How to Hand Feed a Blind Leopard Gecko
Make sure that any food you are feeding your leopard gecko is smaller than the space between his or her eyes., Make sure that the worms are full of nutrients and calcium., Take your leopard gecko out of its vivarium., Gut-load the insects.,Feed to...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Make sure that any food you are feeding your leopard gecko is smaller than the space between his or her eyes.
This is a crucial step because it ensures easy and pain-free digestion. , This is vital for ensuring that the nutrients are passed on to your leopard gecko.
This is called gut-loading your pet's diet.
The worms will likely be in a box, tub or bag filled with oats.
The oats are what the worms eat and burrow into.
To gut load them, you will need to separate the worms and oats apart and keep the worms in a box or bag on their own for 24 hours; this starves the worms enough so that when they are reintroduced to their food, they will all eat straight away.
Meanwhile you will need to coat the oats in a nutrient and calcium powder which you can buy online or at a local pet store, such as "Arkvits nutrient powder with calcium and D3".
Check that the powder contains all the essentials for your leopard gecko.
After the 24 hours, reintroduce the worms to the powder-covered oats and store them in the fridge as you would and wait another 24 hours for them to be fully gut-loaded.
From this point on, whenever you feed your leopard gecko, add more Arkvits to the worms' food (you won't need to separate them from the oats anymore.) , Hold it belly up (do this while sitting down).
Leopard geckos have a lot of nerve endings in their bottom lip so if you gently stroke it with your finger or thumb, it should open its mouth widely.
Use this short window of time to pick up a worm with your fingers or feeding tongs and drop the worm into the gecko's mouth.
If you're worried that your leopard gecko might bite you during this process, you can take a pair of feeding tongs, pick up a worm and whilst you're holding it belly up, rub the worm against your leopard gecko's mouth and bottom lip and when it opens its mouth, drop the worm in.
After successfully doing this for a few weeks or even a few months, you might want to try rubbing the worm against your leopard gecko's mouth when the gecko stands up in its vivarium, as opposed to on its back, in your hand. , To gut-load locusts or crickets, put a piece of fruit or veg in the box with them.
Regularly coat the food with a nutrient powder (such as Arkvits).
You can use a small piece of carrot or a slice of potato.
It is best to search online for the food you can feed crickets beforehand. , -
Step 2: Make sure that the worms are full of nutrients and calcium.
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Step 3: Take your leopard gecko out of its vivarium.
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Step 4: Gut-load the insects.
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Step 5: Feed to the gecko in the same way as for the worms (see above).
Detailed Guide
This is a crucial step because it ensures easy and pain-free digestion. , This is vital for ensuring that the nutrients are passed on to your leopard gecko.
This is called gut-loading your pet's diet.
The worms will likely be in a box, tub or bag filled with oats.
The oats are what the worms eat and burrow into.
To gut load them, you will need to separate the worms and oats apart and keep the worms in a box or bag on their own for 24 hours; this starves the worms enough so that when they are reintroduced to their food, they will all eat straight away.
Meanwhile you will need to coat the oats in a nutrient and calcium powder which you can buy online or at a local pet store, such as "Arkvits nutrient powder with calcium and D3".
Check that the powder contains all the essentials for your leopard gecko.
After the 24 hours, reintroduce the worms to the powder-covered oats and store them in the fridge as you would and wait another 24 hours for them to be fully gut-loaded.
From this point on, whenever you feed your leopard gecko, add more Arkvits to the worms' food (you won't need to separate them from the oats anymore.) , Hold it belly up (do this while sitting down).
Leopard geckos have a lot of nerve endings in their bottom lip so if you gently stroke it with your finger or thumb, it should open its mouth widely.
Use this short window of time to pick up a worm with your fingers or feeding tongs and drop the worm into the gecko's mouth.
If you're worried that your leopard gecko might bite you during this process, you can take a pair of feeding tongs, pick up a worm and whilst you're holding it belly up, rub the worm against your leopard gecko's mouth and bottom lip and when it opens its mouth, drop the worm in.
After successfully doing this for a few weeks or even a few months, you might want to try rubbing the worm against your leopard gecko's mouth when the gecko stands up in its vivarium, as opposed to on its back, in your hand. , To gut-load locusts or crickets, put a piece of fruit or veg in the box with them.
Regularly coat the food with a nutrient powder (such as Arkvits).
You can use a small piece of carrot or a slice of potato.
It is best to search online for the food you can feed crickets beforehand. ,
About the Author
Jennifer Parker
Committed to making hobbies accessible and understandable for everyone.
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