New owner and a very skittish Leo Gecko

gtr319

New Member
Messages
6
Hi guys, I am very new to this hobby (as oppose to having 2 pacman frogs and 1 whites tree frog), my gf finally got me a leo gecko as my late christmas gift. But its been a week and my gecko (gf named him/her gec gec) is super skittish. Whenever I go to my room and turn on the room light, he would sprint back into the hide and will not come out. I tried to handle him 3 times (big mistake, should of waited longer) with little or no luck. But fortunately gec gec eats and poops no problem. Now comes the question... is there anyways to improve the skittish condition? And I did not get a Leo because of handling (if handling is a choice, I would get a crested instead, although that will be next on my list :p), but it would be nice if I can handle him/her a little bit when I do the weekly cleaning. Is there anything I can do to improve the pet to owner experience? Any suggestion? Given that this gecko is a juvy... many thanks for your time and comments^^
 

Geckolisa

New Member
Messages
66
Location
West Midlands,UK
my gecko juvy was the same when i got him.I left him for about a week to settle in,then i started to put my hand in.Let your gecko lick your hand,climb over your hand,and he will soon get used to you.I hand fed mine with meal worms too,so he associated me with nice things :D
 

gordo84

New Member
Messages
12
Location
Toulouse
geckolisa is right, juvy's (up to six months) can be very skittish also he's stressed from the change of home, leave for a week and then start off by just leaving your hand in the terrarium and let him come to you...it will take time but stick with it and he should start walking up your arm and all over the place. Make sure you are consistent. do it every day if you can so he gets used to your smell and the presence of your hand in the cage.
Good luck
 

Joao

v Snowflake v
Messages
174
Location
Jersey
Yea its gonna take a while.

Ive only had mine for a month so im no expert on this, but i noticed that a good time to start putting you hand in is when you see him very comfortable in his surroundings and staring at you through the glass ahaha

Mine still doesnt want to climb up my hand and softly attacks it, but shes coming around... yesterday she finally put her little foot on my hand and walked past it.

I had to help her with her sheddings so far, so i kinda lose progress when that happens, so it might go a lot quicker for you!

goodluck.
 

fl_orchidslave

New Member
Messages
4,074
Location
St. Augustine, FL
It doesn't look like there are cords for a UTH (heat mat affixed under tank) or a digital probe thermometer (unless you have a temp gun) attached to monitor floor temps on the warm end. You will need those to maintain proper digestion. He also needs a moist hide to aid in shedding. It may help to soothe him while settling in to cover the tank with a sheet or towel since the light disturbs him. Glad to hear he's eating!
 

gtr319

New Member
Messages
6
@ gordo84: the problem is that the gecko stays in the hide...
@ joao: mine softly attacks my finger last nite as I went to do daily check up
@fl_orchidslave: I have an UTH, the table hangs behind the table, I used to have a moist hide until the cave hid that I got for the gecko takes up too much space... and when you mention to cover the tank with a sheet or towel, do you mean the whole tank?
 

Jordan

New Member
Messages
1,409
Location
Sheffield, UK
the exo terra hide that you have got, there is smaller size. its a great size for juvies, because its nice and cosy for them, its not too big. so it would make him feel a lot safer and more comfortable in his home, also that would mean being able to fit a moist hide in there too. so id recmmend buying the smaller size of that hide. and keeping the one you have now until hes bigger.
 

GeckoGathering

GrizLaru
Messages
4,323
Location
Indiana
Handling your GecGec

I tried to handle him 3 times (big mistake, should of waited longer) with little or no luck. .. is there anyways to improve the skittish condition? but it would be nice if I can handle him/her a little bit when I do the weekly cleaning. Is there anything I can do to improve the pet to owner experience? Any suggestion? Given that this gecko is a juvy... many thanks for your time and comments^^


Let it know your hand.
Read my Thread.
http://geckoforums.net/showthread.php?t=36375

Oh, forgot, post a photo of your GF so we can see
who would name it GecGec. LOL
 
Last edited:

gtr319

New Member
Messages
6
@ Jordan: that is maybe why my gecko is still skittish...
@ Gecko Gathering: Yes, she is weird like that, she named our first pacman frog PacPac
@ Dog Shrink: Thanks for the info^^
@ fl_orchidslavel: I added the moist hide back in as of last night

Thanks everyone who contributes with comments, suggestions and links!! I appreciate it very much!
 

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