leopard gecko Philippines

You will need an incubator to ensure that the eggs stay at a constant temperature. Temperature fluctuations during incubation can cause deformities, if not potentially kill the embryo.

Types of Incubators:

Homeade:

• You can use old styrofoam coolers with heat tape attached to a thermostat.
• An aquarium with an under water heater set to a particular temperature. Have the eggs in a tupperware of some sort, partially sitting in the water.

Commercial:

• 1602-N Hovabator (DO NOTuse a Hovabator with a turbo fan or with an automatic egg turner. The thermal fan will dry out hte eggs even if you have optimum humidity in the deli cups.)
• Nature's Spirit

Temperatures:

The sex of leopard geckos is determined by the temperature of the incubator. Usually if the egg is incubated for at 90º F, it will be a male, or if it is incubated at 80º F, it will be a female. If the eggs are incubated at 85º F, the chances your chances are 50/50 for either a male or a female, but you then run the chance of having "hot females" or "cold males," where they will not breed and are usually more aggressive.

Humidity:

You should keep a cup or two of water within the incubator if you are using a bought incubator. This will raise the humidity levels. You can also pour water in the bottom of some bought incubators to accomplish the same thing.

Incubation Medium:

When in the incubator the egg needs to be in some sort of container with a moistened bedding. Vermiculite and perlite work great. Hatch-rite is a new incubation medium that has great results as well; with Hatch-rite, you do not need to add water. Super Hatch is another good option that is now available.

The eggs will incubate for about 40- 60 days. The higher the temperature, the faster the embryo will develop, and in turn the sooner it will hatch.

About a week before the baby hatches, the egg will swell, becoming noticeably larger. A few hours before the baby hatches, you will notice deformation of the egg.

Baby geckos have a hatching tooth that allows it to break out of the egg, but they soon loose the tooth after its purpose is served.

During the hatching process, the baby will take breaks, retreating back inside the egg, so if you are watching the baby hatch, do not worry. The overall process is fairly quick. The yolk sac will still be attached to the baby, so it is a good idea to leave the baby in its container for a little while so that the yolk sac can be rubbed off.

Housing

Leopard gecko hatchlings must be housed with geckos of their size. If they are placed with larger geckos, they may be bullied and become stressed. This is the only time that you can house male leopard geckos, but as they age, you will have to separate them. Just remember to house the geckos with others similar to them in size, reducing any problems that may occur.

Reptile carpet and paper towels are both great when housing young leopard geckos. Remember to place a small bowl of water in with the hatchlings. Make sure that it is not filled too deep to prevent the baby from falling into the water bowl. Overall, the hatchlings should be given the same treatment as an adult, receiving the same heat and overall care as an adult.

Diet

Hatchling leopard geckos will not eat until their first shed, which is usually about three to five days after hatching. You should have small crickets or mealworms ready to provide the hatchlings. Remember to appropriately size the feeder insects to no more than than the width of the space between its eyes.

Handling

Handing the hatchlings should be as minimal as possible because to the baby, you are gigantic, and handling the babies will frighten them, possibly stressing them out. You should allow the hatchling time to grow a little. Wait about a month before handling the babies, and when you thing the babies are ready to be handled, start slow, just as you would the adults.