Housing Male and Female together - General Questions

[zoiberg137]

Howdy yall,

So i've had a female leo for several years now and we recently acquired a male. We would like to house together, but we are not sure we want to go through the work of incubation. While it sounded like a fun educational experience at first, the more I research it, it just seems like a lot of work and money just to have more common geckos when there are already too many without homes. So....

Is it considered ok to house a male and female together when you don't intend to incubate? Will she likely lay eggs constantly, putting unnecessary strain on her body? What if I just leave the eggs alone? Is it gaurunteed that the geckos will eat them? Is it unheard of for a egg to hatch and the baby survive without outside assistance, or would the geckos just eat the baby at that point?

Also, is it OK to let them eat the eggs, if thats what they want to do? Is it healthy, or does it pose health risks? If not the geckos, could I feed the eggs to my turtle (as opposed to just throwing them away...)?

Sorry for so many questions. But thanks for any input!

 

[Neon Aurora]

I wouldn't house them together if you aren't planning on breeding. Your female will lay several clutches and it does put a lot of strain on her body. It seems like a real waste of her energy to make and lay eggs that are just going to be destroyed, plus you retain all of the risks that comes with egg laying (egg binding, mainly) without any benefit at all.