease.  Being young, and in a very fragile period of their life, getting enough food is the most important part of their care.

Within the enclosure, you'll want to provide lots of climbing decor like branches, foliage, hanging hides, etc. The more you add, the more enrichment your animal will have, keeping them feeling safe and happy. Bendable vines are a great addition to a Crested Gecko enclosure, they’re easy to shape and customize to fit your setup and have a great texture for your animal to grip. Don't be afraid to add decor to the bottom of the enclosure as well, the gecko will likely come down occasionally to hunt or dig. 

The substrate you choose should be able to retain some moisture. Coco Fiber, Reptile Soil, Cypress Mulch and Bark Chips are all great options. Because of the level of humidity, many people keep their geckos in bioactive enclosures to assist in preventing mold and bacteria buildup. Refer to our post on bioactive enclosures for building instructions. Hatchling Crested Geckos can be kept on paper towel or newspaper for easier monitoring of droppings. You will need to clean the walls of the enclosure frequently to remove any feces, hard water buildup or food smudges. Crested geckos can be pretty messy at times and have a habit of walking through their food. A buildup on the walls can sometimes prevent your animal from sticking to the surface when they want to climb, leading to falls and potential injury.

Crested Geckos are solitary animals, this means that they prefer to live alone and can be territorial in many cases.  Some keepers have had success keeping two females together, however, this is entirely dependant on the individual personalities of the animals.  Females can, and usually do, fight.  Male-Female breeding pairs should only be kept together when actively breeding, and should be separated right after.  Splitting them up will ensure that your female is able to lay her eggs, uninterrupted and unbothered by a pesky boy.  It will also help to keep your animals happy, not stressed and not overbred.  Breeding animals should have a long “down period” between breeding seasons.    **Note: Female geckos not introduced to a male will sometimes still lay infertile eggs, this is perfectly normal. When this happens, you will notice her digging around the bottom of the enclosure for a few hours to a few days before hand, try to give her some privacy (it can take a while) and remove the eggs when she has moved away from them. Feed your female gecko extra protein and calcium at this time. She will need it to recover some of what she has used creating the eggs.

Heat and Lighting:

Crested Geckos do not require a lot of heat. In fact, temperatures around 84 degrees F will likely kill your animal. Keeping them too cold will also cause lethargy and feeding problems. The ideal temperature for a Crested Gecko is around 75 to 78 degrees F. A nighttime temperature drop to about 68 degrees F is also perfectly fine for your animal. If your ambient home temperature is cooler than 70 degrees consistently, we recommend adding a low wattage blue “Night time” bulb to raise the ambient temperature throughout the day. Use heat bulbs with caution and always monitor the temperature of your animal's enclosure.

Like all animals, Crested Geckos (though they are nocturnal) will need a day/night cycle. This means that they receive about 12 hours of light and 12 hours of darkness. You may want to add an LED light on the enclosure with a timer. Keeping the animal in a bright room with a window is also sufficient. Do not keep the enclosure directly in front of a window or in the direct light of the sun. This will turn your animal's enclosure into an oven, we don't want that.

Many keepers use UVB lighting with their geckos. It is not required for nocturnal animals, however, it has shown some beneficial evidence, should you choose to use it. Many find their geckos are more active with the use of UVB lighting. Use UVB with caution if supplementing with D3 enriched calcium and consider switching to calcium without D3 as they will absorb some D3 from the lighting and can potentially overdose on the vitamin if they receive too much. Please research types of UVB lighting before making your decision.  Be sure to use an appropriate wattage, 5.0 tropical bulb or 6-7% Shade-dweller bulb as per the size of your enclosure.

Handling and Interaction:

Crested Geckos are small, delicate animals.  When picking up your gecko, try to use a scooping motion with one or two fingers underneath it's chin area. Picking the animal up this way should naturally cause them to grab onto you, eliminating any need to grab them from around the midsection. Since their skeletal structure is so small, try to avoid any handling where pressure is put on the sides of their body, and instead, let them hold onto you. Crested Geckos have tiny hair-like Setae on each of their toes, this allows them to stick to smooth surfaces like glass, they also have tiny little claws on the end of each toe to grip rougher surfaces and balance.

Limit handling sessions with your Crested Gecko to only about 15 minutes a day or less. Handling for too long may be harmful to your animal, as they need to stay about 10 to 15 degrees cooler than your natural human body temperature.  Crested Geckos, like many other geckos, have the ability to "drop" their tail. In the wild, they use this as a defence mechanism to escape predators who have grabbed ahold of their tail. In captivity, geckos can drop their tails if you somehow put too much pressure on it or if they become stressed. This is very common with hatchling geckos but not as common with adults. Tailless Crested Geckos are often referred to as "Frog-butts", due to the way their back-end looks after it heals off. Unlike other geckos, Cresties do not possess the gene that allows them to regenerate or grow back their tails once dropped. This will not affect the overall health of your animal but it may take them a couple of days to figure out their balance again, this is what they use it for the most.

When handling your gecko, try to read their body language for any signs of stress. Signs of stress may include a combination of symptoms like:

- Being "fired up" (in their darkest, or most vibrant colour phase)

- Gaping (opening their mouth at you)

- Hunching or arching their back in an effort to appear larger

- Heavy, fast breathing

- Running or trying to jump away from you frantically. (Do not underestimate their ability to jump away very quickly, they just might end up on the ceiling. They're very talented)

- Tail twitching or head shaking

- Squeaking/Screaming/Barking

If your gecko begins to show a combination of stress symptoms, discontinue handling and return them to their enclosure. Gradually attempt handling in shorter, more infrequent sessions over a period of time to make your gecko more trusting. Tong feeding insects to your animal is a great trust building and bonding exercise. Like most animals, Crested Geckos can have mood swings and off days. Get to know your animal and their unique personality.

Overall, Crested Geckos make wonderful pets. They come in a wide variety of colour morphs and are a spectacle to look at. Building a tropical themed enclosure for them can also be very fun, there are a lot of really creative ideas out there. Once you get the basics down, they are one of the easiest animals to care for. Enjoy your new, tiny pet dragon!