housing two females together?

[fallenangelfyre]

hey guys- long-time lurker,

so i'm in the process of building a planted 18x18x24 to house cresties. i was initially going to get just one, but i found an incredibly cute pair of female juvies. i've had a leopard gecko for quite some time, but this will be my first foray into cresties. i know that even with females there is a chance of territorialism & fighting (& i may have to separate them), but my question is do they each need their own food dish? because where i'm at in the build i've got a built-in ledge for a food dish, but it only has room for one bowl. this is where i'm at with the build so far:

thanks

 

[Magic Merlin]

I keep 3-5 adult females together in each of my setups........other than going after the same roach or cricket I have never seen any sort of aggression.......you will find that most times they will actually sleep on top of each other during the day so you really have nothing to worry about.

 

[Phil]

Case by case. You just have to observe, they could get along for a while and then bam they can start fighting.. You just need a backup plan in case they don't go along..

They don't need a food bowl each, one is enough..

Phil

 

[T-ReXx]

It all depends on the individual geckos, I have some girls who do just fine together and some who can't live with anyone. In the cases of those that DO get along, a single food bowl is fine, just be sure to put enough CGD in for both geckos and they will do fine.

 

[Daedric1]

I keep 3-5 adult females together in each of my setups........other than going after the same roach or cricket I have never seen any sort of aggression.......you will find that most times they will actually sleep on top of each other during the day so you really have nothing to worry about.

I kept 2 females together fine for about a year when I started hear and see them fighting, leaving bite marks on their skin. I used to think it was "cute" that the two of them would always be near each other, including when they were sleeping.

This can actually be a form of bullying - one follows the other around and doesn't allow it to have time to itself. Sleeping "together" generally occurs because they both/all think of that place as the most safe and comfortable. Because of this, it can become a contested spot by one or both, and when one of them decides they want it for themselves, bullying and/or fighting may begin.

Most, if not all geckos have a tipping point - it's just a matter of their individual temperment that decides why, when and if it happens.

As far as food bowls go, one should be enough for two geckos. Even if you place two food bowls, geckos will usually decide that there is one that they want to feed from for various reasons, including ease of access, location, and how safe they feel at that spot. If there is another gecko at a bowl, they will wait for the other to leave before feeding, or go to the same bowl and push the other gecko out of the way in the case of bullying. They don't think based on what is convenient and go to a different bowl instead.

 

[fallenangelfyre]

well the pair i was interested in actually had a size difference of about 10 grams, plus i guess one of them was already flighty & has had issues being housed with other geckos. so i just ended up getting one of them. she's going to have a nice planted 18x18x24 to herself-

 

[hermansmama]

She'll probably be just as happy to have a nice big tank all to herself anyway! If you ever do house more two together, the new one always needs to go through a 30 day (minimum) quarentine period, and there shouldn't be a large difference is size between the two (females only!)

 

[fallenangelfyre]

She'll probably be just as happy to have a nice big tank all to herself anyway! If you ever do house more two together, the new one always needs to go through a 30 day (minimum) quarentine period, and there shouldn't be a large difference is size between the two (females only!)

thanks! i'm sure she'll be quite content to have that nice big viv to herself. thanks, but i'm aware that only females may possibly be housed together, that they must be close to the same size, and of quarantine for any newcomers.
i just wonder what people do when they get a pair of females to house together, and then one turns out to be a male, or they fight, or bullying occurs? do you run out and sink another $200+ into another separate tank? i'm talking about herpers that keep tanks rather than tubs.

 

[Phil]

Well.. u can house a single crested in a 12x12x18 exo terra, it doesnt worth 200$+. For 50-60$ u can get one and your set.