Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey, while I was browsing the photos section I saw some of the posts of peoples setups for their geckos. Some of the setups can get extravagant with large rock walls and ledges. Some even have mutliple ledges going upward to climb on.
I personally dont put anything higher than their hide box in my aquarium setups and even then I see them climb up on that and stand against the glass on their hind legs. Sometimes they stand there for a while and then when they move around they usually fall over. I always worried that if I had high ledges in my setup for them to climb on they would fall from a reasonable height. Everyone knows how easily leos get hurt from falling. Has anyone had any experiences with fall damage WITHIN the tank? Just curious as I couldnt find any posts on this topic in the forum.

Joe
Leos 2.3.5
Corn Snake 0.1

My leo does the same thing. He plasters himself agianst the glass and eventually falls to the side. I too have not put anything to high in his house because I fear injury. Just thought I'd let you know someone else out there has concerns.

Most leos do that, mine does too. I wouldnt be over paranoid about it, but just make sure The rocks arent too high or there isnt something near it the gecko could fall onto (like a jagged rock or something). I have a peice of driftwood that goes about 9 inches off the ground and she sometimes falls off, but shes never hurt herself. Hope this helps, I'd say just use commen sense while deciding if the leo could get hurt.
Mac
P.S. if you do decide on some climbing stuff, make sure everything is in place tighly so it doesnt fall and hurt your gecko aswell.

I think leos are meant to climb. Just look at their feet: how their claws allow them to cling to most natural surfaces, how they're able to stand on their tails, the kind of rock-climbing environment they're from, and even just their inclination to climb.

You might want to try putting some things for your leo to climb that are stable and not so close to the sides of the tank.
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Lovin' would be easy if your colors were like my dreams...

Definetely not meant to climb. Most leos in captivity climb because they are trying to get out of the cage. Almost all, if not all, arboreal geckos have the sticky pad(not sure of technical term) feet, which is what helps them climb. Leos arent good balancers either because of their weight, and the size of their tails. Also, the area they are from is a rocky flat area, not high trees and large things to climb on.
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Josh
My Email

I said rock-climbing in my original post, not tree-climbing. And dude, I'm from Kansas. The words rock and flat do not belong in the same sentence.

I agree that leos are trying to get out when they try to climb up the glass. My leos have only done that on two occasions: when I had the temps too high one time, and when the females were gravid. But I keep objects in my set-up with various surfaces located on different parts of the tank, and my leos are definitely more attracted to the rocky surfaces.
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Lovin' would be easy if your colors were like my dreams...

So are you saying that Kansas has the same terrain as the middle east?? The area that leos come from is not high, they live in burrows. Leos live in a FLAT ROCKY area....
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Josh
My Email

Also, I think you completely missed my point. It doesnt matter about trees or rocks, the area isn't high, and if it does have higher elevation it isn't steep enough to where they would really have to climb...
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Josh
My Email

Actually, leos are known in the wild to live in holes in the side of man-made rockwalls and small "cliffs". I'm sure the rocks have enough texture for them to climb up and down on them. The ground isn't completely flat, just like any area there are variations. As for the origional question, if your leo is trying to climb up the sides of the cage then it doesn't have enough room. Either get it a larger cage or build one yourself! Believe me, they appreciate the room!
Hope this helps,
Adam

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My pic gallery

You people are reading too much into my words. Burrows, holes, no difference....
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Josh
My Email

I dont think that the reason they are climbing the glass is because they need more room. I house only 2 females (my prettiest 2) in a 25 gallon aquarium with multiple hide spots and believe me, for only 2 leos its spacious. Ive also heard that an aquarium much larger than 24 inches will stress geckos by separating them from their food and heat sources. I read that in one of the gecko books. I think they just always want to get out no matter what.

JOe

Josh, a tank is like a foot tall? maybe 2? you really think that the middle east and the area where geckos live naturally doesn't have any ground variation of a foot or so? I think that a foot or 2 of climbing stuff is ok. my older male just fell about 6 feet or so (I'm 6'5", off my shoulder onto the floor, and looked a bit stuned for a second then got back to it. He hasn't shown any sign of injury, or stress he's eating just fine.. this isn't the first time he's done it either... My other geckos have jumped off the couch before too. I think they're more durable than people think. g'ahead let 'em climb... the ONLY thing I worry about, is them landing on their tail and dropping it. but if you put a repti-hammok under the tall part of the climbing apparatus (just in case), you should be ok!

Kev
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Kev
1.1.0 Tang Leopard Geckos: Marley, Mary
1.0.0 Normal Leopard Gecko: Toad
0.1.0 Colombian Rainbow Boa: Rambo
1 Beta: Malificent
0.1.0 Tri Australian Shepard: Nelly

>>Josh, a tank is like a foot tall? maybe 2? you really think that the middle east and the area where geckos live naturally doesn't have any ground variation of a foot or so? I think that a foot or 2 of climbing stuff is ok. my older male just fell about 6 feet or so (I'm 6'5", off my shoulder onto the floor, and looked a bit stuned for a second then got back to it. He hasn't shown any sign of injury, or stress he's eating just fine.. this isn't the first time he's done it either... My other geckos have jumped off the couch before too. I think they're more durable than people think. g'ahead let 'em climb... the ONLY thing I worry about, is them landing on their tail and dropping it. but if you put a repti-hammok under the tall part of the climbing apparatus (just in case), you should be ok!
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>>Kev
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>>Kev
>>1.1.0 Tang Leopard Geckos: Marley, Mary
>>1.0.0 Normal Leopard Gecko: Toad
>>0.1.0 Colombian Rainbow Boa: Rambo
>>1 Beta: Malificent
>>0.1.0 Tri Australian Shepard: Nelly
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Josh
My Email

man, just because you sport a differnet opinion than I do, doean't make you any better than anyone else. And after seeing PICTURES of Afghanistan on the news... I've come to the comclusion that there ARE drops and ground level changes of a foot or 2, all the way up to around 500 feet and even higher still. Alqueda hid in caves in the desert mountains. the same desert that some leopard geckos come from... so let me turn it around on YOU sir.... YOU think what you want... and I'll tell you what I KNOW.
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Kev
1.1.0 Tang Leopard Geckos: Marley, Mary
1.0.0 Normal Leopard Gecko: Toad
0.1.0 Colombian Rainbow Boa: Rambo
1 Beta: Malificent
0.1.0 Tri Australian Shepard: Nelly

I have a gecko that is always climbing to the screen top (short reptil tank, 1/2 as high as reg 10-gallon aquarium) and hanging upside down a moment before falling onn his back. She does this all th time and has never injured herself. I have had geckos fall (actually, jump) and fall to the floor when I was holding them, and none of them has had any damage either. But it can happen, I have heard from others. The biggest problem in a tank as far as falling goes as I understand it is the gecko having something fall on him, like a rock.

It has been my impression that geckos go limp when they feel they are falling. Like Starling said, it’s not uncommon for a gecko to just jump out of your hand and onto the floor. You learn with time, what geckos your have to be careful with, and witch ones are content to just hold on. When this has happened to me, the leos seem go limp before hitting the ground. I’ve noticed the same thing from geckos that are doing ‘the leo tail dance’ as they flop over to one side. Maybe I’m wrong, can anyone back me up on this theory?

Thanks for all the replies! Yeah, Ive been wondering about this for a while now. I dont have anything too high for them to climb on and they seem really happy. Other than the fact that they do always climb on the glass to get out. I dont think they do it because they are unhappy though. Almost all reptiles Ive seen are constantly testing their boundaries by looking everywhere. Thats why if you ever do have a small exit somewhere, they will always find it.
My snake is always moving around against the glass.

Joe

I have the similar setup to you nothing too high, but i've had a baby fall off the lid of her hide box, break a leg.. but that's been the most extreme of silly gecko fallings...
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GeckoFire-Dale
Proud owner of 2.3.1
Questions? Drop me a line

I think that to have something in there for them to climb on (no more than a foot high) wouldnt hurt themif they fell but thats just my thought on it

I never said that they would get hurt from climbing, I said they werent natural climbers...
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Josh
My Email

They're not natural climbers in the sense that thy don't climb trees. But they DO have to climb in their natural terrain. You are correct they are not arboreal geckos, they are simply "ground geckos" but this does not make them umable to climb, nor does it make climbing dangerour to them. These little critters are remarkably durable and can withstand a lot of things. They may not climb great heights, but they DO climb if it's a place they want to explore... My leos climb UP as often as they climb down.

Kev
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Kev
1.1.0 Tang Leopard Geckos: Marley, Mary
1.0.0 Normal Leopard Gecko: Toad
0.1.0 Colombian Rainbow Boa: Rambo
1 Beta: Malificent
0.1.0 Tri Australian Shepard: Nelly