Hello. I have had many different types of reptiles over the past couple years. I am now looking to get one reptile. I have done quite a bit of research and a leopard gecko seems like it would fit my situation the best. Correct me if I am wrong, but I believe they are nocturnal (so they don't need UV light), desert dwellers (this makes the enclosure relatively easy to setup and maintain), hardy, don't require huge cages or tons of money, and are not extremely time consuming ... compared to monitors and such.
Most of all, I want a handle-able reptile. I am willing to invest quite a bit of time into the animal. I get busy with school and such and suffer from clinical depression (why I don't have any reptiles now). I love them though and I am not looking to breed and I don't care about color. I care about personality and health. can anyone tell me if a leopard gecko would be a good choice or give any advice or tips... I appreciate you time. Thank you
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personality/pre-aquisition research
Replies (4)
Sounds like a Leo would be perfect for you. I would recommend reading a few books and/or caresheets. There is one on the link to the site below. Feel free to ask any questions you might have! We'll be glad to help.
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Katie F.
Peach State Geckos
Breeding Mealworms
My Email
Your assumptions about leopard geckos sound right. And they are handle-able, for a reptile. They come in a range of personalities so if you do decide to get one you should hand pick it for friendliness. Most are friendly but some are extra friendly and it sounds like you'd appreciate one of those. Some morphs are typically friendlier than others, too. In my experience, patternless tend to be very friendly and tame. I've heard people say the same about albinos.
One large pain about leopard geckos is the constant supply of live bugs they require for food.
Sounds like you're on the right track.
As for another caresheet, I spent a lot of time on mine:
www.milwaukeereptiles.com/LeopardGeckoCare.pdf
As for personality, I agree with choosing an Albino or a Patternless. They tend to be very friendly (at least in my experience). I would also say get an adult female (adults are tamer than babies and juvies, and females are usually less agressive than males). I'd also look at buying from someone who handles their herps often from hatching, such as Marcia from GoldenGateGeckos.com
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Brian Skibinski
Brian@MilwaukeeReptiles.com
www.MilwaukeeReptiles.com
Leopard Gecko Care Sheet
That's really interesting to read 2 of you singling out the patternless as a particularly "friendly" variation of the leo. I have 2 young female leos, 1 is a hypo-tangerine and 1 is a Rainwater patternless albino. The albino is by FAR the friendlier of the 2. She's very curious and not skittish at all. I don't handle my leos as they are still both pretty young, but I have tried to get them used to my hand, and the patternless will approach and touch my hand whereas the hypo-tang will retreat.
I know there are many that will say that you can't predict or breed for personality, and I guess it's likely just coincidence, but I would take my chances on a patternless albino any day. If nothing else, they are very pretty, in my humble opinion.
