How to Tame a Tokay Gecko
Gain the respect and trust of the gecko over a period of several months., Use thick gloves., Be prepared to be bitten., Coax your Tokay out of his cage carefully and gently., Avoiding looking directly at the Tokay., Hold the Tokay over your head...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Gain the respect and trust of the gecko over a period of several months.
Tokay geckos are known to be temperamental and can respond aggressively if they are not comfortable with you.
Take your time to bond with your Tokay over a period of several months before you try to handle him.
Providing excellent care for your Tokay will show him you can be trusted and get him more used to your presence., The Tokay gecko’s bite can be quite painful and your gecko may latch on to your skin for up to an hour.
To avoid being bitten, always use thick gloves when you are handling your Tokay.If you do not have access to thick gloves, it is not advised that you try to handle your Tokay.
If you need to subdue the Tokay to clean his cage or remove an item from his cage without gloves, you can restrain him by gently pinning his head down and wrapping your fingers around his neck and body.
However, this is very stressful for the gecko and should only be done when necessary., Many reptile experts argue against handling your gecko unless absolutely necessary due to their territorial nature and fierce bite.
Only work on taming your gecko once you have owned him for a period of several months to a year and feel you are both ready for handling.If you are bitten by your Tokay while handling him, you can try dabbing one to two drops of white vinegar on his snout to get him to release his bite.You can also try dipping him in lukewarm water to get him to release his grip.Try to get him to release his bite gently, as you do not want to injure or threaten him. , Do this to avoid damaging his toe pads and to avoid spooking him.
Call his name and offer up your gloved hand, holding it flat.
If your Tokay moves towards you, slide your hand underneath him.Most Tokays will run away from you if they are not comfortable being handled.
Take this as a sign to try the taming session again the following day, when the Tokay may be more interested in having contact with you. , Your eyes can be intimidating to your gecko.
You can look away and watch your gecko from the corner of your eyes. , If your Tokay is comfortable sitting on your hand, raise your hand so it is over your head.
Your eyes can be intimidating to your gecko.
Placing him above you will allow him to get used to being on your hand.Your Tokay may break a limb or injure himself if he leaps off of a hand and drops a long way to the floor.
You may want to sit on the floor while you handle him to avoid injury to your Tokay. , Once the gecko seems to be sitting comfortably on your hand, keep him above your head and use your finger to lightly stroke him.
Do this for several minutes and then gently put the gecko back into his cage.Your Tokay may get spooked and run away from you, launching himself into the air and landing on the floor.
Be prepared for this by doing a taming session in an open area that does not have any objects or spots where he can hide when he lands on the floor.
It can take several taming sessions to get your gecko comfortable enough to be stroked by you, so be patient and go slow.
Do several taming sessions throughout the week and build up to stroking the underside of his tail.
You need to show your gecko that you are not going to harm to threaten him when you coax him out of his cage. , If your gecko seems comfortable with being stroked above your head, you can work to slowly bring hims down to body level.
Continue to stroke the underside of his tail and try to coax him to walk from the back of one of your hands to the other hand., If your gecko is open to walking back and forth on your hands, this is a good sign he is calm and curious about being handled by you.
As he walks back and forth, he may lick as he walks, tasting his environment.
If you notice him doing this, you are close to having a friendly, tame Tokay.Once your Tokay is calm and tame, he will rarely bite you and will remain pretty docile in your hands.
However, you should not handle your Tokay without gloves, even if he appears tame, to reduce your risk of a nasty Tokay bite. -
Step 2: Use thick gloves.
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Step 3: Be prepared to be bitten.
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Step 4: Coax your Tokay out of his cage carefully and gently.
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Step 5: Avoiding looking directly at the Tokay.
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Step 6: Hold the Tokay over your head.
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Step 7: Stroke the underside of the gecko’s tail.
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Step 8: Bring your gecko to body level and stroke his tail.
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Step 9: Notice if he licks your hands as he walks on them.
Detailed Guide
Tokay geckos are known to be temperamental and can respond aggressively if they are not comfortable with you.
Take your time to bond with your Tokay over a period of several months before you try to handle him.
Providing excellent care for your Tokay will show him you can be trusted and get him more used to your presence., The Tokay gecko’s bite can be quite painful and your gecko may latch on to your skin for up to an hour.
To avoid being bitten, always use thick gloves when you are handling your Tokay.If you do not have access to thick gloves, it is not advised that you try to handle your Tokay.
If you need to subdue the Tokay to clean his cage or remove an item from his cage without gloves, you can restrain him by gently pinning his head down and wrapping your fingers around his neck and body.
However, this is very stressful for the gecko and should only be done when necessary., Many reptile experts argue against handling your gecko unless absolutely necessary due to their territorial nature and fierce bite.
Only work on taming your gecko once you have owned him for a period of several months to a year and feel you are both ready for handling.If you are bitten by your Tokay while handling him, you can try dabbing one to two drops of white vinegar on his snout to get him to release his bite.You can also try dipping him in lukewarm water to get him to release his grip.Try to get him to release his bite gently, as you do not want to injure or threaten him. , Do this to avoid damaging his toe pads and to avoid spooking him.
Call his name and offer up your gloved hand, holding it flat.
If your Tokay moves towards you, slide your hand underneath him.Most Tokays will run away from you if they are not comfortable being handled.
Take this as a sign to try the taming session again the following day, when the Tokay may be more interested in having contact with you. , Your eyes can be intimidating to your gecko.
You can look away and watch your gecko from the corner of your eyes. , If your Tokay is comfortable sitting on your hand, raise your hand so it is over your head.
Your eyes can be intimidating to your gecko.
Placing him above you will allow him to get used to being on your hand.Your Tokay may break a limb or injure himself if he leaps off of a hand and drops a long way to the floor.
You may want to sit on the floor while you handle him to avoid injury to your Tokay. , Once the gecko seems to be sitting comfortably on your hand, keep him above your head and use your finger to lightly stroke him.
Do this for several minutes and then gently put the gecko back into his cage.Your Tokay may get spooked and run away from you, launching himself into the air and landing on the floor.
Be prepared for this by doing a taming session in an open area that does not have any objects or spots where he can hide when he lands on the floor.
It can take several taming sessions to get your gecko comfortable enough to be stroked by you, so be patient and go slow.
Do several taming sessions throughout the week and build up to stroking the underside of his tail.
You need to show your gecko that you are not going to harm to threaten him when you coax him out of his cage. , If your gecko seems comfortable with being stroked above your head, you can work to slowly bring hims down to body level.
Continue to stroke the underside of his tail and try to coax him to walk from the back of one of your hands to the other hand., If your gecko is open to walking back and forth on your hands, this is a good sign he is calm and curious about being handled by you.
As he walks back and forth, he may lick as he walks, tasting his environment.
If you notice him doing this, you are close to having a friendly, tame Tokay.Once your Tokay is calm and tame, he will rarely bite you and will remain pretty docile in your hands.
However, you should not handle your Tokay without gloves, even if he appears tame, to reduce your risk of a nasty Tokay bite.
About the Author
Anna Palmer
Professional writer focused on creating easy-to-follow lifestyle tutorials.
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