Pixie Pets
Fort Wayne, In
pixiepets@outlook.com

Cohabbing: Baby crested geckos are usually better off being housed seperrately, this helps you determine if your gecko is eating and pooping and you will usually yield faster growth rates. With that said, it is possible to house groups of females together, you will need bigger enclosures for larger colonies. You can also house a single male with a pair, trio, or quad of ladies if you plan to breed them. It is best to take out the male or give him enough ladies and a ton of hiding places for the girls so the male isn't constantly harassing the females. If you do end up putting a male in with your girls, please watch for fighting and harassment and remove him as needed. It is also possible to leave the male during the "off season", just keep an eye on things. Any geckos that you house together should be of similar size/weight. Never house multiple sexually mature males together, if you can determine that they are male (ball bulges) then they are sexually mature.

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Defensive Behaviors: When threatened, your crested gecko may vocalize, open it's mouth and stare menacingly at you, actually bite you (which doesn't hurt in the slightest), or drop it's tail. Most of the time, your gecko will run away quickly in the goofiest most uncorrdinated manner you can imagine or jump straight up in the air with no destination planned that I like to call the yeet of faith.

          Tip: Breeding: It is normal for a male to harass your female a little and if she is not interested then she will squabble with him. It is normal for your male to bite your female on the neck/crests when she is receptive so he can hold on while mating. Either of these actions may result in injuries or tail drops.

          Tip: Tail Drops: It is possible for your gecko to drop it's tail for many reasons and some times for no discernible reason at all. The nub end of the butt will heal up in a matter of weeks, sometimes an extra nubbin will grow off the stump but we're talking 1/4" or less. Injuries to tails or "partial drops" will also not really grow back either. I have read other breeder's anecdotal stories and theories that older geckos may be more prone to tail drops and a younger gecko may grow back more tail tissue. At the time of this writing, I have only had crested geckos for 2-ish years and have never had a tail drop. I have a single "frog butt" in my collection that came to me that way, her nubbin is practically non existent but is definatly regenerated material.

 

Vocalizations: Crested geckos make noises on occasion. Sometimes it's a chirp, sometimes it's a scream, sometimes it literally sounds like a Yoshi melm. This can happen when they're happy, excited, randy, scared, it's Tuesday...

 

Body Language: There's not too much to say about body language, you can easily tell when they're defensive, trying to protect themselves, scared, hungry, males that are ready to mate, etc. The biggest markers for defensive posture would have to be open mouth staring and tail vibrating, twitching, or waving like a snake.

          Tip: Fun Extra: Crested geckos yawn!

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Handling: Some geckos don't like handling at all, and that's ok! Some geckos don't mind it, be aware of what your geckos body language is telling you and handle accordingly. It is always best to have both hands free, and be prepared to snatch a soft body out of the sky if they decide to take a flying leap. Watch where your gecko is looking, if they can see a tall thing in the distance, they'll leap for it like they can reach it. To curb your gecko's flight risk, walk them by constantly putting one of your hands in front of them, when they get on that hand, use the other, over and over until they're a little tired of it. To encourage them to use your hand instead of crawling up your arm or flying, you can raise your hand up so the next step or jump for the gecko always looks like it's higher from their point of view. Use soft but firm pressure to hold them still when needed, otherwise just keep your hands open. You can also "blind" them by cupping your hands together if you need a moment or need to distract them from jumping somewhere. Never yank on your gecko's tail, it's possible for them to hold onto you with their tail or if your gecko is relaxed, you can touch it, just don't pull on it on purpose. Sometimes geckos will even hang by their tails and sometimes you may catch a yeeting gecko by the tail, it happens!

          Tip: Hot Hands: Your gecko may just not like being held by you because your hands are too warm! Try holding something a little cool or wash your hands in cold water to cool them off before handling.

          Tip: Don't Scream: Try really hard not to jump or scream when they jump!

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