together

[herplover92]

I am planning on raising up A BUNCH of females hoping to end up with a nice group that are in the same weight range so I can house together in a very spacious tank, maybe an 100g tank or one of those underbed storage boxes.


Well my question is what are some things that i should be carefull about?
And what is a personal record of geckos kept together?

 

[trizzypballr]

Females COULD still fight, even if they are the same size they COULD still bully eachother. Some people house females together, but I personally keep EVERYONE seperated from the day their hatched unless there is a male in with them.

 

[theboozer2009]

I agree with Brandon I would not house them together they could still fight. It might be convenient but not in the best interest and health for the leos.

 

[KiKi]

we have kept two females together in a 40gal breeder and have had no problems,as a matter of fact they dont like being apart from each other

 

[acpart]

I think the possibility of fighting varies with the gecko. Most of my geckos seem pretty mellow and although I try to keep the same groupings,I do move them around a bit to facilitate breeding. At the moment my largest group is 1 male and 3 females in a 20 gallon long with an upstairs level. There are 2 hides and a laybox "downstairs" and one of those magnet hides "upstairs". One of those geckos in particular spends just about all her time in the magnet hide (and has done this no matter what tank I put her in). No sign of fighting except for some mating scratches and everyone is eating well and maintaining weight. I do think it's important to watch groups and make sure everyone is eating and no one is getting bullied.

Aliza

 

[[Username]]

If you provide enough hides on each side and enough food and water then they may be alright but still the chance of one not getting along is there. If you do decide to do this then make sure to keep an eye on them and see if anyone is not getting along. basicly you wanna make it to where there is an excess of the things they want.

 

[[Username]]

oh and if I didn't make it clear earlier then I will now there may still be ones who won't get along

 

[LeopardGeckoMom52688]

I was going to keep all my females together until I had three of them get sick and I saw the vet bill. I have 2 pairs together two of the pairs are sisters and another is two geckos the same size.

 

[Stitch]

we have kept two females together in a 40gal breeder and have had no problems,as a matter of fact they dont like being apart from each other

Just to show how things can go. I too have a 40 gallon breeder and I tried to house 2 females together. They still fought despite having 5-6 hides in the cage. When I first bought them I had them in the same cage together and then decided to separate them. Once i tried putting them back together they didn't want it.

It's possible BUT you better be ready to separate them immediately if you do try.

FYI, I suggest that you do not try to house them together.

 

[Scott&Nikki]

Another problem... unless you feed only mealies, it will be very difficult for them to catch their food in a 100 gallon tank. It will also be very hard to see who is eating what with too many leos together.

 

[ReptileMan27]

I have housed more then one females together for years without any problems. It can be done but you need to keep a close eye on them and be prepared to seperate them with any problems. Also make sure their close to the same size.

 

[PaulSage]

Well my question is what are some things that i should be carefull about?

1. That they are all indeed female
2. That they have gone through a sufficient quarantine period and are of close approximate size
3. That none of them have a history of weight fluctuations or periods of anorexia
4. That none of them start losing weight after being put together (monitor their weights every other day or so for the first 3-4 weeks)
5. That any incidents of bites or injuries are noticed as soon as possible.
6. That they are all on the same diet and that there is more than one food source/dish.

And what is a personal record of geckos kept together?

When I brumate adult females, I have kept four in a blanket box (32 qt.) without any issues. However, if any of them showed signs of being anti-social as soon as they were introduced, I took them out and brumated them separately.

This year I had ONE trio of Leopard Geckos set up for breeding. Every one else was housed individually (roughly 115 females). The first and only tail that was lost was one of the two females in the trio. It could have been an isolated incident or a coincidence, but the best way to prevent injuries inflicted by another gecko is to house them individually, especially while breeding.

 

[Alusdra]

I knew someone who had (I think- this was a long time ago) upwards of 8 geckos in one large tank (not sure exactly how big, but it was 2 1/2 to 3 feet long), mixed sex, and they did fine. They were fed exclusively crickets in separate feed tubs daily, though. Like I said, it's been 6 years since I worked with those geckos, but nobody was ever injured in the 2 years I did and none of them had any medical problems at all.

My two older geckos are from matings between the geckos mentioned. I keep 2 females and a male in a 10 gallon, but have been having some issues. I'm going to separate the one female back to her own 10 gallon, I think. The other two have issues, though- one's a recovered MBD gecko (male) and the other is blind (female). They need a smaller tank for those reasons, but are actually picking on my normal gecko... go figure.

 

[Stitch]

My two older geckos are from matings between the geckos mentioned. I keep 2 females and a male in a 10 gallon, but have been having some issues. I'm going to separate the one female back to her own 10 gallon, I think. The other two have issues, though- one's a recovered MBD gecko (male) and the other is blind (female). They need a smaller tank for those reasons, but are actually picking on my normal gecko... go figure.

Even though the 10 gallons work(ed) for you. Just about every one will agree that 10 gallons is barely enough for 1 gecko let alone 2-3. I understand that some of them have health issues but if that's the case they should be in their own individual cages.

I'm not trying to start anything, it's just that 10 gallons per Leo is the rule of thumb that most gecko owners go by.

 

[Leopardbreeder]

If it hasn't been said yet: Leos unlike other reptiles, have a max tank size. The only viable way of being able to keep them alive and healthy, is to put at least 4-5 mealworm bowls all around and a lot of water dishes around. And, they most likely will still fight even with that much space. I would keep them separate. I would also make it a lot easier to see who is not eating.

 

[Alusdra]

I know 3 in a 10g is not enough space- like I said I'm trying to figure out how and into what I want to separate them to. But in much bigger my blind guy gets lost and my MBD guy can't get around. They were doing great together, they would always choose to sleep in the same hidey, even with a bunch available, for instance. Adding Eclipse back into that tank hasn't been working all that well, though. I'm trying to avoid moving more heavy glass tanks than I need to, but I like them better than the glass-fronted plastic ones... anywho- I was just pointing it out to say that as long as you pay attention, three can live together, though if I do keep all three together I'll be getting them a 20L tank.

 

[Stitch]

If you already have 1-10 gallon tank, why not get 2 more. That way they can all have their own tank and the tanks would be small enough for your 2 geckos with health issues. Three geckos in a 20 gallon long is still too crowded. I have 6 20 gallon long tanks, all are individually occupied. All of my geckos are adults. They have a cool hide and a warm hide the doubles for their humid hide. I could not fit another hide in the tank without loosing (in my opinion) valueble floor space. I cannot see how you would be able to fit 6 hides in a 20 gallon tank.

I'm not saying that it can't be done, I'm saying that most people would not advise it.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

I have housed up to 3 females together in a 20-gal long tank, but it wasn't without problems. When females are housed together, they will establish a 'pecking order'. There will usually be one that is the alpha female that will dictate what and when the others eat, and where they should be. Fighting does occur, mostly in squabbles over who's in the hide and who's eating the mealworm the other one wanted, but I have seen serious injuries. Also, the smallest/weakest/least assertive female(s) can become so intimidated that they stop eating.

I truly believe that leopard geckos do best when housed individually.

 

[Leopardbreeder]

Glad to see your back helping everyone Marcia with your infinite knowledge hehe. But, really welcome back!. And, I couldn't agree more.