Aggresive crested gecko

[Logan _theLeo]

I got my first Crested gecko yesterday and I'm sad about his backstory. So I found him and two other crested geckos(seperate enclosure s) being advertised on Craigslist for 60$ each. I got in touch with the author and basically told him I wouldn't be able to afford a rehoming fee but could provide for him. I also knew I'd have to purchase many items for the inside . So they were rehoming 3 crested geckos (seperate enclosures) because the family was moving and had lost interest, the family previously got the geckos from another family friend 2 years back( the geckos are 5 years old). The dad had taken the geckos because his kids wanted them. I think its a horrible idea to buy a long term commitment pet for a child and expect them to completely care for it on there own. So the kids eventually lost interest and the dad was caring for all three geckos (one for each kid). He contacted me back and said it was ok that I could take him without a rehoming fee. I went to pick up the gecko the next day, I didn't know what gender he was at the time because the dad didn't know(its obvious the geckos a male). I also found out the dad hadn't purchased any new cage accesories since he aquired the geckos, what I was being given was what they got from the past owner. Also the gecko hadnt been handled in FOUR YEARS. Before pick up I almost didnt get the gecko because work hasnt been the best because of the whole covid 19 situation and the dad emailed me back almost immediately saying no please come get him, he ran out of food but I'll even give you money to buy him some. I thought that was interesting as I had never been given money from someone rehoming a pet. Any way the cage setup isnt that good (besides the pangea ledge). I named the gecko Seiya and love him already. It dosemt surprise me how aggresive he is. He hasnt been handled in years and there no enrichment in his enclosure. I ordered a ton of stuff off amazon and a few from petco for Seiya (and also for Logan my Leo). My hopes is thy with more hiding spots he wont be as aggressive and overtime he'll get more used to me. I'm receiving my order on Wednesday so I'm waiting till then to deep clean the enclosure as he's already scared so I might as well do all the cage changes at once. The picture is what he came in.

 

[LoveReps]

That's what I dislike about the popularity in the in the pet trade business. They do not care where the animals end up, they just care about earning money. I get they need the money for the businesses to stay open, but these are living organisms that need proper care and respect.

It's a cruel world out there. It's bad enough that adults can't take care of their pets let alone letting children do so. Most people buy these pets out of impulse and figure out they require more care than what the people want to provide. I hope your new crestie gets used to handling better.

Aliza (staff member here) has a story posted on Gecko Times about her crested gecko, Big Bad Bart. Very interesting story about his aggression so I hope she can provide some help on the subject when she gets on later.

Best of luck to you.

 

[acpart]

I'm sad to say that Big Bad Bart passed away recently, probably from crypto (check out geckotime.com/archives for my articles about crypto). He was pretty aggressive. I have owned a lot of leopard geckos as well as a smaller number of cresties and geckos of other species. I have found, unfortunately , that frequently a gecko has character traits that aren't so amenable to change. I've even had geckos hatch in my home from the same parents that were raised the same way and one will tolerate handling and one won't. An additional issue with some crested geckos is that they can be cage defensive, meaning that they get very aggressive when approached in their territory. If you want to try to handle him (after he's had time to adjust to his new enclosure), I'd recommend using a cloth to wrap around him for picking him up (unless you don't mind getting bitten) and then hold him and talk to him for a short period of time. Avoid a situation where he may jump out of your hand and make you chase him around the house (you could hold him over a box, for example. I have also found that cresties are much more likely to drop their tails out of fear when someone is trying to grab them than leopard geckos, for example. If he still has his tail, just be aware of this possibility (I have a crested gecko who isn't aggressive, but just hates being held and he dropped his tail once when I needed to get him out of his enclosure). Good luck with him!

Aliza