Crested Gecko is usually known as the Rhacodactylus ciliatus. They are also classified as Ciliatus Correlophus in New Caledonia. These tiny creatures are semi-arboreal and spend their time in small surroundings of shrubs and trees. However, during the day, they hide near the ground area.
They feed both fruits and insects. Many people love to adopt these creatures, which are easy to keep within the home temperature. A recent report has shown that some of them have an unusual and unique appearance. Due to their high breeding potential, their population is exploding day by day.
However, they are denoted as the best pet lizards found today. Mostly Crested Gecko owners prefer to follow every necessary care guide for them. Thus we are here to provide you with the proper care guidelines to encourage their natural growth.
Crested Gecko Care Guidelines
Crested geckos are omnivores. They require low maintenance and care in their daily routine. They have unique eyelashes, one of the distinctive features that makes them popular among Eyelash geckos. There is no need to clean them because they can lick their eyeballs to moisten and clean them. However, you need certain things to take care of these tiny creatures.
Habitat and Housing Size Guide:
Crested geckos are extremely hardy and versatile. They can keep themselves in one or different types of enclosures. These creatures can easily grow in simple conditions. Moreover, they can use any glass tank size with a secure screen cover. Also, an adult crested gecko will require a minimum of 18-20 gallons of the tank. But the tank height should be higher than the floor space.
If you choose the larger habitat for your crested pet, it can grow properly. Some pet owners claim they are hard to tackle in small screened habitats. Adult crested geckos can grow under ideal room temperature from 9-12 months. However, as your little reptile grows, you need to upgrade the habitat size.
Humidity and Temperature Guide:
Temperature and humidity are extremely important to maintain for your little reptile. You have to maintain the enclosure between 70 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit. A higher temperature than this can make their body stressed out. It sometimes leads to instant death or overheating.
But when it comes to the winter season, you don’t need to give supplementing heating. They are nocturnal, and in the winter season, they can grow widely. You can even give them a heating pad in the right area of the tank. A ceramic heat emitter benefits them, but you must monitor the situation properly. They are lightweight heating devices. They won’t harm or burn the skin of crested geckos.
Read also: How Often Water Snake Plant? Conditions to Check
Feeding Guide for Crested Gecko:
They should be fed powdered fruits and dried insects. Usually, the adults should be fed insects two times a week. However, when it comes to baby food or fruit puree, specialists recommend giving them fruit in powdered form on a clean plate. You have to adjust the amount of everyday food and evaluate the leftovers. Geckos are usually eager omnivores.
They hunt for insects, especially roaches and crickets. They can even eat worms which are low in fats. Some recommend giving them silkworms and roaches, which are higher in protein. However, when it comes to water consumption, you should place a clean water bowl in their tank. Maybe you don’t see that your tiny gecko drink water. But they usually drink it after eating high-fat worms.
Supplements Consumption:
Crested geckos will get enough minerals and vitamins in their daily routine diet. However, you need to give them enough vitamins and calcium, which are not available enough in their routine diet plan. There are a lot of supplement brands available in the market. Pet specialists suggest that every gecko’s owner should include a synthetic vitamin D3. You need to add balanced multi-vitamin to your routine diet.
Cleaning Guidelines for Crested Gecko:
Every pet requires a clean and natural environment to grow as gecko lives in bio-active enclosure, so you need to clean the tank every 3-4 weeks. You have to monitor their tank every two days on their breeding days.
While cleaning the enclosure, you have to politely put your animal out of the tank and place them in a clean environment, like in the enclosed garden. You have to clean this tank quickly. The reason is that geckos should never be left for more than 30 seconds.
Breeding Requirements:
They may frequently breed if you have a pair of crested geckos in your home. You don’t have to do any hustle to breed them. They can breed as fast as possible in the natural environment if they are active and healthy. All you need to do is to check the tank every day to incubate those eggs. Before the breeding days, you have to place a nesting box in the tank to lay eggs.
Inside the box, you have to buy a mix of soil to keep in enough humidity. Once the gravid female lays eggs in the nesting box, the eggs need to be incubated at 84 degrees Fahrenheit. After 50-60 days, the eggs will start hatching naturally.
Decoration and UV Lighting:
UVB lighting in the tank is an optional thing. Pet owners usually add decorations to make their species feel comfortable and happy. You can use T5 UVB tubes on the edges of the tank, which gives a delightful environment look.
For decoration purposes, solid particles and bark chips are admired by Crested Gecko. You can even add a bunch of leaves and small plants to give them natural habitat environment. Large leaves and plants (Artificial or real) can catch the attention of these tiny pets. So it is good to add a combination of these ideas to thrive their attention.
Ending Note:
Similar to reptiles, geckos have a soft organ on their mouth roof. The Jacobson organ shows the behaviour and health of your tiny creature. Crested geckos have a great sense of taste. However, it is sometimes difficult to change their diet plan. As a responsible pet owner, you need to focus on their routine diet plan and their behaviour!
