Did you know that Crested Geckos were once considered extinct? Since they were “rediscovered” in 1994, their population has been increasing.
Whether you’re looking at becoming a Crested Gecko owner or you already are one. It’s important to get their feeding schedule right.
You should feed a Crested Gecko daily. While baby and juvenile crested geckos will need to eat once a day, adults are okay with eating 3 times a week. Crested geckos have been known to go weeks without eating anything in extreme cases.
Crested Gecko Feeding Schedule
Feeding schedule summary
| Age | Feeding frequency |
| Babies and juveniles (<18 months) | Once a day |
| Adults (>18 months) | 3 to 4 times a week |
Baby and juvenile crested geckos
Since baby crested geckos and juveniles are still growing, they need to eat once a day. Keep in mind that crested geckos are considered babies or juveniles until they are at least 18 months of age.
While some will be fully mature at this point, others will continue growing until they are 2 years old.
Adult crested geckos
These geckos usually eat 3 to 4 times a week. Generally, the bigger the crested gecko, the more times you’ll have to feed them.
So to start you off, you can choose three permanent days of the week to feed your gecko and add a treat day here and there to see how they take it. Just keep in mind that adult crested geckos eat bigger portions than babies and juveniles.
What should you feed your crested gecko?
Crested geckos usually eat food mixes, insects, and fruits.
The majority of crested gecko owners rely predominantly on commercial food mixes. Some of the most popular brands they use are Pangea, Repashy, and Zoo Med. They are particularly loved because they have produced crested gecko food for many years.
Commercial food mixes
One of the most popular commercial food options that pet owners offer crested geckos is meal replacement powders.
This is because they are not only affordable but also easy to use and store. Before feeding them to your crested gecko, all you have to do is add an appropriate amount of water to them as indicated on their packaging.
Fruit
Even if you primarily depend on commercial food mixes to feed your crested gecko, it’s important to offer fresh fruit as well, especially as treats.
After all, crested geckos eat a large amount of fresh fruit in the wild.
What’s more? Fruits make up a big percentage of food mix ingredients. Also, they are easy to serve to your gecko.
You can easily cut them into slices and serve them on a plate.
Alternatively, you can use them to make fruit puree. Once you’re done, you can pour the puree into some ice cube trays and pop them in the freezer.
The resulting cubes can serve as treats for your crested gecko for weeks to come. If your crested gecko is an adult, you can occasionally use organic baby food fruit puree as an alternative.
If you stick to using fresh fruits, though, ensure that you dust them with calcium and vitamin D3 before every feeding session.
This is particularly important because fruits usually have a high phosphorus content. Some great fruit options for crested geckos are mangoes, strawberries, papayas, bananas, watermelons, figs, and pears.
Insects
Crested geckos have teeth so you can feed them insects. The best insects for these geckos are crickets, calcium worms, and Dubia roaches.
Other options like butter worms and wax worms should only be offered rarely – at most once or twice a month.
Whichever insects you’re offering though, ensure that you gut load and dust them with calcium and vitamin D3 beforehand.
Also, be careful with the portion sizes you provide. While baby and juvenile crested geckos should only be offered 3 insects per serving, adults can handle 6.
Another thing to keep in mind is that you should never offer your gecko an insect that is wider than the space between its eyes.
Water
While crested geckos have been known to get water from licking droplets off leaves, providing a bowl of water is still advisable.
Final thoughts
Like many other types of geckos, crested geckos don’t need to eat every day unless they are babies/juveniles, or sick.
So if you have a healthy adult crested gecko, just choose three or four days that you have the time to feed it and stick to them.
Ultimately, consistency in feeding is what will keep your reptile healthy and stress-free.
