Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My brother just got a leopard gecko for his birthday, and me being the nerd I am decided to do the research for him just to make sure he's doing everything right. Now the websites I found said that the geckos eat mealworms... but the ones we have look HUGE compared to the gecko... are there any rules of thumb to follow with sizes to offer? Also, do they need any veggies? All I've found is have live food and vitamin or calcium dust. We have it on paper towels, have an UTH, and are using paper towel rolls as its hides for right now. Does it need a lamp? Sorry this is so long, I have a bearded dragon but it seems every species is so different in its needs! Thanks for the help!
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~Shana~

Hi, the rule of thumb is no food items should be bigger than the head of your leo. You should not need a heat light if you have have a UTH but is the UTH connected to a thermostat to regulate the temp? You can feed your mealworms oats and bran but it sounds like you have bought super worms. Are they as big as your baby finger???If yes then they are super worms, they are ok to feed as long as your leo can handle them.You can use small cardboard boxes as hides or margarine tubs with a hold cut in for access just simply lightly burn the edges with a lighter to soften the plastic so it is not sharp. Hope this helps some what

Thanks for the reply! Well, they are mealworms, I'm sure of that, it's just that the gecko is VERY tiny, probably as big as my pinky or smaller... just a baby. Thanks for the tip on the hides. Does he really need one with wet soil or something in it? Or just when it looks like he's shedding? Again thanks! It sure helps!
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~Shana~

You dont need soil just use paper towels and use a water sprayer to moisten it, keep it moist at all times ok.For such a young gecko you should really be feeding him/her pin head crickets, the smallest you can find. You should also be dusting them heavily with calcium powder. When i got my female she was smaller than my pinky and i wasnt dusting the crix enough. Sadly she formed MBD Metabolic bone disease I went out and bought some liquid calcium to add into her water and within a week she was looking alot better. The bone in her arm wasn't developing properly and was starting to bend outwards instead of forming straight, so make sure you dust ok. It is very important you do this.