Leopard geckos are insectivores that require feedings of crickets, dubia roaches or mealworms every two to four days for optimal health. Any wild insects should be avoided as these may carry parasites or chemicals that can harm their wellbeing.
Mealworms are healthier alternatives to crickets and can be given to your gecko as part of its regular diet, providing essential nutrition without excess chitin build-up or digestibility issues.
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Feeding
Leopard geckos typically feed exclusively on insects; however, not all feeder insects are suitable. Most pet stores sell a wide variety of insect breeds specifically tailored for reptiles and birds as food sources; mealworms are the most frequently sold feeder insect among others such as crickets, dubia roaches, silkworms and waxworms – although some of these may even be toxic!
Gut-load your feeder insects 24-48 hours before feeding them to your leopard gecko to ensure that it gets all of its necessary vitamins and minerals for healthy living. This ensures your gecko stays happy and healthy!
Leopard geckos live in the wild where their diet includes invertebrate and vertebrate animals as well as plants; unfortunately, captive diets cannot recreate all of their essential nutrients found there and may lead to obesity in captivity.
Diet
Leopard geckos are insectivores, meaning that they feed on insects. Leopard geckos use sight rather than smell to hunt and kill their prey; shaking or vibrating their tails to startle their prey before striking, and also licking any potential meals to check whether or not they’re edible.
Feeder insects such as mealworms, crickets and dubia roaches can be purchased at most pet stores and easily kept and bred within captivity by most leos. They make for convenient treats.
Avoid feeding leo worms found outdoors as these may contain pesticides and chemicals harmful to reptiles. As alternatives, black soldier fly larvae (a.k.a calci-worms) or Phoenix worms offer better options.
Feed your lizard live prey such as moths, fruit flies and caterpillars but be cautious that the creatures do not become too large – feed in small doses at a time to avoid crushing or paralyzing the gecko.
Habitat
Leopard geckos are skilled hunters with powerful eyesight and jaws. When hunting their prey, leopard geckos use tail shaking to scare it off before striking; after killing their prey they lick its corpse to see if it contains edible material.
Leopard geckos should be fed a diet rich in dubia roaches, crickets and mealworms to remain in optimal health. You can find these foods easily at any pet store and they provide an adequate balance of nutrition for these reptiles. They should also enjoy treats such as superworms (the larvae of darkling beetles) or hornworms as treats from time to time; just remember these may contain excess amounts of fat and phosphorus and should only be fed sparingly as treats!
Crickets need constant hydration and should have access to fresh water at all times, without too much depth in its source. You could add reptile carpet in your tank for decoration as well as helping reduce cricket shed.
Care
Mealworms are easily available at pet stores and online, offering geckos an abundance of protein in an easy to eat format, making it possible to gut load. Not only are they low in fat but their lifespan is long too! But, they may not provide all the minerals a gecko needs and may escape their enclosure, producing unpleasant chirps while sometimes emitting bad smells; additionally they may chirp or smell when incubated in an enclosed environment; finally they may also be difficult for some geckos to digest than softer insects.
Crickets are another easily available feeder insect that should be dusted with vitamin powder to enhance digestion. They’re easier to chew than mealworms and digest. Unfortunately, though, crickets contain more phosphorous than calcium, making them unsuitable for babies and juveniles due to difficulty digesting chitin.
Dubia roaches are an excellent alternative to mealworms for providing protein and other essential nutrients, and can even be consumed whole. Other foods to try include hornworms, silkworms and Phoenix worms (otherwise known as black soldier fly larva or calci-worms) but these should only be given occasionally as treats.