My girl almost never comes out of her hide

kic90army

New Member
Messages
11
Location
Austin, TX
I know that shes nocturnal but I rarely see cleo coming out of her hide. I know she does because crickets are gone in the morning. I put a small paper cup in her tank recently to try to offer another place for her to see what she would do and I do find her in there every few days. Suggestions?
Also how often should you handle your aft? Are there any specific things you do with your aft while theyre out to help with bonding?

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acpart

Geck-cessories
Staff member
Messages
15,119
Location
Somerville, MA
AFT's are notorious for sticking to their hides because they're somewhat retiring geckos. Once they are eating regularly and seem comfortable in their environment I don't see anything wrong with handling them for brief periods every day. I'm not really sure geckos can "bond" with their owners, but I'm sure there are people who would disagree.

Aliza
 

Olympus

Biologist & Ecologist
Messages
298
Location
Miami, Fl.
I see my AFT geckos out ALL the time once night falls, I feel that perhaps it's due to them being really comfortable in their enclosure because they have areas of thick plant cover and other areas that are more open, and they feel like they could scurry to cover if they wanted to. But I keep my tank right behind my desk chair and every single night I will turn around and find all 4 of them lined up against the glass watching me on my computer. I find them to be a lot more active and inquisitive than most people, I suppose, but I bet it has to have something to do with having a safe, comfortable, and enriching enclosure. In my opinion, anyway!

As far as "bonding," you could probably start building up trust by tong-feeding (I use rubber-tipped tongs) things like crickets or roaches. If you associate hands-in-cage with "yay food!" she'll be less skiddish when you go to pick her up or move things around in her cage.
 

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