Advice in taming my new Gecko

[Gertie]

Hello guys, Ive always wanted a Leopard Gecko and I finally got around to getting a set up and gecko the other day! She is about 5/6 months old and eating pretty well. I have had her for about a week now and she seems pretty scared still. She doesnt walk upto my hand or anything when I leave it in there, she only does if she see's some food on it (when she quite happily climbs on it but then goes straight away). She will try to jump away as soon as I go to scoop her up. I have done quite a bit of research into gecko's before I bought her I was just wondering if any of you could offer some advice? I take it will be harder taming her as she is a bit older...?

 

[Gertie]

Also... What type of Leopard Gecko is she... (hopefully this photo uploads) haha.

 

[im faster]

Its hard to tail the picture is pretty bad quality..
it also looks like you have sand. If you do you should really get rid of it.
use paper towel/ newspaper or if you wnat it to look nice you can get some slate or tile

 

[rickmoss95]

as far as taming your new gecko, just be patient and gentle. it will eventually settle down and accept handling. you have to keep it short at the beginning, and slowely raise the time you handle it. start off by simply picking it up and then let it walk out of your hand back into the enclosure. you have to build trust, then it will start to settle down. they are preyed upon by alot of predators in nature, so if it were not scared and try to run and hide, they would not live long in nature. you just have to slowely let it understand that it is not in danger from you. it will eventually end up understanding that you are its source of food and care. some actually seem to "enjoy" being handled. some may only tollerate it on occation, while a few may never take well to handling. just dont try to see your gecko as having human emotions, and try to see it from the animals point of view. it may take some gentle handling, and some time...but it should eventually chill enough for gentle handling. just be sure to let it settle in and get comfortable first. and dont push it to accept handling, let IT determine when to accept you. another tip that may help, let it walk on you(be careful not to let it fall obviously) and dont grasp it...this will only make it panic.

 

[Gertie]

Thanks for the advice. Ill give it a go, from a lot of reading its going to take time like you say. If i go to scoop her up she just backs away and gets very scared so i will let her be the boss and do what she feels most comfortable with. She is slowly getting used to me lightly rubbing her head and knows when its food time but just hates being picked up. Im sure it will come in the end ...

 

[Himitsu]

From what I've experienced with Oreo, my first gecko.

It takes them a while, sometimes days to weeks to get used to their enclosure. They feel more secure and confident when they know where all the hides are.

If you try to scoop them up, they'll sometimes raise their body up, try then and avoid bumping their legs and feet, especially the toes. So be slow and careful when trying this.

Another good way to scoop, is to slowly slide your hand under their neck/chest. As in your middle fingers, but don't bump the legs. Sometimes they'll lick you and then climb on.

And that brings up hand sanitation, not so much the killing of bacteria, but irritants. The gecko is going to lick you not matter what you do and if you've tasted soap, it isn't going to enjoy crawling on your hand if you taste like soap. Alcoholic hand lotions can be even worse by taste and fumes as their eyes are low enough to get irritated. (incessant eye licking)

I wash my hands very well, dry them, let them air out, then wash them with just hot water and scrub/dry them again. This has worked out best.

A few months later and Oreo "tells" me when he wants out. He'll climb up the side of the tank I'm nearest too till I scoop him up.

Hope that helps.

 

[OnlineGeckos]

Time is your best tool in taming new leopard geckos. Give it a lot more time to get used to the environment and you in general. We're talking about weeks and months. Eventually, you won't have to "scoop" them. I have 3 geckos where I just lower my hand down into the tank, and they'll walk onto my hand if they feel like coming out.

 

[blueappal]

Thanks for the advice. Ill give it a go, from a lot of reading its going to take time like you say. If i go to scoop her up she just backs away and gets very scared so i will let her be the boss and do what she feels most comfortable with. She is slowly getting used to me lightly rubbing her head and knows when its food time but just hates being picked up. Im sure it will come in the end ...

Did you hear him about the sand? You have more important things that need attention... taming your gecko will come with time; However... now you need to get that sand out of there.

I use ceramic tile... others use newspaper or even reptile carpet (which isn't the best option, but mos def better than sand).

 

[Gertie]

I heard the advice with sand. I think I will leave that in there until i clean out her cage in a few weeks, I mean it was only set up about 2 weeks ago. Can I ask the main reason for not using sand as it was sold as part of a starter set? Is it because she may take it in whilst eating (I think its protein sand)?

She is still very very scared and went for me good the other day, ive not even seen her do that with her food! (Maybe I moved to pick her up too fast). Its like she has taken a backward step as I was being slow and stroking her head (which she could bare) and then randomly she did that. Since then I havent really gone to touch her, ive just put my hand in but she doesnt come over. I think she is like half a year old and not been used to regular handling in the shop. She just stays in her hide all day (as expected), at night she comes out but when I open up her door she raises her body, at that point if i place my hand in near her she will be a bit interested but wont move towards it, she will usually move back into her hide. I think I might just have to scoop her up everyday and take her out to make her aware of whats outside the viv...?! I know it will take a while but she isnt a baby so I dont want to "not" handle her as she might never want it if you get me...?

 

[josefmd]

Sand can cause impaction problems resulting in serious health issues! I would take the advice of everyone else, and get some tile, or just use newspaper. Why take a chance. Also, most of those starter kits are junk! You get stuff that is not always correct for the specific critter you are housing. My wife just bought a desert kit for our gecko, and I had my wife go out and buy the extra stuff we really need to keep the little man healthy and happy!!

 

[OnlineGeckos]

I bought a "starter kit" from petco when I got my first leopard gecko, I even bought the gecko from them too. I end up using only the tank that came with the kit, and swapped out repti carpet for tiles, swapped out basking light for under tank heating pad, swapped out stick on thermometer with a digital thermometer with a probe, and swapped out the dish they included with a mealworm escape-proof dish. Those kits are not worth it and they do not always work the best for the pets they are trying to sell you for. They are best for people who are new and don't really understand the needs of leopard geckos fully. Needless to say I never bought another kit again.

Yes sand can cause impaction problems. Some people have successfully kept their geckos on sand. But the reason you want to ask yourself is, why risk the chance?

As for getting your gecko used to you, you don't need to do it by force. Scooping her while she's still afraid of you is what I mean by force. If you just give her time, as many have suggested in this thread, she will simply become used to you and you won't have to even pick her up to make her used to you. She will crawl on your hand by herself. And no, you don't have to worry about her not getting used to you by not picking her up. That's really a misconception where some new leopard gecko owners think they *have to* pickup their geckos or they won't get used to them.

Time is your best bet to get her used to you. Give her time to settle in, to feel comfortable in her new home, to get used to you as a "food person". That can take days, or weeks. Once she stops shying away from you, you'll find that she'll be fine with your hand and most likely will crawl up on your hand by herself without you needing to scoop her up.

 

[justindh1]

Whether to use sand or not is a decision in which the owner should make themselves. It's like debating on whether an individual should be republican or democrat.

As to making your gecko more tame, continuous daily handling will help him become more docile.

 

[Gertie]

Thanks for your help guys, might be safest to change the sand then