Has your crested gecko not eaten for a while, or does it seem to be eating more than usual? There are many reasons why your crested gecko may be eating irregularly. So as a responsible reptile owner, you really should know ‘how often do crested geckos eat’.
Luckily for you, WE HAVE ALL THE ANSWERS YOU NEED to feed your crested gecko the perfect amount.
Crested geckos have only recently been rediscovered by scientist in 1994 after it was believed to have been extinct for decades prior. However these amazing little reptiles stayed well hidden from human activity, and have now made an amazing comeback to become one of the world favourite lizards to own as pets.
Only recently, within the last 20 years have reptile enthusiasts been breeding crested geckos as domestic pets. Their docile temperament mixed with their friendly characteristics mean they have become well suited for beginner reptile owners, and families with young children. For this reason it’s VERY IMPORTANT that new crested gecko owners know “How often do crested geckos eat’.
How Often Do Crested Gecko Eat Each Week?
Crested geckos are funny little reptiles as they don’t need feeding every day. This is great for those of you who are sometimes forgetful, or constantly in a rushing round in the morning. Crested geckos are notorious for irregular eating, and can go long periods of time without needing a meal. They can commonly go up to three weeks without needing a meal in serious circumstances. So missing a day or two without food isn’t too much to worry about.
Each week you should aim to feed your crested gecko at least THREE TIMES A WEEK.
In the wild, crested geckos won’t always get the opportunity to eat every night. So this can be mirrored in your weekly feeding routine. It’s really up to you in all honesty. You just have to keep in mind the quantities you are feeding your crested gecko. If you would like to feed them every day then this is fine, but you should reduce the amount of food accordingly.
Ideally we would recommend to feed your crested gecko every other day. This is a very simple routine which is easy to follow for anyone and everyone. You may even find that your crested gecko isn’t feeling hungry a few of these days and will not attempt to eat at all. This is completely natural for crested geckos, so never assume that something is wrong. We would suggest monitoring your crested gecko for any unusual behaviour which seems unnatural.
Note: If after a couple of weeks your crested gecko still isn’t eating, and they look like they have lost a bit of weight, we would suggest visiting a specialist veterinarian for further advise.
How Often Do Crested Geckos Eat Fruit and Vegetables?
Crested geckos have brilliant meal replacement powders which have all the nutrients needed to keep your gecko healthy. However, fruit and vegetables are part of a crested geckos natural food source.
Fruits
In the wild crested gecko will eat fruit which is over-ripe, that has dropped onto the floor. Usually they will only do this as a last resort food, as many fruits and vegetables can contain high levels of acidity and sugars. High acidity and sugar levels can cause severe diahorrea for crested geckos, which can then lead further into dehydration and other illnesses.
However, with that said, you can still offer your crested gecko some fruit every now and again as a treat. Although fruits do contain some harmful oxidants in high quantities, they are actually full of really good vitamins and minerals which can actually help your geckos digestive system. So it’s not all bad.
As long as you keep these quantities down to about every 3 days, then your crested gecko should be absolutely fine. Just don’t add too much into their diets, and remember, it’s a treat.
Vegetables
Your crested gecko may absolutely love vegetables, or they could completely dismiss them entirely. It really does depend on each individual. However, I trick which has been used for many years is to blend vegetables into a smoothie.
Yes, crested geckos seem to love a vegetable smoothie. It’s believed to be because their jaws aren’t as powerful are other geckos or lizards, so they find it very difficult to crunch vegetables. This is the same reason why we say that crested geckos only eat “over-ripe” fruits, because they’re much softer.
Vegetables are great for crested geckos EVERY COUPLE OF DAYS. For a completely healthy diet, you should try to add some vegetables into a crested geckos diet. Even if it is blended into a smoothie.
The best vegetables are often bright in colour, that will offer fairly low levels of oxalates. You can try vegetables such as Bell Peppers, Butternut Squash, Tomato, Cucumber, Carrot, Peas, Hibiscus and Pumpkins. All of which you should be able to find at your local convenient store, or supermarket.
How Often Do Crested Geckos Eat During Brumation?
The brumation process can be very tricky to fully understand. A crested geckos appetite changes all the time throughout this process, so there’s no real answer to this question. Maybe you shouldn’t be asking the question ‘How often do crested geckos eat during brumation”, but rather “Will a crested gecko eat through brumation”.
And they answer is yes!
Crested geckos do eat throughout the brumation process, but how often is very hard to tell. What you should be doing though, is feeding your crested gecko slightly more food up until the brumation process begins. Make sure they have put on a little more weight than they usually carry as they could end up not eating for up to 3 months.
You should always have food available for your crested gecko to eat should it want to. But don’t be alarmed if it choses not too, as this is completely natural.
How Often Do Crested Geckos Eat During Pregnancy?
The animal world is all the same when it come to pregnancies. Pregnancy females will always tend to eat more than usual, as they need to eat for their offspring too. Although crested geckos lay eggs, they need to nutrients whilst the eggs are forming inside.
The eggs will fill themselves with nutrients so that the unhatched geckos can feast also. So you’ll want to offer your female crested gecko an extra meal each day throughout the pregnancy process. She will naturally stop eating when she’s had enough, so you shouldn’t worry too much about over feeding.
How Often Do Crested Geckos Eat While Shedding?
Crested geckos can be fed throughout the entire shedding process. Unlike many other reptiles, crested geckos shed their skin in smaller segments. This means they don’t need to be as careful about their skin breaking off in smaller pieces, which can cause problems for other reptiles.
Snakes for example, and some lizards, shed their entire skin in one piece. Complications can arise when the skin cracks and them forms multiple sheds of skin. Crested geckos are not affected by this, and commonly shed their skin in small piece to which they then eat.
Sometimes crested gecko owners won’t even know their gecko has shed as the evidence will have been eaten by the morning. Again, this is nothing you should be worried about as geckos commonly eat their shedding skin as there is still lots of minerals and goodness left in the skin.
How Often Do Baby Crested Geckos Eat?
Baby crested geckos should be fed every day for the first 2 weeks, however this amount should be a reduced quantity.
Baby crested geckos may be hungry as soon as they hatch, however they may take a while to adjust to eating as they will have never done it before. Don’t worry if this tales a coupe of days, they will soon figure it out.
After a couple of weeks feeding every day, you can then start to reduce the days in which you feed your gecko. After about 2 weeks you should begin to feed them every other day, as you would an adult. Their meals will need to be slightly bigger than usual as you don’t want to reduce the amount of food they are getting every other day. You’ll want to be feeding them ‘Gutload’ insects which have been fed a high protein, vitamin and mineral diets for this exact reason.
Dusted insects should be offered to your crested gecko roughly a month after hatching, in replacement for the Gutload insects you have previously been feeding them. From about a month old you can begin to feed them an adult diet, with reduced amounts, until they are fully mature.
As a basic rule to follow, juvenile crested geckos should eat roughly 2 or 3 small sized crickets as a meal, along side and fruit and veg you have chosen. Crickets done offer much nutritional value to crested geckos apart from protein, so crickets should be the sole dietary food. You may find that your gecko refuses to eat the commercial food the day after, but keep offering it to them and your crestie will soon take up the offer.
How Often Do Crested Geckos Eat Crickets?
Crickets are a great source of protein in a crested geckos diet, however crickets should only be offered twice a week. Like many small lizards, crested geckos absolutely love crickets and will eat them at any opportunity.
Unfortunately a crested gecko needs a very specific, varied diet, which means crickets should not be offered any more than twice a week. Pet crested geckos diets consist of commercial foods and supplements, which is believe to be more beneficial to their health than a natural diet.
Adult crested geckos can should be offered between 7-9 crickets as a meal. Any more than this and you run the risk of bloating your crested gecko. Make sure that your crested gecko eat all the crickets you offer them. Having uneaten crickets in the enclosure can be very stressful for crested geckos as they commonly feed on geckos skin when they are sleeping. This can cause stress by keeping your crested gecko awake, and loss of sleep, as well as heightening the risk of infections in skin abrasions.
Conclusion
Well there you have it. Everything you need to know on “How often do crested geckos eat”.
You should remember that crested geckos don’t need feeding every day. They’re able to digest their foods and use its energies very slowly, which means you only need to feed them every other day (or three times a week).
Pet crested geckos can live off commercial foods which contain a complete balance of nutrition, which should be offer as the main bulk of their diets.
Insects such as crickets, mealworms and waxworms can be used as a treat twice a week, but these should also be dusted with special reptile calcium powder.
Fruits which are over ripe (nice and soft) can be offer to your crested gecko a few times a week, which will help to keep a healthy, balanced diet. This closely resembles the types of foods crested gecko may be eating in the wild.
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