Leopard geckos are insectivores, making feeder insects an integral part of their diet. Always provide your gecko with insects raised under controlled environments so as to avoid harmful toxins or parasites being consumed by your gecko.
Black soldier fly larvae provide nutritionally balanced nutrition in various sizes for leos of all ages, without risk of impaction and choking as other feeder insects can pose.
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Black Soldier Fly Larval Feeders
Black Soldier Fly Larvae (BSFL) are an excellent feed insect for leopard geckos, bearded dragons, and other insectivores. Packed with essential vitamins and nutrients – especially high levels of protein with minimal fiber content – they make for an easy daily feeding option with delicious results! Enjoy feeding them to your insectivores as part of a tasty main course meal or juicy treat!
As opposed to crickets, BSF are much cleaner and have less chance of transmitting parasites to your reptile. Their low chitin content also makes them easier to digest; making them an excellent addition alongside dubia roaches and superworms as a nutritionally dense diet source. One study demonstrated BSF showed higher digestibility than mountain chicken frogs (a more commonly used feeder insect), except calcium absorption may not have been optimal due to gecko mastication and needle-piercing action not being enough.
Mealworms
Mealworms are an essential feeder insect for many leopard geckos. High in both protein and fat content, mealworms provide all of the nutrition your leopard gecko needs – often supplemented with calcium and vitamin D supplements – in order to avoid metabolic bone disease in leopard geckos.
Owners may also feed their mealworms food such as carrots, apples, or potatoes to increase their nutritional content.
Feed your leopard gecko the appropriate mealworm size. Feeding too large an insect could cause digestion issues and chewing issues, while only offering live mealworms is most appealing to your leopard gecko than dead ones.
Crickets
crickets, while often unappetizing to us humans, provide geckos with a nutritious source of protein. Before being fed they should be “gut-loaded” with fruits, vegetables, and oats in order to maximize nutritional value before feeding; non-breeding adult gecko should be fed approximately twice weekly while females held for breeding should have ample fat deposits on them.
Leopard geckos are insectivores, meaning they feed on insects for sustenance, such as crickets. Crickets provide an optimal combination of protein, fat and essential nutrients; other feeder insects such as mealworms waxworms or dubia roaches may add variety and nutrition.
It is essential to keep in mind when purchasing crickets that they could contain mold, bacteria or chemicals that can harm them; always purchase from a reputable pet store that only sells safe insects online or preferably buy them with an offer of guaranteed delivery service. Prior to feeding them with food dust them with nutrient powder (available both online and at pet stores) to ensure proper enrichment of their diets.
Roaches
Dubia Roaches are popular feeder insects that provide high levels of nutrition. These insects provide 36% protein, more than most other feeder insects, along with sufficient moisture and fat content.
Dubia roaches can be easily raised and kept under appropriate conditions, making them an excellent food source for leopard geckos and other reptiles. Furthermore, their nutritional value can be increased through gut loading techniques.
To gut load a roach, try feeding it foods such as oranges (which will make them poop so provide them with wet paper towel to drink from), sweet potatoes, oats and rice, bananas or any fruits and vegetables high in vitamin A to ensure it gets all of its needed vitamins. It is especially important for leopard gecko species because insectivores like insects cannot receive their nutrition solely through fruits or veggies alone.
