Aging

[missdragonxo]

Curious. I was obtained two leopard gecko brothers in November by a local breeder ( or so he said) He told me that they were 12 weeks old ('born in september') the geckos came very healthy but now i think he obtained the two geckos and tried selling them on his own. they looked kind of small for that age but he insisted on the weeks. So he's currently 24.4 grams and is supposed 6 months old? seems kind of small for a 6 month old. I have a female that was born in october that weighs 36 grams. Any idea on what his age might actually be at that weight?

 

[Bodon]

The thing is, if a gecko isn't being properly cared for it might not be growing at the rate of a healthy one. So, that could be its real age. Also leos grow at different rates due to their genetics and what not so its really hard to say.

 

[missdragonxo]

Everything is correct in his cage. when i got the geckos they looked a few weeks after hatchlings. unfortunately i didn't have a scale at the time to weigh them. he's in a 10gal, under the tank heater, warm and cool hide, calcium dish, water dish, diet of mealworms and dusted crickets, 92degrees F on the warm, approx 80 degree on the cool, eats like a champ. and he's doubled in size since i got him. Him and his brother are set up the same way. I've had him for 3 months, and the kid who i got them from said he was selling a bunch of other geckos. so there may have been a mix up since he didn't hatch them himself. Just trying to figure out the age of the gecko, that's all.

 

[GeckoGathering]

Guess your age and weight, $1

Curious. I was obtained two leopard gecko brothers in November by a local breeder ( or so he said) He told me that they were 12 weeks old ('born in september') the geckos came very healthy but now i think he obtained the two geckos and tried selling them on his own. they looked kind of small for that age but he insisted on the weeks. So he's currently 24.4 grams and is supposed 6 months old? seems kind of small for a 6 month old. I have a female that was born in october that weighs 36 grams. Any idea on what his age might actually be at that weight?

Shooting for "opinions" from
a guesser of ages and weights reminds me of the guy at the carnavals and Fairs when I was a Kid..........But here goes for what its worth.
Going by your comments........

eats like a champ. and he's doubled in size since i got him. Him and his brother are set up the same way. I've had him for 3 months,

...

So he's currently 24.4 grams and is supposed 6 months old?

Here is what I see:
IMO I find an average weuight gain in just
regular normal geckos run near(6 to 8) so use 7 grams a month OK?
A six month old regular, being fed and eating would be 42 grams.
If he was 6 months old and not a normal to be gecko (a tiny)
then lets look at your end of what we know.............
You had it for 3 months....and you said he doubled in size......
NOW if that's true.In your 3 months he has done approx. 12 grams
or 4 grams of growth a month...(a tiny).....
He said it was 6 months old and 12 grams so 2 grams a month growth.

***** SO my conclusion is it was underfed for a 6 month old (2 grams )
or it was a 3 month old gecko at your rate of feeding.( 4 grams)
Either way I see you having what I call a Tiny or small gecko.
Now many say Giants continue to do weight gain a
longer period of time and although I do not feel you have a giant
it may continue to do a heavier gain per month
as you have it.....
This opinion, if you choose to use it, will destruct in 37 seconds........
"May the gecko weights and measurements force
be with you".........Take care. HJ

 

[missdragonxo]

Thanks for that response. that was very imformative. so there is a chance that he's only 4 months old. He just formed his V pores in january. I just emailed the guy i got them from and said he guessed they were around 12 weeks at the time i got them. and he said he had no idea how old they really are. So based on the 7 grams a month scale would make him 4 months. his brother is 20.9 grams but he got out for 3 weeks so he's a few grams under his brother. so would it make sense to say 4 months? thanks HJ

 

[GeckoGathering]

AGE Guess

AS I read back, I may have
your gain wrong. WAS it 24.4 when you got it?
And double in size make it 49 now?
So you rate of growth is 8 grams per month.(if this is right)
He either underfed or the gecko was 3 months old when
you got it. Making it now 6 months old...........
Can you at least tell me why this is important to you. LOL
I will not be logging this into my new book " Important Records "

 

[missdragonxo]

no he's 24.4 grams now. i am unaware of the weight when i got him. he was tiny. like about the size of my palm. no pores were present until the middle of january. and i got him towards the end of november and pores were unpresent. haha i just plan to breed him next year and i want to make sure he's over a yr old when it happens i'm sorry if i'm confusing you. haha i was just wondering the avg age for a gecko of that weight.

 

[acpart]

I think there's still a great variation in size vs. age. Some examples:
-- I have a gecko I hatched 8/22 that I've cared for and hand fed ever since then. She is not a great eater and is a lousy hunter (so maybe she's an exception). At 6 months she currently weighs 25 grams
--The first gecko I ever bought from a breeder was a tremper albino I got in 2004. He was 6 months old and weighed 28 grams. At 5, he is currently 103 grams, but will be up to 115 by the end of the summer
--I just got an AFT female from a pet store who told me she had been there at least 6 months. She weighed 24 grams when I got her last week (is currently up to 28 grams after 10 days) but I'm pretty sure she's as old as they think since she's ovulating (not breeding her now, obviously)
--I sold 2 geckos last month that had hatched at the end of August. Both received the same kind of attention from me and they were clutchmates. They were housed separately. One weighed 40 grams when sold and the other was 25 grams.

So, maybe you have a gecko who was younger than 12 weeks when you bought him, maybe you got one that had not had a lot of personal attention and hadn't reached his weight potential for that age, or maybe he's a slow grower. It's hard to know for sure.

Aliza

 

[GeckoGathering]

i am unaware of the weight about the size of my palm. no pores were present i'm sorry if i'm confusing you. haha i was just wondering the avg age.

OK, I'll give this a shot too.
From the info above I would say your palm is about 19 years old, and if you look closely you should see pores. take care.. HJ

 

[missdragonxo]

OK, I'll give this a shot too.
From the info above I would say your palm is about 19 years old, and if you look closely you should see pores. take care.. HJ

hahaha wow did i type that wrong:main_rolleyes:. he was about the size ofmy 19yr old palm

 

[missdragonxo]

thanks acpart for the info. maybe he is a slow grower. although at one point after i got him and feeding him every day he shed and then shed the following week. so maybe due to lack of feeding from the previous owner caused the smallness.

 

[GeckoGathering]

Missed it?

Thanks for that response. that was very imformative. so there is a chance that he's only 4 months old. He just formed his V pores in january. I just emailed the guy i got them from and said he guessed they were around 12 weeks at the time i got them. and he said he had no idea how old they really are. So based on the 7 grams a month scale would make him 4 months. his brother is 20.9 grams but he got out for 3 weeks so he's a few grams under his brother. so would it make sense to say 4 months? thanks HJ

Sorry, I missed your question.
(with all my goofing around)....
Question from you: so would it make sense to say 4 months?
IMO.....no. I would think more like a minimum 6 months total.
And that's assuming he got fed as well as with you. (which I doubt)
He said 12 weeks (slick way to say 3 months even
though there are 13 weeks in each quarter)
take care. HJ