Just like pretty much every living organism, leopard geckos need water . There should be a clean, fresh, supply of water in your leopard gecko’s habitat at all times. For hatchling or juvenile leopard geckos, make sure the water is shallow enough to not pose a drowning risk.
We’ve outlined the 6 top things a leopard gecko needs in its tank. Substrate or bedding on the bottom of the tank, a warm and cool hide to shelter in, a separate bowl for food and water and a heat source. That covers the basic, essential items.
But while leopard geckos have a reputation for being easy to care for, they still have specific environmental needs. Heat and lighting elements , including UVB lights, are necessary for many reptiles, so it’s important to know exactly what leopard geckos need to thrive .
What should I look for when buying a leopard gecko?
Leopard geckos, unlike other gecko species, are not arboreal. Meaning they are not climbers. So when buying their tank, you’ll want to think length over height . Once you have your tank, what goes inside? Substrate The first thing you’ll put into their tank?
One more inquiry we ran across in our research was “Do leopard geckos need reptile hides?”.
Reptile hides are very important. They provide shelter if the gecko gets spooked, a place to help them regulate their temperature if they get too warm or too cold, and a place to regulate the moisture level in their skin. Leopard Geckos require a minimum of three hides : one for the cool end of the tank, one for the warm end, and a humidity hide.
Leopard geckos cannot produce their own vitamin D3 without the help of UVB rays. They need to produce vitamin D3 so their bodies can properly absorb calcium . In nature, these geckos would be able to easily absorb UVB rays from the sun.
Leopard geckos use heat from underneath them to heat up their bellies in order to digest their diet of crickets and mealworms. Without sufficient heating from underneath, your leopard gecko can suffer various health conditions , and eventually pass away. How should I heat my leopard gecko enclosure?
Do leopard geckos need UVB?
Leopard geckos that have metabolic bone disease (MBD) will benefit from UVB exposure . Broken bones, jaw malformations, lethargy, a decrease in appetite, or bowed legs may be seen in a gecko with MBD.
So, does a leopard gecko need uvb?
There has been a lot of debate over the last couple of years on the importance of UV lighting in leopard geckos environments. Some are kept without a UV source and survive without any obvious issues, however there are cases of leopard geckos suffering with clear health issues as a direct result of a lack of UVB .
The answer is that in which UVB light accounts for 5% and UVA light accounts for 30%. Although only 5% UVB light but through quartz glass, UVB will be enhanced penetration. This is enough UV for the healthy development of leopard gecko. This UVB light bulb does not require much effort to install it.
Do leopard geckos need a tank light?
The tank light was primarily considered a leopard gecko heat lamp, so merely providing them with a daytime heat lamp for the right amount of hours per day was considered to be enough . However, in recent years, this practice has been up for debate.
Does a leopard gecko need a heat lamp?
In the earlier days, the standard opinion was that since leopard geckos are “ nocturnal,” they do not need any amount of UV light. The tank light was primarily considered a leopard gecko heat lamp, so merely providing them with a daytime heat lamp for the right amount of hours per day was considered to be enough .
You might be thinking “What does a leopard gecko light bulb do?”
This UVB light bulb not only stimulates appetite, supports reproduction, but it also helps leopard gecko’s skeleton and skin become healthier . Besides this light bulb, although powerful, it does not produce harmful UVC rays.
Another inquiry we ran across in our research was “Are mercury vapor light bulbs safe for leopard geckos?”.
However, be mindful that different types of bulbs produce different amounts of heat. For example, mercury-vapor bulbs can get too hot for small tanks typically used for leopard geckos.