Introducing Leopard Geckos...both female?

Question

I recently acquired my first leopard gecko(female) from my sister, she has a 20-gallon home that she's lived in for at least a year and I've had her for two weeks now. I heard that leopard geckos generally get along well so I figured I'd maximize upon the space and get another. I dumped crickets in before I put in the new gecko(also female) to maybe help distract the elder gecko so this new one could get comfortable...but instead the new one brushed up against the elder and got chomped...I seperated them immediately but am now kinda at a loss for space for my new gecko. Are there any tips to help me re-introduce them to eachother that don't involve watching the new one get it's neck tore open? Btw, the elder is full-grown and the new one is about 1/2 to 2/3 the size of her...is that it? Should I wait til the new one grows a bit to place her back in?

Answer 1

Those geckos do become territorial with age, only try to introduce your new one with you in the room. Try adding a few more hide spots. If that doesn't work you may need another small enclosure until the older of the two acclimates. Good Luck!

Answer 2

Do NOT put them back together!  To begin - they are not the same age/size.  Also, one may be carrying disease which their immune system is handling, but which can flare when it stresses due to the move, or being picked on.  The other gecko may have no resistance, and fall ill when they are introduced.

Geckos are solitary animals in the wild (raising them domestically cannot remove millennium of instinct).  They originate from rocky regions of hard packed earth, meeting up only to fight for good feeding ground, or to mate.  These encounters can end in death.  Two males WILL fight to the death, and can never be housed together other than as very young babies.

The resident female (older/established) is already living in a tank space barely big enough for her.  She sees this tank as HER territory, and any other gecko is an intruder!  A 20 gal. long reptile tank is the min. space requirement for a single Leopard gecko.  Leopard geckos are NOT social, and are territorial.  Fights can result in lost limbs, and even death.

Even in a proper sized tank - geckos must be of the same size/weight when introduced.  If you even attempt to put two together (IF it's large enough 30 gal. is the min. for two which have been raised together, and I'd recommend 40 min. for introducing strangers), remove the established animal from the habitat.  Rearrange EVERYTHING before attemping to put both animals into the habitat together, and stand ready to rescue one.  You will need two dry hides, and two moistures hides per animal, in both the warm and cool ends of the habitat (a total of eight).  Make sure you provide two basking perches (fights for the highest/best perches can ensue).  

This is going to stress the resident female who is used to living alone, and happy about it.   But, do NOT attempt to put that smaller female with her!

Now that you have the smaller female, you will either need to purchase another reptile tank for her, or find her a new home.

You should always research any new animal before you get it, and know it's needs/requirements/behaviors from a baby right on up through adulthood.  

I'll paste some links below to get you started on what you need to learn.  But, note my disclaimer - some of these sites mention use of play/repti sand.  I can't DISAGREE strongly enough with this.  Impaction is the number one killer of geckos.  They should never be kept on loose substrate.  Ask your vet.  Please note in all the photos you view of these sites that THEIR animals are NOT on sand substrate!  You will read contradictory suggestions for care/habitat.  Your vet can resolve these information dilemmas for you.  For gecko health and long life - simplest is best.  After all, the tank is for HER home/needs - not for your aesthetic pleasure.

Here's a basic recipe for gut loading insects:

GUT LOADING CRICKETS for REPTILES:

The number one problem:

Dried up and malnourished pet store crickets and mealworms. These food items are essentially useless. A dehydrated and unfed cricket contains almost no nutrients at all; refrigerated mealworms are even worse. A lot of the variety in nutrients found in wild insects is actually in the stomach content - usually plant material. We need to duplicate this to provide the best for our reptiles; without the risk of illness/disease/parasites which can result from feeding our pets wild insects.

Please note that wax worms, while fattening, are not nutritious.

Basic Dry/Staple Cricket Food:

Equal amounts of dry Iguana food, dry dog food, chick starter mash, oatmeal (you can add dry baby food wheat/rye/barley, etc. as well; even shredded wheat - no sugar).

Grind these items together.  Place in a small lid/bowl for the crickets to eat.  Store the unused portion in the refrigerator or freezer, until needed.

Supplement daily with one of the following: sweet potato, bananas, zucchini, oranges, carrots, strawberries, assorted squashes (acorn, yellow, etc.), grapefruit, green beans, apples, kale, spinach, cactus pads, and just about any other nutritious item you can think of (do not use white/yellow potatoes - these are starchy and only good if used as a moisture source during shipping, and NEVER use Avacado - it's poisonous to most animals).

Provide the dry food and kale at all times (kale is readily available during the winter months, too), rotating the other food items through in succession. The key is variety, and to provide an assortment of varying nutrients. What you are trying to do is offer your reptiles crickets with guts 'loaded' with fresh foodstuffs.

The crickets should be gut loaded for 2-3 days prior to offering them to your reptiles.

Also, provide fresh clean water in a lid/bowl, adding a sponge or folded paper towel to prevent drowning.

  

Don't offer more crickets than the reptile(s) will consume within: 1.) a few hours if it’s a lizard, salamander, frog/toad, or 2.) a few minutes, if it’s a water turtle, so you know the crickets will still be full of the good stuff when eaten.

Be sure to remove any uneaten crickets so that they do not soil your pet's environment/water or bother your pet, once it is full.  Crickets CAN turn the table - and feast upon your pet! Or aggravate them, causing stress and even cessation of eating.

I hope this has been helpful.