Crested geecko care Sheet
Introduction to the world of Cresties!
Congrats, you bought your first crested gecko! Now lets keep it alive. Crested geckos are very easy to care for. Part of a crested geckos appeal is its entry level husbandry. They do not require live food as long as you are feeding them the correct diet, and they do not require any additional heat as long as you don't live in freakishly abnormal temperatures.
Housing - a.k.a - Your gecko's sweet suite
Before we go over enclosure sizes and roomate contracts, lets go over some essential items necessary in order for your gecko to live like a king. Decorating your cresties enclosure can be a ton of fun.
- Branches and vines - Your cold blooded monkeys need plenty of branches to climb on. I use bamboo sticks and those ZooMed bendable vines in all of my enclosures. The geckos seem to love hanging out on the bamboo. Since cresties are arboreal, the higher you can get the branches the better.
- Plants and Foilage - Crested geckos need plenty of hiding spaces. I use fake plants that I bought from Michael's Crafts, Walmart, Reptile Product Companies, but you can also use real plants if you have the correct requirements (lighting and gecko safe plants). Cresties will often take shelter in or behind your suction cupped plants when looking for a place to rest those eyes that never close.
- Ledges - I find that most of my geckos love to hang out on my Magnatural rock ledges. I guess you could call it thier own personal look out point.
- Hides - Every one of my geckos use their hides often. Whether it is a rock or log hide bought from the store, or a container with a door cut out, my geckos love to take shelter in their hides
- Substrate - I use paper towels in all of my enclosures for the ease of clean up and the elimination of impaction accidents.
Enclosure Size
- Hatchling to 5 grams - Small Kritter Keeper with a cluster of fake plants and a food/water dish. You could also use a 6 qt Rubbermaid or Sterilite container
- 5 grams to 15 grams - Large Kritter Keeper with bamboo, a cluster of fake plants, a hide, and a food/water dish. You could also use a 16 qt Rubbermaid or Sterilite container
- 15 grams to a single adult - 10 gallon aquarium turned vertically on its side with bamboo, vines, plenty of fake plants, a hide, a ledge, and a food/water dish
- Breeding adults - I keep breeding adults in a 1 male to 2 female 18 x 18 x 24 ZooMed or Exo-Terra. You could also use a 66 qt Rubbermaid or Sterilite container
Here are some examples of my enclosures and decorations
Temperature and humidity
A prime quality in owning a crested gecko is the lack of a need to supply heating. Crested geckos should be kept at a temperature of 70 -80 degrees. My opinion is that they seem to thrive the best at a temperature between 75 - 78 degrees. Winter temperatures (especially for cooling a breeding female) can drop as low as 65 degrees. Temperatures over 82 degrees can cause stress in crested geckos, and could lead to their death; this is especially true for babies.
A crested gecko's enclosure should be kept around 50% humidity during the day and around 85% - 90% during the night. This level of humidity is easily achievable by misting the enclosure early in the evening. Letting the enclosure dry out completely before misting again the next evening is crucial to prevent infections from the gecko being constantly wet and to prevent mold from growing on tank decorations. If you live in a dryer region of the country, you might need to mist the tank twice a day in order to hold the desired humidity.
A crested gecko's enclosure should be kept around 50% humidity during the day and around 85% - 90% during the night. This level of humidity is easily achievable by misting the enclosure early in the evening. Letting the enclosure dry out completely before misting again the next evening is crucial to prevent infections from the gecko being constantly wet and to prevent mold from growing on tank decorations. If you live in a dryer region of the country, you might need to mist the tank twice a day in order to hold the desired humidity.
Food and Snacks
Unfortunately crested geckos are not like Ninja Turtles; they cannot eat pizza. Lucky for you though there is a commercial prepared diet that crested geckos not only love, but it's good for them too! I feed every one of my geckos the Repashy Crested Gecko Diet. I offer the CGD every 3rd day. If I feed them Monday night, then I feed them again on Wednesday night. Please do not feed your gecko baby food. Baby food will lead to several health problems such as MDB. When buying a crested gecko, always ask the seller what the gecko is fed. Geckos raised on baby food will develope health problems at a young age.
Crested geckos do not need to be fed feeder insects if you do not want to give them any. However, you are greatly appreciated by your geckos when you do!! Just make sure you lightly dust them with calcium powder. I offer my geckos 3 - 4 dusted crickets once a week and they love them. Also make sure the crickets are no bigger than the space between your gecko's eyes. You can also offer your geckos dusted dubia roaches as they are better packed with protien, don't smell, can't climb, and can't fly.
Examples of my food dishes
Crested geckos do not need to be fed feeder insects if you do not want to give them any. However, you are greatly appreciated by your geckos when you do!! Just make sure you lightly dust them with calcium powder. I offer my geckos 3 - 4 dusted crickets once a week and they love them. Also make sure the crickets are no bigger than the space between your gecko's eyes. You can also offer your geckos dusted dubia roaches as they are better packed with protien, don't smell, can't climb, and can't fly.
Examples of my food dishes
