Feeding Leopard Geckos

Leopard geckos are naturally insectivores, and their diet consists of assorted insects. Crickets will make up the bulk of your leopard gecko’s diet. Waxworms, mealworms and silkworms can be given occasionally as a way to spice up your gecko’s diet with a variety of food that will keep them healthy. You can often find prepackaged worms at pet stores, but some leopard geckos will only eat live food. You’ll have to experiment and see what works best for your individual gecko. Live worms should be placed in a food dish to prevent them from burying themselves in substrate. Adult leopard geckos should be fed four food items daily, or your can feed them every other day if you offer twice as much food. Young leopard geckos sometimes have difficulty eating adult crickets, so it’s best to offer them smaller, younger crickets.

Because leopard geckos eat so many crickets, buying a large amount at one time is often practical. Crickets can be kept in a plastic container in a dark place with bits of newspaper for them to hide under. Crickets, like any animal, need to be fed. You can purchase vitamin-enriched food at a pet store for your crickets, but they can also eat carrots.

Supplementing a captive leopard gecko’s diet with vitamins is an absolute must. Dusting crickets and worms with a reptile, calcium-vitamin powder will be very beneficial to their health and development. Calcium powder should also be offered in a small dish in your leopard gecko’s terrarium. Leopard geckos are quite good at regulating their own vitamin intake if you give them the resources to do so.

Maintaining a constantly clean supply of water is another aspect of feeding your gecko. You’ll need to change their water every single day to remove any contaminants that may be in it. When leopard geckos shed, they often sit in their water dishes, which can cause them to become a bacteria breeding ground.