Basic care for
White-Striped Geckos (Gekko vittatus)
Housing/Environment:
Young vittatus can be housed in a 10-gallon tank. Adults need
at least a 20-gallon (high,not long). As with any adult reptile,
the more space the better. Vittaus are very good climbers and
have no problems running upside-down on glass. We recommend glass
enclosures for vittatus for numerous reasons, but predominantly
because the vittatus seem to enjoy resting on the glass sides.
Make sure the enclosure is completly sealed and the lid is securely
closed or latched as these geckos are great escape artists.
Males should not be housed together. If you house a male with
a female(s) (only do this with adults), be prepared for breeding
and egg-laying. One male can be housed with numerous females depending
on the size of the enclosure and the disposition of the females.
Our favorite substrate for these guys is 'bed-a-beast' (shredded
coconut fiber) and i highly recommend it for all tropical reptiles.
Substrate choices can also include peat moss, sphagnum moss, and
cypress mulch (many people mix and match these materials). Vittatus
will climb-on and hide-in just about anything. w recommend a wide
variety of sticks, branches, rocks, caves and all kinds of plants.
Real plants are good for keeping humidity levels-up but make sure
to repot the plant with bed-a-beast before placing in their enclosure
and make sure not to get any toxic plants. Fake plants are appreciated
almost as much by the vittatus as they hide in them, sleep under
them, climb-on them, lay their eggs on them, etc
Heating/Lighting:
Vittatus prefer temps in the 80s but will tolerate temps in the
70s and lower-90s. We keep our vittatus in a room usually stays
around 80-85 degrees. Because of this the only light we normally
useis a reptisun 2.O fluorescent during the day for lighting and
heat. If the room gets cold where you keep geckos, use a low-wattage
red or black bulb for heat. Place the heat source on one side
of the tank only. Red bulbs are nice for viewing nocturnal geckos.
We also suggest using fluorescent UV bulbs during the day. When
used in conjunction with a timer, fluorescents pronounce the day/night
and seasonal cycles and also provide small temperature variations.
Using fluorescent bulbs that produce UVB helps geckos metabolize
calcium and, thereby, help avoid metabolic bone disease (MBD).
For those who would spare no expense for their geckos, we would
actually suggest using low-level UVB fluorescent bulbs for all
geckos, but especially arboreals.
Water/Humidity:
Frequent misting (1-3 times per day) is the best way to provide
vittatus with water to drink. Use warm filtered water for best
results.
Being that Vittatus are tropical geckos, they prefer fairly constant
temps and fairly humid conditions. They should be misted at least
once per day. Because we live in an arid climate, we keep a humidifier
in the room to keep ambient air humidity in the room around 60%.
When their cage is misted, humidity levels in the cage reach 75-80%.
We believe vittatus prefer ambient air humidity levels around
75% but can tolerate much drier conditions than most tropical
geckos. If you live in a dry place or your house stays dry, you
may need to mist up to three times a day depending on whether
you use a humidifier in the room or what kind of environment you
use in their enclosure. Having said that, we also know from other
people that these geckos really can tolerate dry conditions and
have no problems with humidity levels around 30-50%. We, however,
prefer to do as much as possible to mimic our reptiles' natural
environment and would urge you to do the same to ensure optimal
health for your pets.
Food:
Vittatus will eat most insects that move enough for them. Crickets
are normally the staple but they will also readily eat roaches,
any type of squirming worm and any flying insect or spider unlucky
enough to come into their enclosure.
If you start babies on a 'worm-dish' method of feeding, they will
eat worms from a dish as well. To do this, simply put some worms
in a little dish that they cannot get out of and that the vittatus
can see in. Place this dish right below an area you see the vittatus
at often. Eventually, the vittatus will come to recognize the
dish of worms as a food source and will come around looking for
worms frequently.
Worms are good because they have a good high-protein, low-fat
ratio (except waxworms;) and because they don't carry as many
parsites as crickets do. Make sure that small vittatus get crickets
no larger that the space between their eyes. Never feed worms
that appear to be too big or too hard to crunch-up for the geckos.
Be sure you acquire your crickets from a clean source and feed
them fresh food (you may use "gutload" if you like)
and water. Do not feed moldy food to your crickets (this can cause
serious disease).
Supplementation:
We recommend supplementing with calcium ('rep-cal' or 'absolute
calcium') at every feeding for babies and every-other feeding
for adults. Vitamin supplements (herptivite) should be dusted
on crickets once per week for adults(depending on their cycle)
and twice per week for babies. Feed babies limited amounts of
crickets (and/or worms) everyday or every-other-day. Feed adults
every 2-3 days.
We recommend using Par-Zap
monthly to keeps parasites at bay and as an alternative to expensive
vet medications that can be harsh on a gecko's system.
We feel these geckos are
under-rated. Beside being absolutely gorgeous and hardy, CB vittatus
can even become quite calm and easily handleable if they are not
traumatized as babies through handling and, if one is respectful
and gentle with their handling.
