What To Do If Your Crested Gecko Is Not Eating
“Help! My Crested Gecko Isn’t Eating/Growing!”
One of the most common concerns we hear is that new keepers are struggling with getting their new crested gecko to eat their food. The truth is, in most cases your gecko is eating—you’re just not around to see it and not noticing the signs. Crested geckos are crepuscular (most active at dawn/dusk), secretive feeders. Don’t panic. We will help you to focus on creating an environment where your gecko eats consistently enough to sustain healthy growth.
Growth Expectations for Young Geckos
Young geckos are in critical growth stages, so it is vital that they receive the correct nutrients regularly to maintain their growth rate.
At our facility, geckos are raised on:
Commercial Crested Gecko Diet (CGD) A rotating mix of Pangea, Repashy, Lugarti, & Blue River changed every 3 days
Gut-loaded, calcium dusted insects 1–2 times per week
By their first birthday, most of our geckos weigh between 25–40g. Growth may vary by climate, with warmer regions often see faster growth, while cooler regions may see slower development.
Step 1: Check Enclosure Size
A common mistake is starting young animals with a setup that’s too big.
While it’s great to have a beautiful large bioactive enclosure ready before you bring your baby home, it can make it difficult for a young gecko to find food, maintain weight, and make it difficult for you to track eating habits.
Too large = stress & missed meals.
Small geckos expend more energy navigating a big space than the calories they take in.Better option: Downsize temporarily to allow your gecko to acclimate and begin to eat before moving them to their final enclosure.
A 6 – 32 qt quarantine bin (depending on the size of the animal) with added screen ventilation and cross ventilation holes is ideal for new animals, young babies, or stressed geckos.
Quarantine tip: Keep all new animals on paper towel for 30–90 days. This makes it easy to monitor waste (and therefore food intake) and catch potential health issues early.
💡 While 18x18x24 enclosures are perfect for adults, juveniles often do not do as well in them for new keepers. Too much space too soon can lead to malnutrition, stunted growth, and lanky body composition.
Step 2: Check Temperature & Humidity
Improper conditions are a top reason geckos eat less.
If a gecko’s ideal conditions are not met, they are less likely to eat well. Here are a few things to check:
Humidity: Allow natural fluctuation.
Night: heavy misting to reach 80%+
Day: drop back to 40–50%
Avoid constant high/low humidity—this causes dehydration, respiratory issues, or oversaturation (a common killer).
Temperature: Keep ambient temps between 70–78°F.
Too cold = sluggish gecko with reduced appetite.
Too hot (80ºs+) = heat stress, potentially fatal.
To raise temperature safely: use a linear UVB bulb (6% or Arcadia Shadedweller) and/or full-spectrum LED grow light instead of starting with a heat bulb which has much higher risk. A UVB and LED grow light can raise an enclosure temperature by 10ºƒ easily.
Basking lamps, heat emitters, and space heaters should not be used unless hooked to a dimmer and thermostat for safety.
All sources of light should be turned off overnight. Temperatures can and should drop overnight, down to the upper 60’s to low 70’s, which is healthy for them.
** Never use a red or moonlight bulb; contrary to some information online, reptiles CAN see these lights and they will disturb their sleep cycle.
Step 3: Check Diet & Feeding Practices
Crested geckos should thrive primarily on a complete CGD—not bugs alone.
Best diets (Favorites of our geckos): Pangea (Fig and Insect, With Insect) and Repashy (Classic Fruit)
Texture matters: Most geckos prefer a thick smoothie consistency, not watery like juice.
Avoid insect bribes: Do not offer bugs until your gecko is reliably eating CGD. If they learn to “hold out,” they’ll refuse prepared diet in favor of insects.
Avoid hand feeding (unless necessary): It creates dependency. Only do so if weight loss is significant and under veterinary instruction. Typically if hand feeding is warranted, your veterinarian will have you use a specialized hand feeding formula like EmerAid Intensive Care. Critical hand feeding formulas are more nutrient dense and offer more benefit and easier digestion than hand feeding crested gecko diet. These formulas also act as appetite boosters to help get your crested gecko back on track.
We have seldom had to resort to hand feeding a crested gecko, and the only warranted circumstances were post-operation while a gecko was recovering physically from surgery.
💡 Use shallow silicone feeding cups—these encourage natural eating behavior and make it easy to spot tongue marks in the food.
Cups that are too deep (such as traditional disposable plastic feeding cups) require the gecko to climb over the lip to eat the food inside. For a very… simple animal, this can be quite the puzzle to figure out, especially if they are already stressed in a new home. Our silicone dishes allow the gecko to walk right up to the cup and easily eat, without having to find a raised feeder or climb over a tall cup edge.
Step 4: Use Paper Towels
Loose substrates make it nearly impossible to track eating habits.
If you suspect your gecko isn’t eating, switch to paper towel.
If you see poop, your gecko IS eating.
Paper towel also allows you to collect samples for fecal testing if needed.
If your crested gecko “isn’t eating,” start by ruling out husbandry mistakes: too large of an enclosure size, temperature issues, incorrect humidity levels, and the type of food you are offering and the way it is presented.
Most of the time, the problem isn’t that your gecko refuses food—it’s that you can’t see the signs that your gecko is eating. With proper care, they’ll eat and grow at a steady, healthy pace!
As always, please reach out if we can help you with any issues you are having with your crested gecko!
We want to make sure your experience with your new pet is as stress free as possible!
