Just hatched last night...

[chrispaine]

My girl friends Leopard Gecko's egg's just hatched and some stupid questions since they are her first out.

How long should you wait to offer food?

How long should you wait to sell?

How long to handle?

and anyother first time tips would be good thanks.

[ChristopherD]

Very nice, I used to hate those, but the more I see them the more they grow on me...

[bleeding_sarcasm]

about a week [after they first shed]

about a month, if not more

and as little as possible till they are eating regularly. hatchlings are very skittish and delecate, one drop from up high could kill them, and then you can sell them for... nothing, because they would be dead. better just to handle it as little as possible, except to feed, weigh and clean the cage.

other tips: take everything out of their cage except a hide [we use a yogert container cut in half] and a water dish. you want to keep an eye on poop, and make sure it is eating. offer it/get it started on eating mealworms right off the bat, and they will get BIG in no time. and i mean meal worms, not super worms.


congrats on the hatchling. what sex were they incubated for? and why in the heck would you house a gecko on orchid bark? out of all the substrates that could possibly cause impactation, that has to be in the top 5 [up there with corn cob] if youre going to use a dirt medium for her to lay eggs in. use like coir or peat moss. its a much finger grain, and has less risks if she ingests some while digging. it holds water and humidity better, and wont let the eggs dry out.

edit: the adult also appears to be stuck in shed [ironic since shes kept on orchid bark, unless you dont spray it]. it would do her some good to get a nice long soak.

[Sleepy_FF]

holy cos, bleeding_sarcasm.... you know alot! if i ever get one, im comin to YOU for help

[bleeding_sarcasm]

hahah. thanks? i try to stay educated [by reading alot of books, and experinces from other forums] but alot just comes from experience, ive been keeping/breeding geckos for only 2 years, but our collection is getting up there [probably near 100+] and my boyfriend has been keeping/breeding geckos and other reptiles for close to 7 years [he got ME started ]

[jvillereptile]

i would try feeding at a day old that is when i start to feed my baby dragon and chameleon. only becuase you if you wait for the first shed it could take a while and you risk the chance of starving them. i have my first geko eggs this year and i'm incubating them at 85 becuase it is the number for almost all reptile eggs to incubate at.

[bleeding_sarcasm]

i dont know if you got the news letter, but leopard geckos are not baby dragons or chameleons.

there is no way that a healthy baby that fully absorbed its yolk would starve to death in a week. if you try throwing food in with it too soon, you run the risk of stressing it out.

leopard geckos have been bred so much in captivity that temperature sexing is exact within a degree. it also directly effects the ammount of melanin produced in the skin. at 85 you would have an equal mix of males and female. average coloration, and you wouldnt know the sex till the animal "dropped"

i wait almost a week to offer food to any of my hatchlings, including all my rhacodactylus.

[bleeding_sarcasm]

Originally Posted by jvillereptile

i'm incubating them at 85 becuase it is the number for almost all reptile eggs to incubate at.

and i have no idea where you got that from.... since when do all reptile eggs incubate at 85? i could sit here and make a list of species that DONT pretty easily, including ball pythons [alot of pythons are incubated closer to 90], majority of monitor species, rhacodactylus, uroplatus, philsuma, and rhampholeons just to name a few.

[chrispaine]

They seem do be doing good on the bark they also have a humid hide/cave with moss with high humidity. But other then dirt and paper towel what (too dirty/boring for her) else would be a good bedding? thanks for the info.

[cornyballpython]

cute babies! hehe