Leopard Geckos are one of the most common Lizards kept as pets in the UK, they have such docile personality's making them easy to handle as well as having beautiful colouration with today's wide variety of morphs available, these can vary in colour from being all white to being bright orange with patterning in different parts of the body. The leopard gecko is a relatively small lizard which often grow anywhere between 15 cm and 25 cm in length (including their tail). taking on a Leopard gecko is a big commitment as they can live well into their teens and some have even been recorded to be as old as 20+ making them just as long lived as many cats and dogs.
When choosing a leopard gecko there are many things you must consider. Firstly the size of the habitat is crucial as this is where it will be spending its entire life. I would recommend a minimum tank size of around 45 x 45 x 45 cm vivarium one such as the Exo-Terra glass terrarium for one leopard gecko. Secondly they require light and heat in there quarters in the day and heat at night, this can be controlled by using a thermostat along with a heat mat ensuring that the temperature is constant. leopard geckos do not require a UV light or a basking spot but they do require some form of light to allow them to differentiate between night and day. Leopard geckos are carnivores and should always be fed on live insects such as crickets and meal worms which should also be dusted with a supplement powder. The cost of a leopard gecko a long with the set up can be quite a lot at first but the maintenance cost for these wonderful lizards is very low and once the temperature is right then caring for a leopard gecko is very easy. When deciding on a leopard gecko its self it is important to really have a good look at it and even hold it before you buy it, this will allow you to see the temperament of the gecko and if its right for you as well as ensure there are no lumps bumps or other problems that could occur with the leopard gecko.
Setting up a Leopard geckos vivarium is very easy and a lot of it can be done on personal preference, a Leopard gecko will always need a good sized hide to allow it to hide away (this should have damp moss inside to help a it to shed its skin. a water bowl for obvious reasons and something to climb on but after that it is really up to you to design the vivarium how you want to. I start by using a reptile safe sand and filling it around an inch or so thick (with the heat mat underneath) this allows the heat to still pass through but is deep enough to stop my leopard gecko from lying straight on the heat mat and possibly burning himself. Although some people use different substrates such as cage carpet to prevent any chance of impaction. again this is a personal preference I would however recommend you stay clear of play and building sand as these have a lot sharper edges and bigger pieces so are a little more dangerous to a leopard gecko. I then Provide 2 hides on with damp sphagnum moss and one without to allow Dooey (my leopard gecko) to decide on the amount of humidity he wants at any particular time.
Along with that I have placed a stable driftwood block to allow him to climb in and on top of this, some people say that they don't often climb and they don't need any height to their vivarium because of this, personally I disagree, Dooey is constantly climbing around his quarters and I think if you give any leopard gecko the chance then you will see them climb to. I also give mine a small pot of calcium dust in his Quarters to allow him to regulate how much his body needs. when the leopard gecko's vivarium is all set up and ready with the ambient temperature being around 28 Degrees Celsius and the humidity level being around 40% if this is met then your shouldn't encounter any problems with your gecko suffering respiratory infections or lack of appetite due to a low temperature.
When feeding your leopard gecko you should always follow one simple rule which is do not feed it anything wider than the space between your geckos eyes or longer than your geckos head, this is because leopard geckos only have very tiny teeth and don't chew up their food. anything bigger than the rule may get stuck while you gecko is swallowing it which could be fatal. leopard geckos should be fed on a variety of live foods to replicate their diet in the wild so a mixture of brown crickets, black crickets, locusts, the odd roach and meal worms are ll suitable foods for your leopard gecko however there are also other foods such as wax worms, morio worms and silk worms that are also suitable but have a higher fat content so should be given more as the occasional treat or to fatten up a skinny gecko. all live food should be "gut loaded" before being fed to your gecko to ensure its receiving the most nutrients that it possibly can. all live food should also be dusted with a supplement, I use the Vetark Nutrobal every other day and the Vetark Calci-Dust on the other days.
Handling leopard geckos is very easy but should always be done with care. A leopard gecko has the ability to drop its tail when it feels scared or threatened, in the wild the tail would drop of and twitch to attract a predators attention allowing the gecko to escape. The tail will grow back over time but may never look the same, so you should never try to pick a gecko up or stop it struggling by holding its tail. When you handle your leopard gecko tail loss very rarely happens especially when they get used to you handling them. When you first start to handle your gecko I find its best to just place your hand close to it and allow it to come to you and explore you first, it may taste you first but don't worry this will probably be how it learns to recognise you. When your gecko feels comfortable around you, you may then start to pick it up. Do this by sliding your hand underneath the gecko and gently lifting up your hand as picking them up from above may scare them. When your gecko is in your hand tilt your palm slightly upwards facing the leopard geckos head towards the top, your gecko may just sit there for a few minutes but normally they do prefer to walk around so place your other hand in front of them allowing them to walk around if they choose to. When your leopard gecko is walking it is also less likely to try to jump off your hand. You can handle your leopard gecko every day however some do tolerate it more than others so stick to around half an hour or so per day before placing your hand back in its vivarium and allowing it to walk of itself.
leopard geckos like many other geckos shed the entire outer layer of skin in one go, when growing this can happen as often as 2 times a month but will slow down when they reach there full size to around once a month or even once every couple of months. it is important they they have a humid hide available at this point to allow them to retreat and soften up their outer skin. the skin will become very dull even making them look white in colouration before they are about to shed, you will then see your leopard gecko rub its face and body on a rough surface to try and create a small tear in the skin to start to peel it off, once the skin has started to peel off they then use their mouths to pull of the rest of their skin especially around the feet (this often looks like they are pulling off a glove) often your gecko will loose its appetite prior to shedding this is normal as when they have shed their skin they often eat it as it actually contains certain nutrients as well as reducing their scent marking so in the wild a predator would not be able to find them. Just after shedding is when you will see the most vibrant colouration in your leopard gecko.
Hope this helped you a little if anybody has any other questions feel free to comment thanks.
Setting up a Leopard geckos vivarium is very easy and a lot of it can be done on personal preference, a Leopard gecko will always need a good sized hide to allow it to hide away (this should have damp moss inside to help a it to shed its skin. a water bowl for obvious reasons and something to climb on but after that it is really up to you to design the vivarium how you want to. I start by using a reptile safe sand and filling it around an inch or so thick (with the heat mat underneath) this allows the heat to still pass through but is deep enough to stop my leopard gecko from lying straight on the heat mat and possibly burning himself. Although some people use different substrates such as cage carpet to prevent any chance of impaction. again this is a personal preference I would however recommend you stay clear of play and building sand as these have a lot sharper edges and bigger pieces so are a little more dangerous to a leopard gecko. I then Provide 2 hides on with damp sphagnum moss and one without to allow Dooey (my leopard gecko) to decide on the amount of humidity he wants at any particular time.
Along with that I have placed a stable driftwood block to allow him to climb in and on top of this, some people say that they don't often climb and they don't need any height to their vivarium because of this, personally I disagree, Dooey is constantly climbing around his quarters and I think if you give any leopard gecko the chance then you will see them climb to. I also give mine a small pot of calcium dust in his Quarters to allow him to regulate how much his body needs. when the leopard gecko's vivarium is all set up and ready with the ambient temperature being around 28 Degrees Celsius and the humidity level being around 40% if this is met then your shouldn't encounter any problems with your gecko suffering respiratory infections or lack of appetite due to a low temperature. 
When feeding your leopard gecko you should always follow one simple rule which is do not feed it anything wider than the space between your geckos eyes or longer than your geckos head, this is because leopard geckos only have very tiny teeth and don't chew up their food. anything bigger than the rule may get stuck while you gecko is swallowing it which could be fatal. leopard geckos should be fed on a variety of live foods to replicate their diet in the wild so a mixture of brown crickets, black crickets, locusts, the odd roach and meal worms are ll suitable foods for your leopard gecko however there are also other foods such as wax worms, morio worms and silk worms that are also suitable but have a higher fat content so should be given more as the occasional treat or to fatten up a skinny gecko. all live food should be "gut loaded" before being fed to your gecko to ensure its receiving the most nutrients that it possibly can. all live food should also be dusted with a supplement, I use the Vetark Nutrobal every other day and the Vetark Calci-Dust on the other days.
Handling leopard geckos is very easy but should always be done with care. A leopard gecko has the ability to drop its tail when it feels scared or threatened, in the wild the tail would drop of and twitch to attract a predators attention allowing the gecko to escape. The tail will grow back over time but may never look the same, so you should never try to pick a gecko up or stop it struggling by holding its tail. When you handle your leopard gecko tail loss very rarely happens especially when they get used to you handling them. When you first start to handle your gecko I find its best to just place your hand close to it and allow it to come to you and explore you first, it may taste you first but don't worry this will probably be how it learns to recognise you. When your gecko feels comfortable around you, you may then start to pick it up. Do this by sliding your hand underneath the gecko and gently lifting up your hand as picking them up from above may scare them. When your gecko is in your hand tilt your palm slightly upwards facing the leopard geckos head towards the top, your gecko may just sit there for a few minutes but normally they do prefer to walk around so place your other hand in front of them allowing them to walk around if they choose to. When your leopard gecko is walking it is also less likely to try to jump off your hand. You can handle your leopard gecko every day however some do tolerate it more than others so stick to around half an hour or so per day before placing your hand back in its vivarium and allowing it to walk of itself.
leopard geckos like many other geckos shed the entire outer layer of skin in one go, when growing this can happen as often as 2 times a month but will slow down when they reach there full size to around once a month or even once every couple of months. it is important they they have a humid hide available at this point to allow them to retreat and soften up their outer skin. the skin will become very dull even making them look white in colouration before they are about to shed, you will then see your leopard gecko rub its face and body on a rough surface to try and create a small tear in the skin to start to peel it off, once the skin has started to peel off they then use their mouths to pull of the rest of their skin especially around the feet (this often looks like they are pulling off a glove) often your gecko will loose its appetite prior to shedding this is normal as when they have shed their skin they often eat it as it actually contains certain nutrients as well as reducing their scent marking so in the wild a predator would not be able to find them. Just after shedding is when you will see the most vibrant colouration in your leopard gecko.
Hope this helped you a little if anybody has any other questions feel free to comment thanks.
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