Question about feeding leopard geckos

S

shook1s

AC Members
Mar 29, 2008
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6
Northern IL
So I picked up a pair of leopard geckos 2 days ago. Everything seems fine so far. They're eating normally and seem happy so far. My question is about their diet. I have been feeding small crickets and they seem to love them. My problem is they are a major pain (the crickets). they are hard to control and are the dumbest things I have ever seen, drowning in the water bowl, escaping the bag when I'm trying to dust them, etc. I always take them out and then add fresh water when they drown, but it's a PITA. I got frustrated today and went to get mealworms as I have read they can be the staple diet as well. The employee at my LPS said they should not be their staple diet as they are low in nutritional value and high in fat. From doing research, I saw this was true about waxworms, but never read this about mealworms. So I have 2 questions:

1. Can mealworms be the everyday diet without causing nutritional problems for the geckos?

2. If crickets are required, is there a way to prevent the drowning situation? I don't want to be morbid, but can they be hobbled in any way so they can't escape the food bowl? Or is there a more humane way to get this accomplished? Thanks!!
 
How big are the geckos, full grown adults? I feed mealworms and superworms to my leo's, but I gutload all my live food prior to feeding. I feed crickets as a treat about once a week when I purchase them for my cresteds and savannah monitor. I've never had a problem with this type of feeding.

Personally I hate crickets, so I tend to avoid them at all costs now. Plus I can bulk order worms and they last a long time.
 
mine love pinkies, and my mice make a ton of them. but they are really only a treat. mine wont eat worms, so i feed them the canned stuff. theyll eat right out of them. they get live crickets too
 
I wouldn't go with feeding the can stuff, it isn't as healthy. Seldom, if ever, should they get pinkies as well. I see this as a treat for my breeding females, but I only feed F/T pinkies.
 
darkcirca said:
How big are the geckos, full grown adults? I feed mealworms and superworms to my leo's, but I gutload all my live food prior to feeding. I feed crickets as a treat about once a week when I purchase them for my cresteds and savannah monitor. I've never had a problem with this type of feeding.

Personally I hate crickets, so I tend to avoid them at all costs now. Plus I can bulk order worms and they last a long time.
Click to expand...

They are babies I'd say 3-4 inches in length. I had to get the small crickets, because the large looked bigger than their heads. I have been gut loading the crickets with flukers. That brings up another question though. The mealworms are packaged in what looks like saw dust, but it's some sort of oat or bran substrate. Is gutloading beyond this necessary with the mealworms. Thanks for the quick replies!!!!

p.s. I couldn't agree more about the crickets. I spent 20 mins chasing 2 escapees around my living room last night.
 
cam191919 said:
mine love pinkies, and my mice make a ton of them. but they are really only a treat. mine wont eat worms, so i feed them the canned stuff. theyll eat right out of them. they get live crickets too
Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure mine are still too young and small for pinkies right now
 
At least they are in your living room! My reptiles and I share a bedroom in the basement, and the crickets go in a container in the other room. When 3am rolls around you can hear them..just another reason to avoid them for me!

I gutload with vegetables (potatoes, carrots, mustard green, collard green, squash, etc). I have a bearded dragon, so I just use the food I feed her. I keep my superworms in rubbermaid containers with oats and bran mixed together, which gets replaced once a month (or when it becomes like sawdust). The mealworms
stay in the fridge and get gutloaded 24 hours prior in a separate container outside the fridge. Leaving them at room temp causes them to morph sooner, and often die off.
 
last one....how many average sized mealworms are appropriate for two 3-4inch babies per day. and should their feeding be split into a morning and night feeding?
 
From what I've read, although waxworms are higher in fat than mealworms, mealworms are still unhealthy as a constant diet. Dusted/loaded crickets should be a staple diet for a healthy gecko. Pinkies are bad enough for pacman frogs, but leopards? *shudder*

You can give the crickets very little water and a wet sponge for water, as well as potatos, carrots, and other water-laden plant matter. I think there are these liquid gel crystal/blob things out, too.
 
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